Miller took the helm of Goodwill Industries of the Columbia Willamette in 1986, bringing with him nearly a decade of experience in Goodwills in Milwaukee and Dayton, Ohio. Many credit CEO Michael Miller with revitalizing the charity - and its sales. That's good for a charity that sometimes takes in damaged donations, she said. Unsold clothing and shoes are shipped to developing nations.Ībout 65 percent of the 121 million pounds of donations received last year by Goodwill's regional operations was salvaged or resold, said spokeswoman Dale Emanuel. There, the turnaround rate is a few hours. Donated goods stay on the retail floor for a maximum of three weeks before being sent to outlet stores. They are open.'Įach store follows the same basic setup, enabling customers to find shoes, furniture or kitchen wares quickly. 'They're not the typical thrift stores,' said Titus Herman, who heads Goodwill's four-person marketing department in Portland. Goodwill considers the Superstore, which opened in 1994, the flagship in its autonomous fleet of 33 stores in Oregon and southwest Washington. There's a colorful mosaic on one wall, 'Goodwill Retrospective,' by Mark Little. Neat rows of clothing, household appliances and toys fill the 18,000-square-foot space, flanked by a large book section, a tiny cafe and a section that sells new, generic-brand items such as snack food and soap. With its massive bins, concrete floors and harsh lighting, the warehouse-like outlet is the last of a dying breed, Goodwill officials say, essentially unchanged from the first stores that opened in 1927.īut three miles down the road, shoppers can see the new face of Goodwill: a gleaming tile-and-glass structure known as the Superstore. She nearly exchanged blows herself about eight years ago when a woman ripped a gray 1950s dress from her hands.

'They're like cows waiting for a trough to be filled.'Ĭompetition among thrifters, as they call themselves, can become so fierce that fights break out, Simone said. 'There's definitely the regulars,' she said. Now she shops there a few days a week for herself and her two young daughters. Simone, who sports a black newsboy cap she bought for 20 cents, used to visit the outlet every day as a 'picker' - reselling her finds to upscale boutiques and dealers for overseas merchants.

'We're loose,' said Mercedes Simone, 26, as she sifted through 400 pounds of used threads in a gray wooden bin at the Goodwill Outlet store in southeast Portland. It's also helped by the fact that Portland is less buttoned-down than many other cities - the kind of place where secondhand merchandise is seen as cool. Goodwill officials credit the nonprofit charity's success in the region to aggressive sales campaigns, top executives and redesigned stores. Retail revenue at the Goodwill's operations in Oregon and southwest Washington leads Goodwills throughout North America - bringing in $62 million last year, according to company reports. Fun, funky and eco-friendly - that's how Pacific Northwesterners describe the region's thriving thrift store scene, which ranges from hipster secondhand stores to giant chains like Goodwill. Goodwill Industries of the Columbia Willamette considers the Superstore the flagship in its fleet of stores in Oregon and southwest Washington. The latest face of Goodwill, the Superstore in Portland, Ore., offers customers neat rows of clothing, household appliances and toys running though the 18,000-square-foot space that's flanked by a large book section and a tiny cafe.

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