Bargain Hunter Alert: A New Thrift Store Opens in Arnold

Encore is the latest thrift store to open in Arnold. The shop is a non-profit operation run by Jewell Robertson and her extended family. Each month they will donate their profits to a different charity.

This month’s sales are being donated to Jefferson County Rescue Mission.

The tidy shop opened three-weeks ago. How, you might wonder, does a thrift shop open from scratch? Today the store contains a year’s worth of yard sale goods and donations that the Robertson clan and friends have gathered to kick off the shop’s inventory. Now that the store is open, the shop hopes to collect donations from regular customers to keep their inventory fresh.

“We still have a few stray things (at the house)” said Jewell. “A lot of Christmas things, but there’s no room here. It’s very interesting—we meet some of the most interesting people.”

The store is a labor of love. Volunteer Mary Simmons said that no one who works at the store is taking a salary, though if it generates enough revenue they will consider it. Right now the shop is just a huge community service project run by the Robertson family and their friends.

Curtis Robertson said members of the family had been involved in another non-profit thrift store.

“We liked it and thought we’d open our own. We like this location better and there’s plenty of parking here,” Curtis said. He added that their location has more potential for foot traffic as shoppers wander by.

Encore is located in the Fox Valley strip mall next to , and behind and . Carnival Party Supply was formerly in this location.