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05-09-24 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders
05-09-24 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders 1200 1200 SVDP USA

By Dave Barringer, CEO

Most of the time, this column is written just for you. This one, however, is written at least as much for the leaders who will come after you, and even the generation that will come after them.

When we don’t take care of something, weird and bad things can happen. Don’t mow your lawn and nature takes over at the first opportunity. Ignore your bills and you can be out on the street. Forget about your spouse’s birthday and, well, let’s not go there!

About once a month I hear of a new situation where a store or other special work was initiated, funded and actively run by the Society for years, but because of inattention to good governance or benign neglect, the “business” slowly changed. The operational purpose may be exactly the same, but now it’s a parish ministry rather than a Society special work. Worse, over time even the parish isn’t involved; it has fallen into the hands of well-meaning but often overwhelmed volunteers who may not even belong to a formal organization. They just wanted to help and now they are running it and feel they own it.

This third-generation operation carries some significant issues. For example, it may still formally be a Society property, thus liable for legal, financial, tax and other obligations. It may still carry the Society’s name and logo on the door even though our local group doesn’t have a leadership or operational role any longer, or even knows of its existence. We can also imagine other scenarios, few of them good, when people give to what they believe is a nonprofit such as the Society but the group isn’t really in the picture. That’s often known as fraud.

From another perspective, our donors and volunteers built that store, food pantry or other special work. Was it eventually sold to another party, or did one or more people just take it over? As Vincentian we give away resources all the time, but not usually an entire business or building! We owe it to those who came before to get value from such a transfer so that we may continue to use those resources to help others. And we owe it to ourselves and future Vincentian generations to keep our name and marks within our current true properties and operations.

How can we avoid all this? With many problems, prevention is easier than a cure, but it still needs to be done on a regular basis. First, every new leader should review each property and special work to ensure that it is properly governed and properly recorded within the Society and the state. Second, check on the board. What do the bylaws call for, and does the reality match the intention? Is the board clearly a Vincentian majority? To whom does the business and chair position report, such as to the Conference/Council President or full board? Who approves new staff positions and major expenses? Third, is there a clear and mutually understood accounting of all the funds? Who is responsible if the operation needs more cash? Where do any revenues and profits go? Which accounts are in play, and are they controlled by the Society? Is it responsible for any solidarity payments to the next level up of the Society? Lastly, if the special work is operating on a parish campus, is there a formal letter from the Pastor with understanding that the Society is paying rent or not, and that the control of the operation resides with the Society and not the Pastor or the Parish Council? This is helpful for the next Pastor as well! The same applies to other landlords, too.

Thinking that “everyone already understands all this” simply does not work. Assumptions get made, habits good or bad become traditions and then culture. And of course, leaders change with their own understandings that may or may not match the official records.

It may seem like overkill to review all this every leadership change. Actually, I prefer that it all gets reviewed every year! Leaders, including all on the board, and even all of the membership deserve to know its full inventory of services, properties, and most of all their responsibilities and obligations. We have seen from bitter and expensive examples that it can all slip away rather quickly without frequent review and renewed understanding by all involved parties.

If you came home one day after a vacation to find another family living in your home, you would be understandably upset. If you had little or no record that you are indeed the owner, paying the mortgage and taking care of the home, you’d be a lot more miserable! As Vincentians, we need to apply the same level of ownership diligence to keep Society assets available to the next generation and beyond of our leaders and those they will serve.

Yours in Christ,

Dave Barringer

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Stores Corner — Pricing Strategies for SVdP Thrift Stores
Stores Corner — Pricing Strategies for SVdP Thrift Stores 1080 1080 SVDP USA

A Discussion by: Dave Barringer, SVdP National Chief Executive Officer

The concept of Pricing is the least understood among the “4 P’s” of marketing – Price, Product, Place (distribution), and Promotion. However, a good pricing strategy can be your strongest tool toward sales and profits in a thrift store program.

