Dowdy Goodwill Industries of Southern California is getting a facelift.
The new look boasts a larger, color-coordinated interior, with hues of blue, kiwi green and white, gray carpeting, hanging glass lamp fixtures and bold banners to identify clothing sections.
“There was a perception of thrift stores that they were junky, stinky places for low-income people. Now, you can think of it as a Marshalls or Ross (Dress For Less),” said Tracy Powers, vice president of Goodwill’s retail division for the L.A. region.
The upgrades are part of an ongoing reorganization that has seen the opening of new Goodwill outlets in Culver City, Reseda, Van Nuys and the USC area. Stores in Santa Clarita and North Hollywood doubled in size, and plans are underway to double the size of the West L.A. store next year and relocate the Hollywood store to a larger site in Los Feliz. The charity, which boasts 24 local stores, also is eyeing three new sites in West L.A. and one in Pasadena.
Customers will find merchandise organized by category and color as opposed to size, as was previously the case. And yes, there will be dressing rooms.
“There was a mentality in the past that people stole, but how can you sell apparel without dressing rooms? It doesn’t make sense,” Powers said.
Other area thrift stores appear to be remodeling on a more gradual basis.
“We don’t have a plan where every single one of our stores will look like a McDonald’s,” said Maj. Neil Saunders, general secretary of the Salvation Army’s Torrance-based Adult Rehabilitation Centers, which runs 61 thrift shops in Southern California.
Goodwill’s revamp will not come with additional costs for consumers, according to Powers.
“We try to move the inventory every six weeks. So if it doesn’t sell, it goes to the clearance center (in Lincoln Heights) and we sell it for only 75 cents,” he said. “But that doesn’t get remodeled. It just has bins and bins of clothing.”
Founded in 1919 to provide job training and job placement for the difficult-to-employ, the organization has over 1,500 stores nationwide that collectively earn $1 billion in sales. Locally, the regional chapter brought in $24 million in 1997, nearly $13 million of the amount from store sales.
“This is real quality. I’ve been to other Goodwill stores which aren’t so spread out. This has space and you can breathe,” said Violet Clark, who stops about twice a week at the La Brea store. “I’ve already spent $200 since the store opened and I’ll be spending more.”
