Geography of Eau Claire Thrift SaleTwo Hypothesis: 1) Thrift sales will correlate with lower income home owners2) Thrift sales will correlate with median household income and owner occupied homes

Thrift Sales: A National Phenomenon

• Nationally, nearly 20 million thrift sales annually. That is a ratio of 1 sale for every 11 people. (Combs, H., et al. 1980)

• Reasons for holding sales range from housecleaning to desiring a profit, but 8 out of 10 hosts interviewed in Eau Claire stated, “getting rid of junk” as a main driver.

• Since the 1960s, thrift sales developed as a way of compensating for the material consumption pervasive in American lifestyles. (Soiffer, S., & Herrmann, G. 1987)

Idioms of “Thrift” Sales

S a l e Te r m Re g i o n U s e d

Ta g N o r t h e a s t

Ya r d N o r t h e a s t /M i d w e s t

T h r i ft M i d w e s t

P o r c h S o u t h

G i m m e S o u t h

R u m m a g e W e s t

S u m m e r W e s t

G a r a g e N a ti o n a l

• Terminology varies by geographic region

• Term/Region associations found through brief reference of large periodical classified sections

• Debate exists for term implications

January

Febru

ary

March April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

Perc

ent o

f Tot

al S

ales

Per

Yea

r

Source: J Combs, J Bauer, P Burger. Journal of Cultural Geography. Vol. 25, No. 3, October 2008

Data Collection• Thrift sale locations collected from the Leader-Telegram using August listings of sale advertisements from 2007-2009

• August listings were highest in number, corresponding with others research in Jonesboro, Arkansas

• August coincides with peak of the national moving season

Mapping the Data• Addresses were mapped using Google Earth Pro

• 587 data points collected with 507 points plotted

• 80 points were unused due to incomplete or inaccurate address, or the addresses listed were in surrounding towns

• Data points were then superimposed onto US Census data maps

• US Census block groups were used as they are the lowest level for which geographic area decennial data is calculated

Thrift Sales and Median Household Income

• Comparison of thrift sales to median household income show a correlation • Lower density of thrift sales in lower median income block groups

• Thrift sales cluster in middle median income - upper median income block groups

Jonesboro, Arkansas research supports findings (Combs, H., et al. 1980)

• Sale locations were positively correlated to income • The block group with the second highest income per household held the highest amount of sales. Nearly 31% of the households in that block group held a sale.

• The lowest income block group did not hold a sale over the course of time sampled

Sales per 1000 Households Median Household Income

Thrift Sales and Low Median Household Income

A near absence of sales in lower median income neighborhoodssuch as North, Downtown, and West

Median Household Income

Thrift Sales and Median Household Income

Thrift sales held largely in middle median income to upper median income block groups

Thrift Sales and Owner-Occupied Homes

Thrift sale density is lower in block groups with lower proportion of owner occupied homes

Thrift Sales and Median Income/Owner-Occupancy

The variance of median household income values within these block groups does not establish a pattern

Median Household Income Owner Occupancy

When compared to owner occupancy, the pattern becomes apparent

Interpretation and Implication for Future Research• Original hypothesis was disproven, however literature was supported

• Higher income families are the impetus for the trickle down of goods in a population.

o People attend thrift sales in higher or equal class neighborhoods (Herrmann, G. 2004)

• Home owners tend to accumulate more items over time and purge these items to make space for more/newer goods

• Geocoding and statistical analysis of addresses using GIS could yield greater insight into correlations

References1. Combs, H., Bauer, J., & Burger, P. (2008). A geographical analysis of garage sales in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Journal

of Cultural Geography, 25(3), 331-346. doi:10.1080/088736308024728612. Herrmann, G. (2004). Haggling Spoken Here: Gender, Class, and Style in US Garage Sale Bargaining.

Journal of Popular Culture, 38(1), 55-81. Retrieved from SPORTDiscus with Full Text database.3. Soiffer, S., & Herrmann, G. (1987). Visions of power: ideology and practice in the American garage sale.

Sociological Review, 35(1), 48-83. doi:10.1111/1467-954X.ep5473250.4. Indowebsites. (n.d) Facts and Definitions. Retrieved from http://www.yardsalehelp.com/pages/definitions.html

on 2010, August 2.5. Bogwood Films, Inc. (n.d) Bogwood A-Z. Retrieved from http://www.bogwoodfilms.com/a_z.html

on 2010, August 2.6. Classifieds. (2009, May). Thrift sales: Section 40-47. Leader-Telegram pp. 3C7. Classifieds. (2009, August). Thrift sales: Section 40-47. Leader-Telegram pp. 3C8. Classifieds. (2008, August). Thrift sales: Section 40-47. Leader-Telegram pp. 3C9. Classifieds. (2007, August). Thrift sales: Section 40-47. Leader-Telegram pp. 3C10. Pamplin Media Group. Classifieds. (2001, 09 August). Garage/Rummage sales. Retrieved from

http://www.greenlightclassifieds.com/index.shtml on 2010, August 09.11. The Providence Journal Co. (2001, 09 August). Yard sales. Retrieved from http://www.projo.com/classifieds/ o

on 2010, August 09.