In this article I will discuss several pricing strategies you can use to develop a set of guidelines for your store that help ensure you are creating maximum value for your store as well as your customers. As the former National Chief Marketing Officer and National Director Stores Support for Goodwill Industries, my insights below are based on twenty years of supporting more than 2,500 thrift stores across the United States. While the Society of St. Vincent de Paul is quite a different organization, the pricing theories and practices between the two retailers are much more the same than different.

First, know your limits. There is no point in operating a store unless it makes money for your organization. Certainly, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SVdP) may give away some, or even a lot, of what it collects directly to people in need, the store still needs to make enough money to keep the operation going. Fortunately, there are proven ways that a store can properly integrate with other aspects of the Society and still meet business objectives.

Here is an example of how this might work: The Council that owns the store wants to provide mattresses at no charge to families in need. They create vouchers for its Conferences to give to those who need this product, who bring them to the store for redemption. You know what each mattress costs from the supplier. Add to this any storage, transportation and other costs, such as labor and administration. From this, derive a “price” for the mattress, even though you will not charge the family in need for it. You will, however, charge the Conference this price for the mattress. In this way, you maintain the sales you need for the store’s livelihood, still provide the mattress at no cost to the family and keep a reasonable cost for the Conference who would otherwise need to purchase a new mattress elsewhere. A corollary example: The Conference may use its own vouchers to purchase the mattress, earned from its collection of saleable goods that are given to the store. Again, pricing plays a role here. The retail team determines, for example, that a truck full of used donated goods is equal 100x. The Conference holds a collection event at its parish and fills the truck. Upon pickup, the retail team pays the Conference in vouchers worth a percentage, say 60x, of the truck’s contents resale value. Everyone wins.

The first critical component of a good pricing strategy is to know your costs. This includes both direct costs (the cost for each unit) plus the indirect costs (costs that are there regardless of the number of units, such as rent) that are then applied to each unit. Most retailers take the total cost of the unit and then double it to set a price to ensure its profits. This becomes your baseline pricing strategy, cost times 2. This price allows for the unforeseen, such as shrink and damaged goods to some extent, and gives you wiggle room to stimulate sales through pricing discounts later.

Competitive Pricing

Some thrift stores simply copy the price of the other stores in town. This is dangerous because their costs may be radically different. The competitor with many area stores can spread its indirect costs over more stores and more items. Perhaps the competitor wants to price you out of business, by selling their goods so low that if you match them, you go broke first because of your cost structure and/or charitable goals.

I once saw a store that priced its goods exactly double those of another thrift store directly across the street. The higher-price store went shopping at the competitor, took its best goods, then doubled the prices for sale. Customers only saw inferior goods at the lower-priced store and were happy to pay the higher prices for the better goods at the other store because, after all, every item is one of a kind. Believe it or not, the lower-priced store was happy for a while being the wholesaler in effect for the other store. Ultimately, though, they realized that shoppers weren’t coming in any longer, because the “treasures” that shoppers enjoy in all thrift stores were being picked away before most shoppers had a chance to find them. What to do? They raised their prices to cut the profit margin opportunity for the higher price store and kept good values for its own customers who had already proved they would pay the higher prices by their defection to the other retailer.

The same concept applies to shoppers who use our stores as suppliers for their yard sales and eBay/online businesses. They show us that our goods are worth more in the marketplace, so why don’t we price them to keep the profits for ourselves? It may be our charitable intent, which I will discuss later. Remember, the first customers to complain when you raise prices are these retailers who make money from what they buy from you. Thus, these complaints are a sign that you are doing a good thing!

Know your Environment

If you are reading this article in hopes that I can give you a specific price point for every item, or even any item, in your thrift store, then you don’t understand your local environment. Did you know, for example, that food prices may be 30 percent lower in Baltimore than only a few miles away in Washington, DC?

We all live in areas with separate economic conditions and cost-of-living realities. Separate from our competitive status, we also have economic truths to consider in pricing. That four-dollar blouse is a bargain in a high-cost area but priced too high for another one. You probably have some sense of your relative trade market economy. Scoping out other thrift stores and discount retailers will help you gauge the range in which your prices may need to reside, at least as a starting point.

