HALF PRICED BOOKS, WHOLLY GOOD
FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
Meet Thryft: Singapore’s first online second-hand bookshop dedicated to sustainability.
By Shauna Teo
An example of what Thryft packages mail out, books wrapped up neatly with paper and twine.
PHOTO: Shauna Teo Sha Min
Thryft is Singapore’s first online second-hand bookshop. Marketing themselves as a sustainable solution to book reselling, and with a mission towards a plastic-free experience, I decided to purchase the aforementioned titles from their website. At first, I was slightly sceptical of the quality of these books.
Infographic by: Shauna Teo
According to a survey I conducted among 110 respondents in 2020, 70.9 per cent of people prefer reading physical books. With the demand for printed titles, Thryft provides beloved classics such as Macbeth and Prejudice for a fraction of the cost.
“I was scrolling through my Instagram and I saw an ad about second-hand books and I looked, and it was about Thryft, so I got really curious,” said Mr Mohammad Hariiq bin Mohammad Hozzaidi when asked about how he discovered Thryft.
Similarly, I stumbled across Thryft through their social media advertisements. As an avid-bookworm myself, I searched on.
“Thryft does a stringent quality check of the books we receive to ensure that they hit our minimum guidelines,” said Ms Choy Jia Yu, one of Thryft’s Co-Founders, she emphasises that Thryft only accepts books with no torn or broken book spines, no torn pages, and no water damage.
More confident, I decided to put Thryft’s plastic-free promise to the test. Having purchased from other e-commerce websites before, I was familiar with the sight of a grey poly-mailer bag. What showed up in my letterbox was a very different sight.
“They tend to use recycled materials along with twine to tie it all together”, said Ms Dana Yeo, better known by her Instagram following as @lighthousereads, a book review account who had also purchased from Thryft recently.
True enough, the brown paper package that was tightly bound with a length of twine. No plastic wrapping or tape seen, the only adhesive was a strip of water-soluble glue used to attach my address.
“We use repurposed paper or boxes that are unwanted by companies and are always on the lookout for new sources of second-hand packaging” said Ms Choy when asked where or how Thryft sources for their mailing materials.
“When most people think about second-hand books, they think of books that are yellow and dusty. However, second-hand books do not need to be poor in quality,” said Ms Choy.
Thryft categorises their books with labels such as “Almost New”, “Good”, and “Well Loved” to describe their current state. Both of my books fell under the “Good” category, where Thryft claims calls out for yellow pages and brown spots due to age. I believe that the yellowed look added to the charm of books, and chose to perceive them as unique treasures I now possess.
Excerpts from the Thryft website describing the condition of their books to set buyer expectations. SCREENSHOT: Shauna Teo Sha Min
One gripe I did have with the website was that they do not provide pictures of the books current state, only through the description of the book’s condition was I able to roughly assume it’s appearance. However, for the bargain of the three books I purchased for a fraction of their retail price, I was willingly to give Thryft a chance.
When books are donated to Thryft, donors can rest easy knowing their preloved books will either be adopted by a potential reader, or be recycled instead of discarded.
“To Thryft, sustainability is not just about the environment but also includes social aspects. Hence, we donate 10 per cent of all our profits to different organisations.” Ms Choy said. “We also partner with Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) like Blessings in A Bag to list their books at our platforms at no cost, with 100 per cent of the profits going back to them.”
As summarised by Ms Yeo, “It (Thryft) definitely sets a good precedent and example for other bookstores,” regarding the environmental practices put in place.
With these sustainable practices in place, in addition to the conscious thought towards the community, I believe Thryft is setting the standard in a new age of the book market. With the benefit of purchasing beloved titles at reduced costs, in addition to contributing to a sustainable cause, there is still hope for physical reading in today’s digital society.