Over the past year, The Closet resale shop at 28 Main St. provided quality used clothing at affordable prices, as well as free clothing to the needy.
The business, which operated under the auspices of the Destinations Bradford ministry, officially closed its doors at the end of the business day Tuesday because it was unable to self-sustain its operations.
Becky Plummer, director of Destinations Bradford at 1 Main St., said the faith-based ministry will announce details of a liquidation sale and other charitable uses for the store’s merchandise in the near future.
“We were given seed money to give to that ministry, get it off the ground and get it self-sustaining by a certain date,” Plummer said of the resale shop which opened in September of 2016. “But downtown just cannot support it.”
She said the store, which accepted gently used clothing, accessories and other apparel, sold the items at lower prices than many resale shops in the area. In addition, the shop often provided free clothing to the needy.
“The community has been so supportive with the donations of products, but the sale of the items wasn’t happening,” she continued.
Plummer said the shop had three part-time employees, as well as two PathStone senior employees and volunteers.
“None of them made a lot of money and they sacrificed a lot to be there,” Plummer said of the staff. “That’s just part of being in the ministry. They created a great bond with each other, it was like a family over there.”
Plummer said the board of directors made the decision Monday to close the shop, as they didn’t want the store to pull finances from Destinations’ other ministries.
Destinations was created six years ago with a mission to fill in some of the gaps left by other ministries in the area. Over time, a food pantry and clothing closet were added to the small downtown office operated by Plummer and two other part-time staff members. The ministry also provides emergency shelter vouchers, gas cards, hygiene and cleaning products, educational opportunities and pharmacy assistance to the needy. As the ministry grew, the staff found the clothing ministry too cumbersome to house and manage and closed it a year prior to opening The Closet.
Plummer said support and funding is provided to Destinations by area churches, foundations, organizations and businesses. All of Destinations’ ministries, except the clothing ministry, will continue to be available to the community at its current location, she added.
Rev. Stacey Fussell, vice chairperson of Destinations’ board, said the decision to close the store was hard to reach, but necessary.
“The downtown area didn’t support it,” Fussell commented. “It was a really difficult decision, but we had to be faithful to the overall ministry.
“The folks who worked there did a wonderful job, and were very faithful and dedicated,” Fussell added. “It’s not a reflection on anybody’s lack of commitment, effort or anything else. It’s just at this time, that ministry is not going to be able to continue.”
Tina Phillips, chairperson of the board, provided a similar message.
“We thank the employees, Dee, Denise, Marty, Georgia and Jill, for being so loyal,” Phillips said. “We were blessed with seed money to get started … but we had to be good stewards of what we were given.”