NEXT TIME: PART TWO – Different Pricing Concepts to Explore

If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail our Jeff Beamguard, National Director of Stores Support at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org

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National Council Welcomes National Store Support Manager
National Council Welcomes National Store Support Manager 799 1117 SVDP USA

The National is excited to welcome the new National Store Support Manager, Jim Conley.

In his new role, Jim will oversee the opening and operation of the second SVdP National Thrift Store in Fairview Heights, IL. Once open, the store will serve as an additional location for Conference and Council Stores leaders to come and learn best practices to take back to their thrift stores.

Jim received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance from the University of Missouri – St. Louis in 1997.

After graduating, Jim went on to work in retail management for more than 20 years. He worked for companies such as The Home Depot and, most recently, Total Wine and More.

Jim enjoys teaching and training associates to deliver outstanding customer service, as well as helping to build successful, profitable businesses. He is very passionate about helping his associates reach their career goals and providing them the level of training needed for that.

Jim currently lives in Ballwin, MO and has a 13 year old son.

Please join us in welcoming Jim to the SVdP team!

If you would like to contact Jim, he can be reached at (314) 576-3993 ext. 229 or by email at jconley@svdpusa.org.

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Stores Corner — I Don’t Know What I Don’t Know
Stores Corner — I Don’t Know What I Don’t Know 1080 1080 SVDP USA

Written By: Rick Bologna, Stores Director, Central Texas

Are you willing to take a hard and honest look at your store operations? Are you willing to say and admit – I DON’T KNOW WHAT I DON’T KNOW? I would like to share my firsthand experience with you in this article.

Have you ever wondered how you can make your store more profitable? How can you generate more income and move more product through your store more efficiently and faster? As store leaders, we no-doubt have asked these questions in our minds.

In October of 2020, our store in Austin reopened after being closed due to the pandemic. The store had annual sales of $200K and a warehouse stacked high to the rafters with clothes, housewares, donations, and junk, with more items coming in daily.

Through brute force, common sense, and a lot of trial and error, our team installed processes and workflows to push additional product to the floor and generate additional income.

Our customer-base loved the changes we were making in the store; however, our processes and workflows were not sustainable. The key to sales and income is through the back-room production. Please read that sentence again!

We were working extremely hard, but not very smart.

After the first fiscal year, we increased sales to $400K from $200K. Then we went to $610K in our second fiscal year. We had plateaued. This was as far as I could lead our team.

I was tapped out on my knowledge-base and experience in getting us to this level. This was an awful fact that I had to personally own and share with my team — I DON’T KNOW WHAT I DON’T KNOW!

I reached out to the Director of Stores Support in the National Office, Jeff Beamguard, for help. Jeff heads up the National Training Store in Phoenix, AZ and leads the National Stores Committee.

Jeff arrived in Austin in October of 2022, bringing 40 years of thrift store experience and completed a full assessment of our store.

Key components we learned from Jeff:

  • Initial sorting of product – Is it sellable, recyclable or trash? This will save you a ton of time on product selection for the floor.
  • Each product has an exit strategy from your store — the product will either sell during the color rotation cycle or it does not sell, and it comes off the floor for recycling or trash. IT IS REALLY THIS SIMPLE!
  • Initiated the 5-Week Color Rotation Cycle – If the product has not sold after five weeks on the shelves with various markdowns to .99 cents (in a thrift store) the market will tell you, they do not want the product. Put new products out on your shelves and turn over the shelf space more rapidly by selling more profitable items.

In conclusion, I must say, our Austin team has completely embraced what we are doing and where we are going. Without the team’s buy in, we would not achieve this success utilizing Jeff’s assessments, suggestions, and our implementations.

This fiscal year, our sales will be around $800K. Our workflows and processes are now sustainable, due to education. Our annual production in three years went from 109K pieces to 176K pieces, to about 300K pieces this fiscal year.

As a staff, we NOW KNOW WHAT WE KNOW! We are headed towards the million-dollar store benchmark because of education, proven methodologies, and continued support from the National Stores Committee and Jeff Beamguard. The National Stores Committee and Jeff are here to serve you.

