Thrifty Business Review (PC)

Thrifty Business finds comfort in the simple side of entrepreneurship—the laid-back routine; the flexible working hours; the patient customers; and the sweet yet sickeningly vibrant environments that would put even the likes of Barbie to shame. It doesn’t revert back to haggling, and it doesn’t aim to facilitate a painfully taxing butterfly effect that can cause your business to collapse under financial pressure. Rather, it settles for the wholesome nature of the business—the forgiving transactions; the burden-free stock management; and the lazy routine that involves little more than being in the moment, though never out of pocket or incapable of making big moves in the thrift field.

In most cases, I would have eventually found myself struggling to make ends meet after the initial fiscal year. I’d have little stock left to sell, and I’d have a whole host of clients who would always be wanting the next “best thing” to fall into their hands. In Thrifty Business, however, I never quite reached that point. In the back of my mind, I knew that something bad was going to happen, and that a depleted stock would ultimately lead to the collapse of an otherwise healthy business model. Yet, that never happened. And I was grateful that it never came to pass, too, as, at least up until that moment in time, I was mentally exhausted from previous business affairs. Thrifty Business, on the other hand, never quite set out to degrade me or put me in a bad situation. It just wanted me to sell and, to some extent, to simply enjoy the journey.

If I wasn’t out organizing stock and compiling quirky heirlooms on a bubblegum pink shelf, I’d be making small talk with fleeting customers. At no point did I ever need to check my bank account for spare funds, because frankly, the game made it abundantly clear right from the get-go that a source of income wasn’t the priority. Instead, it told me that owning a store, as well as enjoying the little moments that came to pass every once in a while, was the most important aspect of the experience. I wasn’t familiar with that, yet I embraced it with open arms like I would a long-lost friend after a midsummer meltdown.

The idea was simple: create a thrift store out of the vibrant pinks and blues of a nineties-themed toy box and sell upwards of five hundred trinkets to various customers. The process of obtaining a gold standard in the thrift field wasn’t all that complicated, either, in that it primarily consisted of organizing items in a Feng Shui-like fashion, and earning small pockets of Community Points to fund additional cosmetics and visual upgrades. The more Community Points I had, the more I was able to unlock. A small wing in the store, for example, could be expanded into separate sections, and, with enough points, a barebones pastel-coated corridor could be equipped with more items—wallpaper, pieces of furniture, color-coded shelving units, and thematic designs, for example.

With there being little to no financial constraints to juggle, Thrifty Business made the process a lot easier to navigate. It was never about earning a quick buck to fuel ulterior motives; it was about taking the time to build a candy-clotted store and learn about the folk who would often pass through to share their stories. And honestly, I loved everything about that. It wasn’t an advocate for capitalism; it was a companion for the world according to fledgling storytellers. I could talk, knowing full well that I didn’t need to be anywhere else, and I could sell, knowing that a bad decision wouldn’t sink the company and leave me in financial ruin.

I suppose it was the little things that made the journey all the more enjoyable, such as finding treasures in loot-filled boxes, or the satisfaction that came from tidying the smaller spaces to house themed trinkets of all shapes and sizes. It was never a difficult process, and at no point did I struggle to wrap my head around the concept that, if I had an organized space, then I’d also have unlimited access to a trove of possibilities. I can’t say that it ever truly managed to unlock that inner businessman mentality, though it did give me a lot of creative freedom to explore vast opportunities around the store.

If games like Unpacking are to your liking, then it’s highly likely that you’ll enjoy stocking the shelves and decorating the nineties-themed corridors of Thrifty Business’ adorable diorama. Again, it might not be the most complex business management simulation game on the market, but it is a charming one that’s as equally fun as it is satisfying to slowly carve through. The simple fact that it’s made to feel accessible and convenient to play, too, makes it just that little easier to fall into and learn on the fly.

All in all Thrifty Business feels like an easy game to recommend, especially if you’re a fan of clean and simple organization sims that put an emphasis on the social aspects of a traditional shopkeeping game. It might not scratch that itch that yearns for financial independence, but it does tap into the guilty pleasures that tie in with owning a business and filling it with all of the cozy embellishments of a nineties-themed thrift store. If that sounds like your idea of a good time, then you’ll probably enjoy fleshing out the quarters of this world and spending a couple of hours with its thrifty neighbors.

Verdict

Thrifty Business makes a habit of skirting around the financial jargon and the dire consequences of an economic crisis in an effort to prioritize the cozy qualities of entrepreneurship, with an oh-so-wholesome approach to ownership and a whole host of sickeningly sweet elements that befit a charming shopkeeping sim.

With hundreds of vibrant trinkets to proudly display and a tapestry of customers to share stories with, you shouldn’t struggle to find your way in this beautiful ode to nineties thrifting, that’s for sure. It might not wax that craving for in-depth shop management spiel, but it is likely to satisfy your hunger for wholesome content and ridiculously colorful aesthetics. I’d count that as a win.