Penny Shortage Reaches Peachtree City Thrift Shop

If you’ve been counting your pennies and going thrift shopping this holiday season, you may notice a small change at the register. Clothes Less Traveled, the nonprofit thrift shop with locations in Peachtree City and Newnan, has announced it will round cash change to the nearest five cents as its supply of pennies runs out—a local ripple effect of the national phase-out of the U.S. penny.

The organization said it has already struggled to secure enough pennies to operate normally. “We are not penniless… yet,” CLT wrote in a recent Facebook post. “We did have to go to three banks to get enough pennies for this week though.” Staff added that pennies “will be even harder to come by soon,” and thanked customers for their patience as the shortage deepens.

A national decision behind a local inconvenience

Earlier this year, President Donald J. Trump directed the U.S. Treasury Department to stop minting new pennies, calling the coin “wasteful” because production costs exceed its value. The directive was publicly announced in February 2025. The Treasury moved forward, placing its final order for penny blanks in May 2025.

According to multiple reports, the final penny intended for everyday circulation was struck on November 12, 2025, marking the official end of the one-cent coin’s production for circulation.

Existing pennies remain legal tender, but with no new coins entering the economy, retailers nationwide are experiencing shortages—made worse by hoarding and slowed circulation as more consumers pay electronically.

What shoppers need to know

Clothes Less Traveled’s rounding policy will take effect once its final supply of pennies runs out. The nonprofit emphasized that this change affects only the coin portion of cash transactions. Credit and debit purchases will not be impacted.

The thrift shop explained that change will be rounded according to standard retail rounding rules:

• Change ending in 1 or 2 cents → round down to 0
• Change ending in 3 or 4 cents → round up to 5
• Change ending in 5 or 0 cents → exact change
• Change ending in 6 or 7 cents → round down to 5
• Change ending in 8 or 9 cents → round up to 10

“We are doing our best to keep pennies available for you,” CLT wrote. “But there will come a time when we cannot get any more.”

A small change with a community impact

Clothes Less Traveled supports dozens of local nonprofit partners, and steady operations help fund those missions. The organization said it is committed to keeping the checkout process clear, fair, and simple as national coin supplies tighten.

“Thank you so much for your patience and understanding,” staff wrote.

Clothes Less Traveled continues to welcome shoppers and accept donations at both its Peachtree City and Newnan thrift store locations.