The Salvation Army of Northern Virginia Blog. Learn more about our mission. You can help those in need and our Adult Rehabilitation Center by donating and shopping at our Northern Virginia Family Stores.
You may know the Salvation Army in Alexandria as a place where designer deals run deep. But, did you know that when you shop and save money there, you just may be helping to save a life? [...]
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (WUSA) - Black Friday may get a lot of attention, but what if I told you about a shop that offers Black Friday-worthy discounts every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday?
The Salvation Army in Alexandria, Virginia is the most profitable one in the country. And Wednesday is always its busiest day. That's when people line up before the store opens to get first pick of everything at 25% off. We spotted designers left and right, including Dooney and Bourke, Coach, Escada and Armani.
The Escada suit had a price tag of just $15.99. (On a Wednesday, that would be chopped to $11.99) One woman showed us her Coach bag,for which she had paid $8.
You never see Armani for $4.99, right? But according to Manager Lonnie Hamilton, you'll see it there. "We have the same items that you see at any high-end store, right here at the Salvation Army. That's the beauty of it, and it just gets better,"said Hamilton.
We decided to let a super-shopper show us how it's done, so we joined forces with the first person on line, Mandy Ellis of Annandale. She's had her eye on a bed set, "$500 for the entire set (with) pillow top, I've been watching it for about three days."
Ellis calculates she's probably saving a thousand dollars by buying the bed here rather than at a department store. But since this was a Wednesday, the total came to $418.92.
On our tour, we passed TVs, housewares, and men's, baby's and kid's clothes. We found women's Baby Phat pants with the tags on, showing they cost $74 in the stores. At the Army, the tag read $4.99. We also found a Jones New York women's suit for $13.
We broke off for a moment to meet Christina Gaymon, of Alexandria. She's moving to Baltimore, and considering which couch to buy. She's narrowed it down to two light-colored ones. "I'm still thinking of this one versus the other one so these are good decisions because it's not breaking my pockets. I have a whole apartment to furnish. $150 for a couch? You can't beat that," she said.
Back to Ellis. We thanked her for letting us tag along. But before we say goodbye, she offers this to the people who don't understand second-hand. "This is a good thing to do for people, it's a good thing to do for yourself, and there's no shame in it, whether you need to do it or you want to do it."
The store is located at 6528 Little River Turnpike, Alexandria, Virginia.
All donations to the Salvation Army of Northern Virginia directly benefit our Adult Rehabilitation Center, helping those need in our community. Donate a vehicle, furniture or clothing items or shop at our Family Stores to support our mission.
Adult Rehabilitation Center 6528 Little River Turnpike Alexandria, VA 22312 Phone: 703-642-9270
The Salvation Army of Northern Virginia Adult Rehabilitation Center provides an in-residence rehabilitation program with a focus on basic necessities.
Each program participant receives a clean and healthy living environment, good food, work therapy, leisure time activities, group and individual counseling, spiritual direction and the resources needed to develop life skills and a personal relationship with God.