Rainwear Central Rainwear Forum

I have now idea what an 'opshop' is, presumably some sort of charity shop in the US? This girl seemed pleased to find a blue plastic mac at one recently. Found on enjoygram.

Phil.

think you are right, opshop, charity shop, much the same, donated goods sold to benefit good causes. They used to be good hunting grounds for pvc rainwear and the like but less so now

Never heard the term "opshop" before. Generally we refer to them as "thrift" stores, but they're basically the same as charity shops in the UK - secondhand stores run by charitable organizations like Goodwill, the Salvation Army or to a lesser extent the St Vincent dePaul Society. And yeah, they used to be a veritable treasure trove of vintage pvc raincoats, but not so much these days.

it is an older term for 2nd hand store, Opshop short for opportunity shop. I grew up in Atlantic Canada and we use that term, well my parents do.

Separated by a common language ... lol

Opportunity shop, op-shop - Australia, Canada
Charity shop - United States
Thrift shop - United Kingdom

Having said that, I agree with Merv - I used to find a reasonable amount of used PVC rainwear through them, but it's really dried up during the last couple of years or so. I still make the occasional spectacular find, but they are few and far between.

My best buys:

1) A double-breasted rubber mac for $10 - sold for $550 on eBay
2) A genuine Australian Dunlop rubber/cotton reversible raincoat. Paid $25. Sold privately for $450
3) A red matt Rukka raincoat. Paid $20. Sold on eBay for $110

Mind you, that's over 10 years or so!! I'm not going to get rich this way. lol

Sorry Mason, never heard them referred to as thrift shop in the UK, simply charity shops I think. Good luck with your hunt for those raincoats.

Phil.

have to agree, think Mason has his continents muddled, definetly charity shops in the UK (unless someone knows better) but no matter, its all the same thing

We call them thrift shops here in the States. I had made a surprise purchase of a nylon Donna Karen nylon pants while staying with my aunt and uncle. Most recently, I bought discontinued unlined PVC rainsuit from a friend in Colorado. It looks as if it was manufactured in the 80s from a company that went out of business. It's a shame they went out business because, they make attractive rainwear.