As Baltimore-area residents worry about the economy and look for discounts and cheaper options, a massive Goodwill store is preparing to open in Laurel.
The 22,000-square-foot store opening next month will be the largest of the nonprofit’s 31 locations in Central Maryland and on the Eastern Shore, Goodwill officials said.
Lisa Rusyniak, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Chesapeake, said she has seen a mix of families, professionals and Gen Z shoppers embrace thrifting.
“As prices have increased over the last few years, people are looking at secondhand,” Rusyniak said. “We’ve seen about a 35% increase in sales at our busiest stores. It’s not uncool to buy secondhand stuff anymore.”
The Baltimore Banner thanks its sponsors. Become one.
Financial unease is driving shoppers — especially younger shoppers — to TikTok and other social media to share money-saving tips, a trend often called “recession core.”
Apparel prices have increased more than 14% since late 2020, according to Consumer Price Index data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Across the Baltimore region, Goodwill and other thrift stores are seeing a boom in sales, employees and customers say.
Thrifting ”is the new era,” said Deborah Kennedy, past president of the Junior League of Baltimore, a nonprofit community organization run by women that owns the Wise Penny, a thrift store on York Road established in 1970.
“A lot of younger people are coming in because they want vintage things. We see anywhere from 30 to 100 people come in per day,” Kennedy said.
The Baltimore Banner thanks its sponsors. Become one.
Rusyniak said regional stores receive a total average of 1 million donated items each year.
The new Laurel store will sell clothing, books, furniture and housewares from donations, typically priced $5 to $30. Higher-end collectibles, antiques and jewelry will be listed on ShopGoodwill.com, the company’s auction site.
The building, previously a Salvation Army thrift store, is at 10350 Guilford Rd. in Howard County, close to the intersection of Route 32 and U.S. 1 and near the Anne Arundel County line. It will employ 20 people full time.
Rusyniak said some of the full-time hires will be people who have recently been released from prison, have gaps in their work history or have transitioned off public assistance.
As the store prepares to open, inmates within six months of release are sorting through clothing to place on racks, as part of Goodwill’s transitional work program with the prison system.
The Baltimore Banner thanks its sponsors. Become one.
The sorting entails selecting clothing in good condition from donation boxes. Items with holes or stains are not placed on the sales floor, according to Rusyniak.
If clothes aren’t purchased within a month, they will go to Goodwill’s outlet in Kenwood, a neighborhood in Rosedale. If they still don’t sell, the clothes will be purchased by buyers in developing countries for resale.
Rusyniak said about a third of these clothes will be repurposed into rags for the automotive and janitorial industries.
But shoppers seem eager to snap up goods from resale.
“When I go to the mall, I end up being broke,” said 17-year-old Karis Wyatt from North Baltimore as she shopped at a Savers Thrift Store in Parkville. “I personally do not like spending my own money. I went to Nordstrom, and it cost $79 for just a shirt. When I go thrifting, I still have enough money to do whatever I want.”
The Baltimore Banner thanks its sponsors. Become one.
Wyatt said her first time thrifting was with her aunt, and she purchased bell bottom pants. “It was such a good deal,” Wyatt said. “I wore the pants every day like a uniform.”
Emma Kaufman, 31, a lifelong thrifter from Hampden, said she plans to continue thrifting as long as she can.
“New clothing feels more and more like a luxury to me,” Kaufman said. “Almost everything I wear is thrifted, and it’ll probably continue to be that way.”
Comments
Welcome to The Banner's subscriber-only commenting community. Please review our community guidelines.