How much money are you leaving on the table in your store without this education? Are you doing your store and Council a service or disservice by not running the store as efficiently as possible?

Please take advantage of this educational opportunity for your store and get into the KNOW!

Please encourage your store personnel to subscribe to the to the e-Gazette, by emailing mboyer@svdpusa.org.

If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail our Director of Stores Support-Jeff Beamguard at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org.

 

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Stores Corner — “Bringing Hope Home” Program
Stores Corner — “Bringing Hope Home” Program 1080 1080 SVDP USA

Written by: Mike McClanahan — Director of Retail Operations, Diocesan Council of Phoenix

Our ‘Bringing Hope Home’ BHH Program in Phoenix, AZ, aims to provide furniture and household items to families in need.

The program was started two years ago and we are so proud to say that we have been able to rescue and help hundreds of families.

These families may be transitioning out of homelessness, moving after a disaster like a fire or flood, relocating after an eviction, or escaping domestic violence. Even families currently living in a home but in need of furniture may be eligible for our program, depending on their circumstances. We receive funding from various sources, such as conference referrals, restricted funds for move-outs of our shelter residents, and our general SVdP fund for families and individuals housed by our Social Work team. We also solicit donations from potential donors and share family stories as part of our fundraising strategy. Referrals are placed on a waitlist and contacted in the order they were received. Deliveries are scheduled based on location and availability of items, usually within the same or following week.

We are grateful to be able to share stories like Veronica’s one of our BHH program:

Veronica Rios has struggled for the last 18-months with both homelessness and health issues. She is in need of two knee replacements because of severe arthritis, while also trying to raise and control her four-year-old autistic son; “my little one is ADHD with autism. It is hard for us to find someplace to stay and settle because other people don’t approve of how he acts,” she said.

But thanks to a new medication, her son’s demeanor has improved and is under control. And so is her mental outlook. She now has a place to call her own, thanks to St. Vincent de Paul. “Within two weeks of reaching out to St. Vincent de Paul, I got a place to live. St. Vincent de Paul also helped me with my move-in and now I get to shop for furniture,” she added.

Needless to say, Veronica and her daughter, Augustina, were excited to shop for furniture at a Phoenix St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store for their apartment. “We have nothing in the apartment right now,” Veronica offered. “Nothing at all, just our own clothes” she added. “It is exciting,” Augustina chimed in. “We get to choose everything and have an actual home. It will feel like a real home and we can continue to grow and build and move forward,“ she continued.

A day after shopping, a St. Vincent de Paul crew delivered and set up her furniture in her apartment. A tearful Veronica was overwhelmed with emotion: “I’m happy. I’m grateful. Grateful to lay our heads on a bed. Be able to sit down on a couch and watch tv and sit as a family and talk,” she said as her voice cracked fighting through the tears. “I’m just happy my kids will be okay. We’re going to be okay and I’ll have an opportunity to get back on my feet.”

Your store may have a similar program like the one described above. If you don’t, perhaps you could consider serving your neighbors in need in a different fashion.

Sometimes we help our neighbors with the specific need they have requested, but as we ask more questions, we uncover additional needs that we likely could also help them. This gives them a leg up out of their current situation and sets them up for a more successful situation.

Opportunities for us to “think outside the box” in how we serve.

The National Assembly is fast approaching in September. If you haven’t made plans to attend, we hope you sign up for the daylong Stores Meeting on September 6, 2023 in St. Louis, MO.  You will leave this meeting with valuable information to take back to your store.

The morning will start with a motivational message from Dr. Snyder-Director of the Phoenix Dental Clinic. This will be followed by important information about the National Training Store’s growth and success in Phoenix during the last three years. You will hear valuable information that could help your store grow just like the National Store has grown. You will hear two testimonials from Rick Bologna & Bryan Engle about their experience either visiting the National Training Store or who requested Jeff Beamguard to visit their store to do an assessment.

The afternoon will be dedicated to hearing information about store staffing, increasing donations, profitability, Point-of-Sale (POS), sharing of innovative ideas to think of new ways to serve and information about a future National Training Store in Fairview, IL.

