The History of Thrift Stores舊物商店發展史

盧?！≠R鶯/譯

The thrift shop1， which in the United Kingdom people call the “charity shop” and， in other places around the world， the “opportunity shop，” is a sales location for used goods of all kinds， including apparel， furniture， music， electronic equipment， and general merchandise.

thrift shop（舊物商店，直譯：節儉商店），在英國稱為charity shop（直譯：慈善商店），在世界其他地區也有opportunity shop（直譯：機會商店）的叫法，是銷售服裝、家具、唱片、電子設備、日用百貨等各類二手商品的場所。

These stores are often run by non-profit agencies that accept donations of serviceable items and then sell them to the public at inexpensive prices.

此類店鋪多由非營利性機構經營，接受捐贈的可用物品，再以低價轉售給公眾。

Where did the idea come from？

點子從何而來？

An easy mistake to make is to assume that thrift stores were a purely benevolent outreach2 of Christian mission groups in the late 19th century. After all， the Salvation Army3 started collecting donations for its original stores in 1897 with its “salvage brigade，” which allowed that group to provide food and housing for the homeless men who pushed carts through the street soliciting cast-off goods.

人們容易將舊物商店誤認為是19世紀晚期基督教傳教團體的一種純粹慈善服務。畢竟，救世軍在1897年就開始通過 “救物隊”為其最早的慈善商店募集捐贈——無家可歸者推著小車走街串巷收集廢棄舊物，以此換取食宿。

Methodist outreach workers started what is now Goodwill4 in Boston in 1902， not only collecting second-hand goods but providing unemployed workers for area residents who needed cheap labor.

1902年，循道宗教派的社區工作者在波士頓創辦了現在的善意實業國際，不但收集二手物品，而且為需要廉價勞動力的當地居民提供失業工人。

As benevolent as these missions may have seemed， they were actually a response to another phenomenon that Christian leaders observed.

這些看起來像是做慈善的活動其實是基督教領袖們對所觀察到的另一種現象的回應。

New immigrants to America， especially European Jews， had trouble finding employment. To earn money， they pushed carts through major cities streets， collecting and selling second-hand goods. Though they were scorned for this behavior， these new citizens also made good money.

新到美國的移民，特別是來自歐洲的猶太移民，很難找到工作。為了賺錢，他們推著小車在各大城市走街串巷收售舊物。雖說這些新公民為此遭人白眼，但也確實賺了不少錢。

Thus， when Christian leaders began to emulate this behavior， they did so to make money. These funds were raised to underwrite5 their mission work. Still， assuming that thrift stores were an outreach effort to the poor is backward. In America， these stores began as an effort to raise money—that could then be used to assist those living in poverty.

所以說，基督教領袖們開始效仿這種行為時是為了賺錢，以此籌措資金來支撐其傳教活動。即便如此，認為舊物商店是向窮人提供援助的看法倒果為因。在美國，開辦這些商店的初衷是籌錢，然后再用這些錢來幫助窮人。

Its interesting to note that the social conditions which prompted the rise of thrift stores around the beginning of the 20th century parallel many of the social conditions that exist today.

值得注意的是，促使舊物商店在20世紀初興起的社會條件與當今的社會條件有不少相似之處。

Then， as now， new technology had transformed economies around the world; transportation advances made it possible for people to move around the globe faster than ever before; international hostilities and changing borders resulted in waves of immigrants coming to America—and not always receiving the warmest welcome. Then， as now， the thrift store is an adaptable， viable， environmentally sustainable response to many human needs.

當時和現在一樣，新技術徹底改變了世界各地的經濟狀況；……