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‘I was SHOCKED when I saw these just sitting there’: Shopper finds iconic lounge chairs at Goodwill for $39.99. Then a manager intervenes

‘I thought these were lawn chairs lol.’

Photo of Mars Ramos

Mars Ramos

Two panel design with a woman looking at the camera while speaking, next to an image of a Goodwill sign

Caroline Ecker (@carolineecker) is a seasoned thrifter. Her page boasts several thrift finds, deals, and restoration projects. This time, the thrift gods blessed Ecker with a design classic, the Wassily chairs, but not without a good fight.

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Once Ecker first noticed the chairs at the Goodwill, they had a hold sign on them. Meaning, that someone was coming back to purchase them.

“Oh my god, someone just got the steal of a lifetime on these, oh my god, $39.99. Wow, what a lucky score,” Ecker says.

The next day, she comes back to the Goodwill. The chairs are still there. At first, Ecker says the workers told her she could purchase them. She excitedly takes the hold sticker off the chairs. However, she was unable to buy them once a manager got involved.

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“So the manager comes up, who fake named me by the way, and she’s like, ‘Well I think they’re sold. So why don’t you come back tomorrow, but we’re probably gonna be closed for snow.’ I know right, that’s annoying,” Ecker explains.

However, on day five of fighting for the chairs and after speaking with three managers, Ecker comes home with the chairs.

The video has 220,800 likes and 3.7 million views as of Saturday.

Goodwill hold policy

So what’s the deal? Why did Ecker get the run around for these chairs? It could just be that the store was following procedure. According to Goodwill’s site, you can place items on hold that you’re thinking about buying for up to 24 hours.

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“My guess was that it was an employee or a friend of one that knew it was a great deal and they just tried to keep em as long as they could so they could purchase them,” one viewer speculated.

“They won’t sell them to you even without a sold sign is because people steal the sold signs and then try to buy the item. Meanwhile the original buyer comes to pick them up and they’re not there,” another viewer guessed.

In a different video, Ecker followed up about the ordeal and the challenges of buying the chair in full.

The Daily Dot has previously covered a customer’s challenges with purchasing Goodwill items. For example, one customer had an item’s price changed on them at the register.

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What’s the hype?

The Wassily chairs that Ecker got a hold of for $39 are typically worth hundreds or thousands of dollars. The chair can cost as much as $3,633 brand new. A dupe can cost as little as $156 on Ali Express. Either way, Ecker got a steal and if she ever tries to resell these, whether it’s a real Wassily or not, she can most definitely make a profit.

The chair is famous for its minimalist design and Bauhaus roots. It was originally designed by Marcel Breuer. Breuer fell in love with the design of his first bicycle and it’s lightweight but sturdy composition. He decided to make a chair that was just as impressive as his bike and created the Wassily chair using tubular steel. The chair has become a design icon in design collections like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art.

However, some don’t get the hype.

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“My first impression was clinic waiting room chair. I had to google these. The pricing in these is wild! Nice score! I would have walked right past them not knowing they were worth a thing,” one comment read on Ecker’s video.

“Oh I thought these were lawn chairs lol,” another said.

Whether these chairs are your style or not, it’s safe to say Ecker got a solid thrift find.

@carolineecker Insane thrift find at Goodwill!! #ThriftWithMe #Thrifting #ThriftFinds #Goodwill #VintageFinds #VintageChairs #Thriftok ♬ LoFi Hip Hop Commercial – Milan Paloyannidis
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The Daily Dot has reached out to Goodwill for comment via email and to Ecker for comment via email and TikTok message.


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