For those attending the Stores Meeting in its entirety on Wednesday, September 6, 2023, they will be eligible for door prizes to include:

  • $250 Amazon Gift Card
  • Trip for one to attend the 2024 National Assembly in Phoenix (Restrictions Apply),
  • Trip for one to attend training at the National Training Store in Avondale, AZ (Restrictions Apply)
  • Dinner for 2 ($200 value) — Executive Director group only.

You don’t want to miss out!!

Please encourage your store personnel to subscribe to the to the e-Gazette, by emailing mboyer@svdpusa.org.

If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail our Jeff Beamguard, National Director of Stores Support at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org.

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SVdP Stores Corner — Promoting Clothing Drives
SVdP Stores Corner — Promoting Clothing Drives 1080 1080 SVDP USA

Written by: Joe Lazarich, Council of Rockville Centre,  Northeast Region

A good opportunity to increase clothing donations and promote awareness of the Society and the mission is to collaboratively work together with our stores and Conferences to promote and execute clothing drives.

Below are some suggestions to help your drive be successful:

  • Select a date and time that is convenient for everyone, including the Pastor.
  • Work with the Vincentians to reserve a SVdP truck, if available, or provide a scheduled pick up at the location of the event upon completion.
  • Provide donation receipts, as requested.
  • Advertise in the church bulletin a few weeks prior to the event.
  • Promote on social media to include local groups such as “Moms and Dads.”
  • Inform surrounding parishes that do not have an SVdP Conference.
  • Ensure Conference members are present to assist and promote SVdP’s mission and fellowship.
  • Notify the Religious Education Department to inform their students who can earn volunteer/community service hours for participating in the clothing drive.

Click here to see the attached flyer that can be edited with your store’s clothing drive information.

We’d like to encourage you to attend the National Assembly – Stores Meeting on September 6, 2023 in St. Louis, MO.

The morning will start with a motivational message from Dr. Snyder-Director of the Phoenix’s Dental Clinic.  This will be followed by important information about the National Training Store’s growth and success in Phoenix during the last three years. You will hear valuable information that could help your store grow just like the National Store has grown. You will hear two testimonials from Rick Bologna & Bryan Engle about their experience either visiting the National Training Store or had a visit from and assessment done by National Stores Director Jeff Beamguard.

The afternoon will be dedicated to hearing information about store staffing, increasing donations, profitability, Point-of-Sale (POS), sharing of innovative ideas to think of new ways to serve, and information about a future National Training Store in Fairview, IL.

For those attending the Stores Meeting in its entirety on Wednesday, September 6, 2023, they will be eligible for door prizes to include:

$250 Amazon Gift Card, a trip for one to attend the 2024 National Assembly in Phoenix (Restrictions Apply), a trip for one to attend training at the National Training Store in Avondale, AZ (Restrictions Apply), and Dinner for two ($200 value) – Executive Director group only.

You don’t want to miss out!!

Please encourage your store personnel to subscribe to the to the e-Gazette, by emailing mboyer@svdpusa.org.

If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail our Director of Stores Support-Jeff Beamguard at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org.

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SVdP Stores Corner: Promoting Clothing Drives
SVdP Stores Corner: Promoting Clothing Drives 1080 1080 SVDP USA

Written by: Joe Lazarich, Council of Rockville Centre,  Northeast Region

A good opportunity to increase clothing donations and promote awareness of the Society and the mission is to collaboratively work together with our stores and Conferences to promote and execute clothing drives.

Below are some suggestions to help your drive be successful:

  • Select a date and time that is convenient for everyone, including the Pastor.
  • Work with the Vincentians to reserve a SVdP truck, if available, or provide a scheduled pick up at the location of the event upon completion.
  • Provide donation receipts, as requested.
  • Advertise in the church bulletin a few weeks prior to the event.
  • Promote on social media to include local groups such as “Moms and Dads”.
  • Inform surrounding parishes that do not have an SVdP Conference.
  • Ensure Conference members are present to assist and promote SVdP’s mission and fellowship.
  • Notify the Religious Education Department to inform their students who can earn volunteer/community service hours for participating in the clothing drive.

