Goodwill
407 W. Locust
Tyler, TX 75701
Phone: (903) 593-9326
9am – 6pm
I would guess that almost every American knows what Goodwill is. Even if they haven’t been into one, they’ve probably donated to it or at least driven by it. For those of you who don’t: Goodwill Industries is a non-profit organization with a front of running retail thrift stores.
Goodwill Thrift Store in Tyler
Their main service to the communities they are in is providing employment for people who would not otherwise be able to get a job. This could be due to a disability, lack of education or previous job history or even more negative reasons. They give people a first chance or a second chance.
Goodwill has a really neat history. It was started in 1902 in Boston by a Methodist minister named Edgar J. Helms. He would gather used and unwanted clothes and household items from the wealthier areas of town. Then he hired people who were poor and trained them how in repairing the clothing and items. Then they would sell the items or he would give the item to the person who repaired it.
This humble beginning grew like crazy. Today Goodwill has one hundred and eighty three organizations in the United States, Canada and fourteen other countries. They also grew in their overall sales. In 2008 Goodwill made over three billion dollars! The cool thing is they used eighty four percent of that money to provide employment, training and rehabilitation services to over a million people.
The Goodwill on W. Locust St in Tyler, TX is my favorite of the Tyler stores. There is another retail thrift store located on the southern side of Loop 323. The store on the Loop offers much more in their inventory and tons of support staff for registers, floor help and furniture carry outs. Yet, I still prefer the store downtown, and it’s for those reasons. I prefer to shop at thrift stores that look and feel like thrift stores. The downtown location is the classic thrift store.
There are usually only about two visible staff, and they’ll greet you when you come in. The store is pretty small and easy to navigate. I love their book section. It has about four or five bookshelves side by side full of every genre. One is fully dedicated to children’s books and is usually in really good order. They also have a small section of VHS tapes, DVDs, CDs, and computer software.
On one occasion I went into the store looking for books that were in really good shape. I found one hardback children’s book that was just in beautiful condition and looked very interesting. I took it up to the counter and asked what books cost or if there was a standard for price on hardback versus paperback. The employee was so friendly. She greeted my baby and cooed over her. It was nice. She told me that hardbacks are usually two dollars, and paperbacks are usually one dollar but that this one was kind of in between since it was a children’s book. She gave me the book for one dollar.
A good tip: visit this Goodwill thrift store on Tuesdays and Thursdays to get new computer and electronic games. You have to time it just right. I think a little after 10 AM is the best time, but it’s all the luck of the draw. You may get nothing, but if you love treasure hunting this would be worth a shot. Another thing to keep your eye out for at this location is board games. On some occasions I’ve seen new versions of Cranium games and the DVD game, Scene-It. Take a few dollars with you and give this store a shot.