I’d heard rave reviews of Children’s Orchard from various friends for a number of years, but I’d always sort of let them go in one ear and out the other thinking that a store specializing in name brand children’s clothing, furniture, accessories, and toys was likely well out of our budget, especially when it came to used clothing.
However, since I’m always willing to try something once and the girls were in need of new clothes, we decided to stop by our local store a few weeks back. And was I ever in for a shock!
Fellow frugal friends, I’ve been missing out all these years; Children’s Orchard is a goldmine! While there were some like-new Tommy Hillfiger and Gap clothes which I quickly passed by as the price tag was near $10 each, there were boat loads of nice clothes for $4 and less! In fact, I found a number of nice tops for the girls for $2 each.
The store we stopped at was well organized and offered an abundance of clothes from newborn to size 10-14. The average price seemed to be around $3 per item and the majority of the clothes were in great condition. Not all of the brands were name brand–I saw a number of Wal-Mart brands sprinkled throughout the clothing racks–but there were also lots of Gap, Children’s Place, and Gymboree items to be found, almost all of which were very reasonably priced.
[See those adorable almost-like-new matching shirts my girlies are wearing? I found them for $1.99 at Children’s Orchard!]
We had a budget of $25 per girl and I was thrilled that we were able to stretch that to buy enough to last them through the Fall with some extra month left over (well, if Kaitlynn doesn’t up and grow two sizes in two months like she’s been known to do!). A few of the items we purchased were brand-new and still had the tags on!
For those of you in need of 0-12 month clothes, I would especially recommend this store as I noticed most of the prices on those clothes were $1.50 or less–which I consider to be a great price for like-new, high quality baby clothing. Judging by the quantities of clothing at the store we shopped at, you could easily buy your baby’s entire wardrobe for a year or more for less than $50 (or more like $25 if you’re a minimalist like me!).
Children’s Orchard often has storewide sales which would net you even greater savings! You can sign up for their email updates here and be notified of when the store nearest you is holding their sales. In addition, Children’s Orchard will buy back your gently-used children’s clothing. More details on that are here.
Just went to Children’s Orchard Fill-A-Bag Event for the first time today! This event was wonderful!!! The price for each bag was $6.00, but if you brought a canned good for the local pantry it was $5.00. The bags were good size…about the size of a regular plastic grocery bag. The event took place in the parking lot of the store and it was well organized with 5-6 bins of each size (0-6 months, 6-12 months, etc. all the way up to size 8 or 9). My husband and I were able to easily fill 2 bags and came away with 56 items!!!! All of the items we got were in good to great condition and many of them were name brands (Gymboree, Osh Kosh, Carters, Ralph Lauren, etc.) Some of them were Faded Glory, Okie Dokie, Lullaby Club. A few of the outfits we got were brand new with tags still attached!!! So $10.00 for 56 items, my husband and I spent approximately .17 cents on each item! Now I call that a superb deal!!!!
I’m admittedly a brand label snob.I brought 2 huge rubbermaidl filled with brand new gymbo clothing and they offered me only $160 for them which were about 50 pcs!! Being pregnant I could not take the clothing back home as I was tired and they took advantage of me! I will never go there again.Most of the clothing were in terrible condition and I would never put stuff from TCP kohl’s and target on my son.
I’m admittedly a brand label snob.I brought 2 huge rubbermaidl filled with brand new gymbo clothing and they offered me only $160 for them which were about 50 pcs!! Being pregnant I could not take the clothing back home as I was tired and they took advantage of me! I will never go there again.Most of the clothing were in terrible condition and I would never put stuff from TCP kohl’s and target on my son.
We used to have a Children’s Orchard nearby, but they closed it for some reason. I have 4 children and I’ve found the way to shop for clothing is to shop end-of-the-season sales for the kids to wear the following year. i’ll get pants for $3.99 from Children’s Place and tops for less than $2! All brand new and from good stores like Children’s Place, Kohl’s, Target, Sears, etc! I can spend about $100 and get clothes for all four kids for the following year! Sometimes I spend less b/c my 3 youngest are boys and the hand-me-downs usually work! I love getting brand new clothes for resale prices!