Click here see the attached flyer that can be edited with your store’s clothing drive information.

We’d like to encourage you to attend the National Assembly – Stores Meeting on September 6, 2023 in St. Louis, MO to hear information about our National Training Store in Phoenix, store staffing, increasing donations, productivity, Point-of-Sale (POS), and hear innovative ideas to think of new ways to serve.

For those attending the Stores Meeting in its entirety on Wednesday, September 6, 2023, they will be eligible for door prizes to include:

  • 1st Door Prize:  Complimentary two-day trip for two to Our National Training Store in Phoenix, AZ (up to $1,000 for airfare and hotel). Meals and other expenses will not be covered. Must be a SVdP Store Manager/Director to qualify. Must be present to win.
  • 2nd Door Prize: Complimentary Registration for one to the 2024 National Assembly in Phoenix, Arizona. (A special code will be emailed to the winner once the registration is opened up). Must be present to win.
  • 3rd Door Prize: $250 Amazon Gift Card. Must be present to win.

For those attending the Joint Lunch with ED’s-Store:

  • Complimentary dinner for two at Charlie Gittos’s On the Hill ($200 value). Drawing after the joint ED-Store meeting. Must be present to win.

You don’t want to miss out!!

Please encourage your store personnel to subscribe to the to the e-Gazette, by emailing mboyer@svdpusa.org. If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail our Jeff Beamguard, Director of Stores Support at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org.

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Stores Corner — Staffing Standards / Labor Management
Stores Corner — Staffing Standards / Labor Management 1080 1080 SVDP USA

Written by: Lori Malcom, Northeast Region — Archdiocese of Boston

Determining the appropriate amount of labor hours is critical for an efficient retail operation and can appear to be a very daunting task. Guessing can often lead to overstaffing or understaffing, each of which has negative effects on the bottom line and employee morale.

The following tips will help guide you through the process and may be applied to existing stores operations as well as those in the planning or feasibility stage.

Start by determining the size of the store and hours of operation. Be sure to include the hours the store is open for donations. A manager/assistant manager or lead staff person must be in the store at all times. You can determine if your store will have an assistant manager or lead based on the size and hours of your operation. Some smaller stores may not need an assistant manager. You will need to consider any break periods for the staff to insure you have proper coverage during these times.

Consider all of the duties needed, including sales, production, merchandising, janitorial etc. For example, you will need a cashier and a donation attendant during all business hours. Be sure to include hours when multiple cashiers and or donation attendants may be need for busy times.

Allocate an appropriate amount of time for each job duty for each weekday of operation. Some duties have established labor standards, such as production, others will be reasonably determined estimates. Discuss this with your store leadership and consider their input. Staff acknowledgement and buy-in is the key to an efficient labor standard, accountability, and success!

Please consider attending the National Assembly Stores Meeting on September 6, 2023 in St. Louis, MO to learn more ways to serve your thrift store customers.

Please encourage your store personnel to subscribe to the to the e-Gazette, by emailing mboyer@svdpusa.org.

If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail our Director of Stores Support-Jeff Beamguard at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org.

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Local and National Stores Committee Team Up With Great Results in Richmond
Local and National Stores Committee Team Up With Great Results in Richmond 320 240 SVDP USA

Written by: Ed Markiewicz — Eastern Region, Council of Greensburg

The Council of Richmond initiated a new endeavor to support the mission and invigorate efforts to serve those in need.

When faced with the question of how to meet the increasing need for help, the Richmond Council discussed the idea of opening a SVdP Thrift Store and Donation Center and decided to form a committee to explore the idea.

Initial steps included:  finding funding sources, locating a suitable building and location, identifying donation sources, leasing & legal requirements, operational set-up and management details.

Realizing guidance was available through the National SVdP; the Council knew where to turn for help.

