Is there a secondary market for suits that I'm not aware of that isn't Goodwill? Clothing depreciation after purchase is almost as bad as cars, doesn't matter the quality.
It's a bit thin on the ground in the US. In the UK at least, the "charity shop" is an important part of the circulation of used clothes (and to a lesser extent books and ornaments). They are small and common rather than large and rare like Goodwill (I live in a medium-sized market town, population ~50,000, and there are dozens of them) and are usually run directly by charities with specific goals. It's a standard part of the culture to donate unwanted clothes, and the volume of donations is such that they usually only sell undamaged clothes. It's perfectly possible to only buy charity shop clothes, and because they're so cheap (price of a beer or two) one's wardrobe tends to grow quickly - until you run out of space and have to donate stuff to make room.
So it's a nice system. It's a shame that the US hasn't adopted it.
Used clothing markets in the US are so well supplied that donations are often packed into gigantic bales and shipped to Africa as mivumba, where they are recut into sizes more suitable for the local buyers. There is some debate as to whether the secondhand clothing trade to Africa helps or hurts the African economy, but I'm inclined to believe the former.
News and entertainment media will sometimes find an article of clothing with identifying marks in Africa and trace it back to the original owner as an anecdote for a story about some aspect of the industry.
But that aspect aside, there are slim pickings with respect to less casual attire in charity resale shops, especially if you stray too far from median sizes. Your best bet at finding a suit that you might actually want to wear is at estate sales for the recently deceased, or stores supplied by the unclaimed airline baggage clearinghouse in Alabama. The higher the value of the clothing, the less likely the owner is to give it up willingly.
We have plenty here in the US. I live in a town of population 70K and we have at least a dozen charity shops and probably as many consignment stores. Any place in the US I've spent significant time I've found at least one nearby charity shop for the rare occasions I needed a suit or peice of furniture.
I don't know who told you we haven't adopted that system. Tell them to look for a Salvation Army, they're like the Star Buck's of charity shops around here, there's one on every corner.
Thanks for the correction. My opinion came from my own experience living in the US nearly a decade ago. In my entire 20 years there I saw a single Goodwill and no Salvation Army shops (though I'm sure they existed). Perhaps I was unlucky, or unobservant, or things have changed, but at any rate from that environment the UK was a revelation.
Marshall's, TJ Maxx, Men's Warehouse, etc. You can also travel to Hong Kong, Beijing, or one of many other cities in Asia and have them tailored for much less than retail department store prices.
