Simplified: Thrifting is more than a hobby for a couple of Sioux Falls women. They've made a business out of turning one person's trash into treasure, and they chatted with Sioux Falls Simplified about why you should consider shopping secondhand this holiday season.

Tell me more

For Jenny Putzke, thrifting started in middle school as a way to find clothes in her "grunge phase" during the 90s.

  • Today, she runs The Small Shoppe, a business where she curates and sells her thrifted finds.
"I like having something that maybe not everyone else has," Putzke said.

Green Penny Goods founder Aftyn Janzen is also a lifelong thrifter who decided to turn her hobby into a business a few years ago.

  • She had just moved back home to Sioux Falls, and as she was selling some of her own things online, she began to realize the relationship objects can have with memories and history.
"When you have the opportunity to buy from an estate owner or a garage sale, it's so fun to get the background on a piece and know the history," Janzen said.

Why it matters

  • Both women said they've encountered a certain stigma about shopping secondhand when it comes to gift giving – the idea that a used item is seen as not as "good" of a gift. But they disagree.
  • Secondhand shopping is a way to both shop locally and more sustainably by re-using things that have already stood the test of time, they added.
  • It's also a way to stretch your dollars while still giving a unique and thoughtful gift, and these thrifting businesses make it easy to shop secondhand without having to search through garage sales and Goodwill.
"Let the people who love doing that do that," Putzke said. "Let me have that time consuming part, and as the consumer, you can view it at your leisure."

How can I support these local thrifting pros?

Both Green Penny Goods and The Small Shoppe run primarily on Instagram. You can see their inventory and connect for local pickup.

You can also find Green Penny at a pop-up shop from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday in the Jones Building. Janzen will be right next to The Source coffee shop.