hatfeathers
VFG Member
Your kid\'s clothing is about to become illegal!
In case you hadn't heard, the CPSIA got a law passed quickly last year as a reaction to the high number of recalls of crappy China-made toys that were laced with lead. Sounds good, right?
Well, the law was then made retroactive. What does that mean?
It means that as of Feb 10th, any stock you may have that was produced before that date, any used clothing, toys, gear, in your kid's closet will be ILLEGAL to resell.
That's right! No garage sale, no ebay, Etsy, no private website, no consignment store, no thrift, NO ONE can legally sell an item produced before that day. Charity shops cannot give it away, thrifts cannot sell it, YOU cannot sell it. Technically, by letter of the law, you can't even hand it down to your neighbor's kid.
What if it's vintage? Nope, can't do it. It was produced before the date the law goes into effect and was intended for use by someone under 12.
Where will all this stuff end up? Just guess. The Salvation Army, Goodwill, your local church charity shop...if they intend to follow the law, they will have to dump it. It will fill their dumpsters and they will have to PAY to get rid of it. That means they will have that much less to put towards good causes.
My local SA store makes 5% of their monthly sales off of kids clothing sales. Not much? Multiply that average $600 in sales by 12, then multiply that number by the number of SA stores there are in the country (1370 stores). Suddenly that 5% at my rinkydink SA is nearing $9 MILLION that will not be there to provide relief after storms, shelter battered women, provide education and medical assistance...not to mention giving people a way to extend their budgets when clothing their kids. Same goes for Goodwill's 2200 stores, and their assistance to the mentally challenged who just want a job.
Yes, there should be something in a law that makes it illegal for these toy conglomos to bring crappy lead laced toys into the country. However, not every toy in the whole world has lead in it. Not EVERY article of clothing should be treated like toxic waste.
My Mom started her own business from the ground up, selling gently used, consigned, children's goods. She is looking at loosing everything she's put into this business. She will loose her retirement job, I'll loose my occasional part time job, and every family that shops her store will loose a venue that helps extend their strapped incomes. Her consignors will loose a source of income. It is likely that she will have to close up shop, if not forever, at least for a few years. She is not the only one.
This law needs to be dissected, rewritten, and reviewed carefully.
Will you help? Time is of the essence. Please follow this link to the NARTS website (Natn'l Association of Retail and Thrift Stores), they're like the VFG for thrifts!
There you will find out some more info, and can follow links to sign a petition and write your area's representatives to voice your opinion.
Sign the petition started by NARTS
Thanks!
Jenn
In case you hadn't heard, the CPSIA got a law passed quickly last year as a reaction to the high number of recalls of crappy China-made toys that were laced with lead. Sounds good, right?
Well, the law was then made retroactive. What does that mean?
It means that as of Feb 10th, any stock you may have that was produced before that date, any used clothing, toys, gear, in your kid's closet will be ILLEGAL to resell.
That's right! No garage sale, no ebay, Etsy, no private website, no consignment store, no thrift, NO ONE can legally sell an item produced before that day. Charity shops cannot give it away, thrifts cannot sell it, YOU cannot sell it. Technically, by letter of the law, you can't even hand it down to your neighbor's kid.
What if it's vintage? Nope, can't do it. It was produced before the date the law goes into effect and was intended for use by someone under 12.
Where will all this stuff end up? Just guess. The Salvation Army, Goodwill, your local church charity shop...if they intend to follow the law, they will have to dump it. It will fill their dumpsters and they will have to PAY to get rid of it. That means they will have that much less to put towards good causes.
My local SA store makes 5% of their monthly sales off of kids clothing sales. Not much? Multiply that average $600 in sales by 12, then multiply that number by the number of SA stores there are in the country (1370 stores). Suddenly that 5% at my rinkydink SA is nearing $9 MILLION that will not be there to provide relief after storms, shelter battered women, provide education and medical assistance...not to mention giving people a way to extend their budgets when clothing their kids. Same goes for Goodwill's 2200 stores, and their assistance to the mentally challenged who just want a job.
Yes, there should be something in a law that makes it illegal for these toy conglomos to bring crappy lead laced toys into the country. However, not every toy in the whole world has lead in it. Not EVERY article of clothing should be treated like toxic waste.
My Mom started her own business from the ground up, selling gently used, consigned, children's goods. She is looking at loosing everything she's put into this business. She will loose her retirement job, I'll loose my occasional part time job, and every family that shops her store will loose a venue that helps extend their strapped incomes. Her consignors will loose a source of income. It is likely that she will have to close up shop, if not forever, at least for a few years. She is not the only one.
This law needs to be dissected, rewritten, and reviewed carefully.
Will you help? Time is of the essence. Please follow this link to the NARTS website (Natn'l Association of Retail and Thrift Stores), they're like the VFG for thrifts!
There you will find out some more info, and can follow links to sign a petition and write your area's representatives to voice your opinion.
Sign the petition started by NARTS
Thanks!
Jenn
