USF’s Swap Shop is just around the corner. Literally. 

Bulls can stop by the Swap Shop, located in Holly J, to pick up some free items – from furniture to clothing. 

Students, staff and faculty had the opportunity to donate items for the Swap Shop earlier this week on Monday and Tuesday. But ‘shopping’ won’t start until Thursday.

The shop will be open on Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. People don’t need to donate in order to grab items.

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Daniel Usma, assistant director for Residential Education, said staff will sort all donated items on Wednesday to ensure the shop is ready for the following days. 

This year’s event has been slightly upgraded from last year, Usma said.

Usma said students who have attended the event in the past noticed many of the clothing items were folded on tables, and they had to dig through them. 

This year, however, the shop is going to be more organized. Usma said clothing will be sorted by size on clothing racks to make it a little easier for students to look through them.

Usma said the event has been a huge hit in the past and that a line is always formed outside of Holly J on shopping days. Students are usually in line an hour and a half before opening, Usma said. 

This is the first time the Student Government will provide water and snacks for students while they wait in line. Usma said the initiative is supposed to avoid health emergencies.

“We understand that it’s hot in Florida, so we are going to have a little snack station outside,” Usma said. “We will also provide water for students to ensure their well-being.”

There is a rule of five items per time in the shop. This means that if students want to shop five items and go back to the end of the line, they can do so.

However, Usma said there is no guarantee students will be able to get into the shop again since there is usually a big demand.

The five-item rule was created to ensure that everybody gets “a little something,” Usma said.

“We want to reach as many students as possible, so we want to collect as many things as possible so people can shop more,” Usma said.

Usma said students can expect to find a lot of clothing, furniture, and decorations. Many vacuums and a fair number of mini-fridges are also usually donated, he said.

Nicole Baker, sophomore health sciences major, said the Swap Shop initiative is important to USF students since it is a way for them to get things they need at no cost.

“It’s a good, affordable way for people to get stuff,” Baker said. “For those who don’t have a car, it makes donating things more accessible.”

Usma said the Swap Shop is an opportunity for students to get things they need for the next year.

“One of the best things we can do is repurpose things that we’re no longer going to use,” Usma said. “Instead of having them end up in a landfill, we can have someone else reuse them.”

 Items that aren’t picked up after Friday will be donated to The Spring of Tampa Bay, a non-profit thrift store that assists survivors of domestic violence and their children.

 During The Oracle’s interview, Baker was carrying a hamburger-shaped backpack. When asked if she was expecting to find items as creative as hers, Baker said she would walk into the shop with no expectations.

 “I’ll check it out to see what they got,” Baker said. “Maybe they have something cool that will surprise me,” Baker said.

  Usma said he is “super happy” to hear students’ ideas about improving the event for the following years. 

“If there are ways that our student population thinks we can make the event better and more impactful on the community, we’re open to ideas,” Usma said.