St. Vincent de Paul to Open South Bend Store

The St. Vincent de Paul Society of St. Joseph County says it will open a new store and donation processing center in South Bend. The 48,000 square-foot facility is its second new store in the city in the last four months.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The St. Vincent de Paul Society of St. Joseph County is opening its second new retail store in four months on South Bend’s west side. The new store will be located at 1827 N. Bendix Drive and will also house the Society’s donation processing center.

The move is part of an overall realignment of retail operations that coincides with the replacement of the thrift store/processing center recently closed at LaSalle Square and being acquired by the City of South Bend. Four months ago, another store was opened on Western Avenue under the Society’s new Vinnie’s retail brand. That store is located in Saint Vincent Plaza, formerly the Bellevue Shopping Center. The organization also has a retail store in Greenwood Shopping Center at the corner of Ironwood and State Road 23 in South Bend.

The new facility is a total of 48,000 square feet, of which 12,000 square feet will be dedicated to retail sales and the balance of the space used for collecting, sorting and pricing donations. The retail product mix will be the same as the LaSalle Square store with a wide selection of clothing, furniture, appliances, housewares, books, sporting goods, collectibles and more. The retail operation will share the Vinnie’s Resale Store brand and will be managed by Aubrey Howell. Grand Opening festivities are scheduled for February 21, 2015.

The announcement of the new store and processing center was made by St. Vincent de Paul Society Executive Director, Anne Hosinski Watson. “For the time being at least, the Bendix facility completes our expansion and realignment activities,” said Watson. “We needed a much more modern and productive environment for both retail and processing services than the facilities we have been using. Our staff and volunteers are very excited about the move.”

The products sold in the Society’s retail facilities are primarily secured through donations of used clothing and merchandise from South Bend-area residents through collection drives and drop boxes located throughout the city. These donations are sorted by staff and Society volunteers known as Vincentians and prepared for purchase in the stores. The proceeds of the sales are used to support the Society’s mission.

The Saint Vincent de Paul Society is a Catholic lay organization that administers food, clothing, financial and other forms of direct assistance to the poor and those in need in St. Joseph County. The Society also offers self-sufficiency initiatives including the Food for Thought, Bridges Out of Poverty “Getting Ahead” and Healthy Living programs and operates three community resale stores.

Source: Villing & Company