Brian Boyce
The Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE —
Goodwill continues to spread throughout the community amid economic woes.
Wabash Valley Goodwill Industries plans to open a third retail store in Terre Haute, adding another 4,000 square feet of options for workers facing barriers to employment.
Blue lettering was going up on the front of 2645 Wabash Ave. on Friday afternoon. With unseasonably warm temperatures in the lower 60s, the sun seemed to be shining on the project.
Goodwill Executive Director Bill Tennis said the store should open soon.
“We hope to get open in really late January or early February,” he said outside the store, which faces Kroger near 25th Street and Wabash Avenue. “We’re really excited to be out here.”
More than 15,000 cars pass by that location daily, he said, explaining the organization has desired a location there for several years. Vacant spots came and went, though, and it wasn’t until Tennis happened to be driving by the former American Rental building as the “For Lease” sign went up that a deal was reached.
At 4,000 square feet, the Wabash store will serve as a general retail facility with drop-off location. Hours will likely be 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week.Goodwill Industries is a multi-faceted operation providing residents a place to drop off gently used clothes and household goods while offering them back to others for sale.
The organization also provides employment opportunities to workers with disabilities or other barriers to employment. According to the organization’s website, in 2010 Goodwill helped more than 2.4 million people train for careers ranging from banking and finance to information technology and retail.
In 2010, the organization’s employees earned more than $2.7 billion in collective wages and salaries.
Tennis said the third Terre Haute store will create about six jobs.
Wabash Valley Goodwill Industries opened its second Terre Haute store at 600 S. Third St. in March 2011, the first local expansion in 20 years.
The network also operates stores in Sullivan, Brazil, Greencastle, and Paris, Ill., and Robinson, Ill.
Goodwill Industries launched in Terre Haute in 1927, and Tennis notes he is just the third director in nearly 85 years.
Ventures into Terre Haute’s northside haven’t been successful in years past, he said.
However, the group still hopes to someday open a downtown location geared toward Indiana State University students.
In the meantime, the east side of Terre Haute provides a good mix of demographics suited to success.
Meredith Osburn, retail operations director for the group, said many of the people who drop off donations at the stores also shop there. Given the economic diversity found in the neighborhoods around 25th Street and Wabash Avenue, this area makes for a good mix of donors-customers, she said.
Tennis said hard times in the economy have bolstered the demand for used goods.
“We think the need for Goodwill has grown with the economic downturn,” he said, optimistic about the new store’s success.
Brian Boyce can be reached at 812-231-4253 or brian.boyce@tribstar.com.
