There was a festive feeling in Thrift Warehouse last Friday as customers enjoyed a celebratory slice of cake and browsed items in a storewide sale to celebrate the shop’s 10 years in Bancroft.
Gena Robertson, executive director for Sirch Community services who operates Thrift Warehouse, says she loves the Bancroft store and credits a great team with its success.
“I feel so fortunate to have had (employees) Mary Ellen and Don here for 10 years. They know the community, they know everybody that walks through the store I think, and they’re just incredibly dependable and bright employees.”
Proceeds from the thrift store get funneled back into the community through a variety of programs such as Community Kitchen.
“Volunteers in Halliburton (where Sirch has a Bistro and bakery) close it on Monday’s and volunteers come in and help the chef make around 300 to 500 meals”
Robertson says meals are packaged and many of them come to Bancroft where they’re distributed through other organizations such as the North Hastings Community Cupboard Food bank and North Hastings Children’s Services.
“And it doesn’t necessarily have to be somebody who is food insecure…it could be somebody who’s a senior and who’s had surgery and can’t cook right now…those kinds of things.”
Thrift Warehouse was originally located near Kawartha Dairy in a larger space, before moving to it’s current spot in downtown Bancroft.
Robertson says she loves the store’s location now, but there is one thing she misses from the old store:
The smash room.
“We were throwing out all these onesie glasses or cups and it just seemed like such a waste. So we took a room and Don built a fieldstone wall. And then a counter (was built) back from the wall and people could, for fifty cents, buy themselves a bunch of glasses and you could go in (to the smash room) and you could just wing it at the wall.”
Robertson says the smash room quickly became a popular place.
“And then we had targets and swinging things and people would write the names of people they didn’t like on glasses and throw them at the wall” said Robertson with a laugh. “And you feel a little sheepish the first time you do it, but I’ll tell you, you can really get into it!”
While there wasn’t room to recreate the smash room at the new location there is a great selection of clothing, furniture, electronics and housewares available Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.
