WE'RE OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

Now at 2 Goleta Locations

5624 Hollister Avenue (near Kellogg) and 5949 Hollister Avenue (near Fairview)

"It's not the mountain before you that's the obstacle

it's the pebble in your shoe. . ."

- Rubio's Restaurant (on the wall)

There were no "pebbles in the shoes" of the phenomenal team of thrift store staff who moved a mountain of inventory, assembled display racks, painted, planted, cleaned, set up and opened the new store for business on Wednesday, August 2, 2006. The masterminds orchestrating the move were Mike Lucero, Thrift Store Manager and Sean Dunn, Director of Retail Operations.

From the inception of the project, Sean Dunn provided the vision, leadership and acute attention to detail that successfully coordinated the monumental move of our State Street Thrift Store to our new location at 5624 Hollister Avenue in Goleta.

Five years ago when we renewed the lease on State Street, Dunn sat down with me for a heart-to-heart on the future of retail business on State Street. He had been tracking the demographics of our shoppers, the turn-over in businesses downtown and the escalating market rents. He strongly recommended that we pursue a new strategy to preserve and grow the essential revenue generated by our thrift store. These early discussions laid the foundation for where we are today.

Our opportunity to open in the Goleta Market came shortly after we renewed our downtown lease. The old R.P. Richards property was available for lease; the rent was reasonable and the landlord would make the modest leasehold improvements necessary for us to open for business. Shortly after the first Goleta store opened we were back to planning for the probability that we would leave downtown Santa Barbara. After 40 years on State Street, the move would be a gamble.

The thrift stores generate 58% of our operating revenue. More importantly, the thrift store is a critical source of financial support to some of our most critical and valued service. The thrift store also subsidizes our publicly funded services.

We invited respected business leaders from the community to meet with us on the future of Alpha Thrift Store. As a result, Tom Parker, President of Hutton Foundation, committed to look for a property in Goleta. After a year of planning, and the acquisition of a great property by Hutton Foundation, our departure from State Street was predictable.

There are still many details to be completed inside the store . . . and the entire thrift store team is working to make the new store earn the decade-long reputation of the State Street store as "Best Thrift Store" in Santa Barbara (and Goleta)!

Please come by our new location at 5624 Hollister Avenue and say hello to our outstanding thrift store staff and shop! And, don't forget to contact us at 964-1123 for a thrift store donation pick-up.

-- Kim Olson, Executive Director