New flagship store features donation drive thru; offers superior shopping experience
Portland, ME – Goodwill Industries of Northern New England invites shoppers and donors to the Grand Opening celebration of its new South Portland flagship store and donation center on Friday, March 26 at 9 a.m. Celebration activities include a ribbon cutting ceremony at 9 am, door prizes every half hour from 9am-2pm, and drawings for gift cards to Goodwill and local restaurants.
The new South Portland store is located at 555 Maine Mall Road, in the former Circuit City building. Shoppers will enjoy a newly renovated building that features a convenient donation drive-thru and information about Goodwill’s programs and services. The new store also accepts used computer equipment through the ReConnect computer recycling program. Goodwill recycled 1,613,000 pounds of computers in 2009.
The building is 27,000 square feet, with 16,000 square feet dedicated to retail sales. The remaining square footage will be used for donations processing, offices, and space for the agency’s Good Clean program, the commercial cleaning arm of Goodwill that is committed to customizing its services to meet and exceed the needs of each building it maintains. Goodwill uses Good Clean to maintain all its retail stores and offers Goodwill employees the chance to learn new skills needed to succeed in work and life. Goodwill has signed a 10-year lease for the building.
Randy Finamore, Senior Vice President of Retail, noted that the store location offers great accessibility. “The new flagship store offers ease of access for shoppers and donors. Located next to Route 295, in vicinity of the Maine Mall, and on the South Portland bus line, the store is fully accessible to members of our community.” He further noted that the store will provide a superior shopping experience for customers. “The square footage of the store allows us to offer more options for our shoppers – wide aisles, multiple dressing rooms, and a greater selection of goods. These combined factors, along with a new store layout and color scheme, create a comfortable shopping environment.”
The new store will feature a wide variety of donated goods – whether looking for unique treasure or a fabulous new outfit, the store will feature clothing, jewelry, books, household items, and furniture, as well as a limited selection of new items to create a complete shopping experience. Store and donation center hours are Monday through Saturday 9 am – 9 pm and Sunday 9 am – 7 pm.
“We are very excited about the opening of a flagship store in the Portland area,” noted Michael Coughlin, Executive Director at Goodwill Industries of Northern New England. “This new store provides much needed space for the many generous donations we receive and offers our donors a convenient donation drive-thru. In this, our 77th year, we continue to expand our retail operations to further our mission.” The new South Portland Goodwill store has created 31 new jobs and now employs over 50 full- and part-time staff.
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Goodwill Industries of Northern New England has a 77-year history of providing innovative services that help individuals with disabilities or other barriers achieve social and economic independence. Goodwill’s Workforce Solutions helps people find good jobs and supports individuals through our developmental disability services, deaf services and brain injury programs. Last year, we served over 7,000 individuals with education, job training, and support services as they work to achieve their independence. Our programs are funded by revenue from our 26 retail stores, grants, and financial gifts. Please visit www.goodwillnne.org for more information.
