After years of planning and building, the Bridge Thrift Home and Restoration store is finally a reality.
The Orland Park-based Bridge Teen Center, which already has a thrift shop in the village, expanded with a second store in Frankfort. The second store opened its doors to the public on Oct. 25 at 21420 S. Harlem Ave. and dozens of shoppers lined up to be the first to take a look at the new digs.
“Our No. 1 goal is our students,” Bridge Teen Center Founder and Executive Director Priscilla Steinmetz told the crowd. “We want our students in our communities to know that they are supported, and they are loved and they are valued. And we do that through our thrift stores.
“We’re so glad you guys are here.”
With that, the doors opened and patrons got a chance to see a stylish place to shop and pick up anything from clothes to books to plants and even a huge Richard Nixon campaign poster from 1968.
“People have said it looks like a department store,” Steinmetz said. “It’s like a boutique and department store and we are just trying to do things with excellence because that’s the example that we set for our students.
“Also being a person of faith, my creativity comes from God and my inspiration comes from my students. When I look at things, I think about how my students would respond in this space and how we want the community to feel. People may forget what you say to them but they never forget how you make them feel. We want our community to know that we appreciate them and that they give local and they shop local and they serve local and we want them to come in and enjoy this space.”
Some of the features of the new store include:
· Furniture and home goods.
· A plant boutique named the Taking Root Plant Shop.
· A rotating popup shop featuring local vendors and artists.
· A jewelry section.
· An Antique and Cool Junk area, which has been a popular staple of the Orland Park store.
Steinmetz is proud of the plant area, a feature you don’t see much of in thrift shops.
“This is a store within a store,” she said. “It’s a plant shop where we will also have a terrarium and potting bar as well. We have amazing plant-care specialists. What’s unique about this space, too, is we will be offering teen horticulture apprenticeships as well.”
Steinmetz said the store will feature a “first-of-its-kind “ job readiness and leadership training room, which will allow area teens to learn skills before embarking on their first jobs.