The Orchard rocks!!! I get all my kids play clothes there and i save a ton of money!!! Why buy new clothes for them to play in??
I have gone to different Children’s Orchards in MA and have not found their prices that great. I once went to one around Halloween time to see if I could find a “used” costume, thinking it would be cheaper than buying a new one. They still wanted $20, which is more than I was willing to pay, for one. I ended up buying a brand new one for less than $10 at Old Navy. As weird as it sounds, I have found their selection to be better in the stores located in the more affluent towns.
C.O. is a great concept.You get to recycle your old items and get cash for it.For those who have stated about their pickiness with buying items all I have to say is if it was not carefully hand selected merchandise you would not but it.Would you spend money on stained faded old clothes?No! So why should C.O. give you their money for your old stained faded worn out items?They have special lighting to detect stains and are very fair with their prices both in selling and buying.The store in Brunswick Ohio is awesome with the greatest employees.
C.O. is a great concept.You get to recycle your old items and get cash for it.For those who have stated about their pickiness with buying items all I have to say is if it was not carefully hand selected merchandise you would not but it.Would you spend money on stained faded old clothes?No! So why should C.O. give you their money for your old stained faded worn out items?They have special lighting to detect stains and are very fair with their prices both in selling and buying.The store in Brunswick Ohio is awesome with the greatest employees.
I love Children’s Orchard. It’s the best resale store in my area for children’s clothes. I’ve had a little trouble catching my youngest son’s clothes there. My store has a TON of girls clothes. I was able to get my niece 7 outfits for just under $15 during one of their sales.
I got an email from then this morning. Our store is offering $10 when you purchase $35 during July 19-August 2.
I’ve sold items to the in the past and they seem to pay better than some of the other resale shops.
I love Children’s Orchard. We have several in Southern California that I go to and at each one I can find something different. They have everything from Kohl’s to Nordstrom’s clothing at unbelieveable prices. Some of you have complained about how picky they are about what they’ll buy from you, but remember they know what will or will not sell at their stores. Besides I’ll bet you don’t mind buying the same things that they’ve chosen to be picky about.You can easily go there and spend a fraction of the cost, to clothe your children and guaranteed no one will notice that your kids are dressed in resale clothing. Constantly I am asked where I have bought an outfit that my child is wearing; and I’m proud to tell them at Children’s Orchard. I for one am grateful that they are picky, because I know I can trust what I buy is fully inspected. This is a fantastic place to go and it’s nice to be recognized when I go in to shop. How many other stores do you shop at, that when you go in and don’t have the baby with you; they’ll ask you where she is today! That alone is a comfortable and warm feeling. Well, I guess I’ve made my point. Run don’t walk to one of their stores, sign up for their club and make other mom’s envy the trendy way your children are always dressed.Then go treat yourself to something special with the money you’ve saved, cuz as a mom you’re worth it 🙂
I love the CO in Tulsa, OK!! They know me by name even if I have not been in for awhile. Although I never go too long in between visits because I get so excited about what great deal I will find. I especially like their “fill-a-bag” days. You can fill a bag of play clothes for only $5.00. A lot of times I do not find anything wrong with the “play” clothes. I cannot say enough good about Children’s Orchard in Tulsa, Oklahoma!! Selling is also easy. They have one day a week when you can drop in and sell your clothing to them without an appointment. Our CO definitely has great customer service, selection and prices.
I just had to post that your daughters are too cute. Great picture!
I recently signed up in the store for their Mom’s Club and received a $5 store credit via email! The day I signed up, I found a very gently used Gymboree bomber jacket (that my son loved in his current size) in the next size up for only $3.50!! It was only the past season’s jacket so it was a wonderful deal!
I love Once Upon a Child and Children’s Orchard. My favorite is when Once Upon a Child has their $1 sale on all clearance items. I did that last year and brought home wardrobes for all my kids. It was great!
