Goodwill closed the doors on its old site at 1911 E. Wabash St. and opened the doors at its bigger and newer location at 1948 E. Wabash St. Thursday morning in front of a crowd that was lined up outside waiting for the new store to open.
The new store will offer more space to shoppers for bargain-hunting and a larger donation center. Also, the new store will have 35 to 40 employees on its staff.
“The building we had was an older building,” said Site Manager Mike Cline. “It wasn’t so much running out of space. It was just trying to get everything up to date code wise and the way it looked. The other building was just an old building and it had its issues. We can start fresh over here and hopefully go nowhere but up.
“The new store is definitely a boost for us,” continued Cline. “The town of Frankfort has been real good with us and keeping us going. Hopefully, our sales will increase every day.”
Goodwill employs over 4,100 individuals, many of whom have barriers to employment, such as lack of a high school education, disability, or a criminal background.”
“We are excited to open this new location to our shoppers and donors in the Frankfort community,” said president and CEO of Goodwill of Central and Southern Indiana Kent Kramer. “Goodwill remains committed to serving thousands of Hoosiers through our mission and education services. Our retail stores allow us to provide those services across central and southern Indiana.”
That “mission” is a huge part of Goodwill according to Senior Director of Retail Stores Travis Darden.
“It really does serve a great mission,” said Darden. “We have some missions that we have put together. First family partnerships is one where we support first-time moms across the state. We have nurses that go into homes. We also have Excel Centers that are for adults who may not have gotten their diplomas in traditional schools.”
Goodwill serves 39 Indiana counties and operates more than 70 retail locations, as well as charter schools for adults and youth, a maternal-child health program, a child care center and more.
Store hours at the news store are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays. Goodwill accepts donations during regular store hours.