Members Dan Kearns-Executive Director and Deacon Andy Cirmo-Spiritual Advisor, traveled to the National Assembly in Baltimore, MD to attend the National Stores Thrift Store Committee meeting to gather more information and assistance.  They met with the Stores Committee Members and learned what resources and expert help was available on the National Stores website www.svdpusa-thriftstore.org.

Dan & Deacon Andy returned home with new enthusiasm and continued determination to make the first SVdP Thrift Store and Donation Center in the Richmond Diocese a reality.

Both Dan & Deacon Andy recognized the importance of the project, so Dan then visited the SVdP National Training Store in Phoenix, AZ to view the operations and procedures implemented in a successful store.

Dan met with Jeff Beamguard-National Stores Director, as well as other members of the Stores Committee who shared ideas and information that would help make the Richmond Store’s planning and opening as smooth as possible.  Using the advice and guidance available, along with the resources on the website, the process began to move forward.

Deacon Andy’s extensive retail experience provided hands-on expertise with the layout of the site, utilizing every feature to create an effective presentation with an unobstructed views of all the goods, as well as a Boutique area, furniture displays and a children’s area, all creating a welcoming atmosphere.

On the right of the entrance, a small area was dedicated to advertising what the Society of St Vincent de Paul does, with informational flyers and an invitation to support and join.

After much planning and effective implementation, the opening day was set for Saturday April 15, 2023.  A Dedication Blessing, sanctioned by the Bishop, took place on March 28, 2023, attended by the many volunteers and supporters.

Now open, the store can become just what was needed, not only to financially support the needs of the Council, but to create a visible presence for the Society.  The store will become the face of St. Vincent de Paul in the Diocese of Richmond.

The opening day results and the days that followed proved to be astounding.

Congratulations to the Richmond Council on your first SVdP Thrift Store!

If you are considering opening a store in your region or are interested in ideas to improve your store’s operations, please consider attending the National Assembly Stores Meeting on September 6, 2023 in St. Louis, MO.

Please encourage your store personnel to subscribe to the to the e-Gazette, by emailing mboyer@svdpusa.org

If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail Jeff Beamguard,  Director of Stores Support at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org.

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Stores Corner — Recession Benefits and The Need for Long-Term Planning
Stores Corner — Recession Benefits and The Need for Long-Term Planning 1080 1080 SVDP USA

During a recession, the thrift industry seems to thrive. Although shoppers tend to cut back on spending for non-essential purchases, sales for thrift shops like ours tend to boom. This is a great opportunity for our stores.

The Offer Up Recommerce Report 2022 suggests that the secondhand shopping economy will grow 80% in the next 5 years. Will our stores be ready for this potential growth?

Since consumers tend to hang on to their possessions much longer during a recession, this could pose a dilemma for some thrift stores. If fewer donations are received, yet the demand for our merchandise is growing, how might we plan for this? We need to be creative and use some forward thinking to get ahead of this.

As we know, our donation locations must be convenient for our donors. We might explore targeting specific donation drives where we bring donation receptacles to our donors, i.e. organize community events such as “Fill the Truck” at churches, targeted neighborhoods, or civic organizations.

We can increase social media efforts to target specific age groups, donation sites or specific merchandise needs. Promote special donation locations in church bulletins, on social media, Homeowner Association newsletters, and the like.

We might consider offering a store coupon to donors as an incentive for them to come in and shop at our store. If they don’t use the coupon, perhaps the donor might share the coupon with another prospective customer.

If you don’t already do so, maybe explore purchasing new product and selling the purchased merchandise at a markup. This might bridge the gap, as needed, to fill the stores when donations are low and provide cost-effective merchandise for our customers.

The SVdP National Stores website has a listing of National Partners that could be a resource in this area. For a list of National Partners, visit: https://www.svdpusa-thriftstore.org and select SVdP National Partners under the Resources tab. These vendors have shoes, clothing, bedding, and much more.

As always, if you have questions or would like to reach out to a National Store Committee Member, their names and region can be found here.

If you have a topic that you would like addressed in a future Stores Corner article, please e-mail our Jeff Beamguard, Director of Stores Support at jbeamguard@svdpusa.org.

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