I have to agree with the posts against Children’s Orchard, at least in Tulsa, OK. The theory is great, but I really don’t see the logic in their pricing, as I can get a brand new shirt on the clearance rack or in a 2-fer deal at Old Navy for what, 50 cents more than the used one at CO?
And I have to agree that the couple of times I went into CO before giving up, I felt like a nuisance (I shouldn’t be, as the customer), like my child was a terror (he wasn’t), and like they were counting down the time until I’d get out and let them get back to whatever they were gossiping about before, whatever magazine they were reading, etc.
I know that TOTALLY is dependent on which store you visit, which employees are working that day, etc., but for me, I was turned off enough to not go back again when my second son came along.
For those of you with great locations, that’s awesome. For me, though, I’d rather just keep shopping the sales at Old Navy and similar, stocking up in several sizes for future seasons when they clearance something to a dollar or two, etc.
Sounds like you got some great bargains! I checked and we don’t have Children’s Orchard, but I do have several favorite consignment stores that I buy and sell at. I generally pay $1-3 per shirt, shorts or pants- I even found almost-new shoes (including Stride Rite sneakers) for $1 a pair a few weeks ago. This really does save a lot of money!
We have several Once Upon A Child locations and one Children’s Orchard in my area. I have shopped them from time to time, but I find I can often do just as well with the clearance racks at Kohl’s and Target for most of my daughter’s needs. Most things at our Children’s Orchard were priced from $5 – 20 the last time I was there but they were mainly higher-end brand name clothing. Once upon a child will charge $3 for a cheap onesie from Wal-mart that was only $5 brand new. That seems high to me.
I was lucky enough to hit the jackpot and buy my 19th month old’s summer wardrobe at a garage sale. All of it was baby gap, carters or old navy and was $1 or $2 per item.
I’d never heard of this before, but it sounds great. Maybe Monica and I can make a trip there on our upcoming visit!
I’ve been to several Once Upon a Child stores and have not been impressed with most of their prices especially on clothing.
No Children’s Orchard or Once Upon a Child in NJ…what a shame. I really can’t stand some of our thrift stores, I would really like a place for “gently” used clothes.
My experience has been a little different. They are extremely picky about what you take to sell there. They are actually extremely rude (mine anyway) if your clothing isn’t “good enough” for them. I brought 2 bags of name brand, very good condition clothing in various sizes and they said they weren’t good enough. I have consigned clothing for 10 years now and have never had a store treat me the way children’s orchard treated me. Oh, and while I was shopping I pulled worn and stained clothing off their racks – that they were selling for someone, but they wouldn’t take my clean and unworn clothing?
Also I went for their bag sale one time and the bag was so small that I could only fit 3 items in it. I won’t be doing that again. If you have younger children you could fit more, but my kids are a little bigger.
Great post! I just moved to western Atlanta and there is a fabulous store here called Kid to Kid in Douglasville. Same concept as CO – franchised gently-used children’s gear. We picked up my son’s upcoming 1st birthday gifts there this weekend – $12 for a Fisher Price Dinosaur (the kind that you toss the balls into and it makes a ton of noise, perfect for a one-year old) and a Fisher Price Walker for $7. They are in fantastic condition after a thorough cleaning. They even gave us a free book through their book club – once per month you can choose a book under $1.99 with any purchse. What a great way to keep all the plastic gear from becoming part of a landfill and to save money. I may never hit BRU again! 🙂
I only buy my daughter’s clothes at either Children’s Orchard or Once Upon a Child. If you sign up for CO’s email- they have a $10 a bag sale every few months.
I have never heard of this store, but if I pass by one I will definitely stop thanks to your tip! I love great finds like that!
I have found the same in the CO close to me as Cindy. Also the bigger my kids get, the harder iit is to find things for them. nice Boys clothes above a size 5 is next to impossible just because they are boys and boys are tough on clothes. Occasionaly our CO will have a fill a bag sale and for $5 a bag (they give you a small walmart type bag) you can stuff it full.
Although I have had some diappointments with my CO lately, for babies and toddlers, this is the best place EVER.
way to shop! wish i had one near..
“Once upon a child” sounds very similar. That’s what we have here in the TAMPA area.
I agree!! Children’s Orchard was extremely high standards for accepting clothing. You can feel sure that the clothing has no staining. Our Children’s Orchard has a section called “Playclothes.” These clothes are nice but didn’t quite pass inspection. They are priced much lower. I bought my daughter a winter jacket for $4 that was missing a button. Other “playclothes” items had other imperfections but they would be suitable for playing at the park (jean shorts with a little fading, etc). Check out this lower priced section, esp if you don’t mind a little mending.
Is Children’s Orchard like Kid-to-Kid?
We’ve sold clothing at Children’s Orchard before and found it to be a relatively good deal, though it does not compare to what I’ve been able to earn selling clothing in “lots” through e-bay and craigslist.
The clothing does need to be in “mint” condition, generally, and I was a bit frustrated by the need to set an appointment, wait in the store for the sorting process (with my kiddos in tow), then take my leftovers to Goodwill, etc. For some reason I always seemed to have a baby in my arms, and then needed to haul baskets of newly laundered clothing in and out to be inspected…it just felt overwhelming!
I also sometimes couldn’t find “rhyme or reason” to why some items were accepted and some rejected.
Finally, I was frustrated later to discover that some of the items I had sold were priced at $10-12…the store promises, I believe, to give you 25%? of the selling price but that couldn’t have been, in my case, as they bought about 75 items and paid me about $25 total. Has anyone ever negotiated for a better price at CO?
FYI, in the past Children’s Orchard has added 25% to the buy-back money if you will take it in store credit as opposed to cash.
One of my best outgrown clothing strategies has been to donate them by the bagful to my dear neighbors, who appreciate them to a level that makes $25 seem insignificant!
Children’s Orchard has saved me literally hundreds on baby and toddler gear. I even bought most of my maternity clothes there for super cheap. The one near my house is constantly putting new stuff out, so if I don’t find something one week, I just try again the next. They send great coupons via email so I definitely suggest signing up for their mailing list as well.
I can’t say enough good things about this place, I am definitely a ‘regular’ there.
You can also SELL your used clothes back to them. They will give you cash OR a store credit for 50% more. They are very fair with their buying policy and give a nice sum for good quality clothing. You get more from them typically then you would selling your baby/kid items in a yard sale. I actually have an appointment there Thursday for 3 big bags of clothes! I have been going there for years but now my kids are getting too big for their sizes!
You can also sell your old clothing to them and recieve either cash OR store credit which is 50% more. They are very fair with giving you a good price on clothing, more than you would get for a yard sale. I actually have an appointment there on Thursday to sell 3 bags of clothing!
Oh, I LOVE C.O.!!! When we lived in California, there was one right behind our little apartment complex. I had two baby girls, a husband in school, and a teacher’s salary to support us all. I loved being able to clothe my babies in nice, quality items and still have money left when I walked out the door. People always commented on how much we appeared to spend on our girls (“How can you afford to spend so much on babies who will only get to wear those clothes a few times?”), and were shocked when I told them how little we actually paid. I’m sorry you didn’t find C.O. sooner, but I’m glad you are no longer missing out!
As a side note, some C.O. locations will also sell handmade items made by local moms. This might be a money-making, WAH idea for crafty/sewing/knitting/ etc. moms. You can speak to the manager of the local store and find out if they might be willing to “host” items for sale.
We don’t have any of these stores in PA but we have consignment stores called “Once Upon A Child”. They are just like you described “Children’s Orchard”. The bulk of my children’s clothing comes from this store because I often don’t have time to go to endless yard sales to find what I need. A number of friends and family members have asked me where I get my children’s clothes because they thought my children were often dressed in such nice clothes!