Goodwill of North Georgia celebrates renovations at West End location

By Hannah E. Jones

The Goodwill of North Georgia team has just put the finishing touches on the renovations to its oldest store — the West End location. On Thursday, Feb. 16, team members, local leaders and residents gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the updated space.

(Before and after) The recent renovations include new paint and wall graphics. (Photo courtesy of Goodwill of North Georgia.)

The West End store — located at 888 Ralph David Abernathy Blvd SW — opened in 1973. Fifty years after opening its doors for the first time, the store has now reemerged with a revamped look and feel.

“We know our shoppers love to come to Goodwill and stay in the store quite a bit,” Vice President of Marketing Elaine Armstrong said. “[As a thrift store,] people tend to linger in the store and stay for a while. While they’re there, we want them to have the best experience possible, and if that means that we make some investments in improving the look and feel, we’re definitely going to do that.”

The renovations include an updated layout with new wall graphics, fresh paint, new flooring, an employee break room, LED lights and more organized racks and shelves. The improvements were completed in about three months and were done without shutting down the store.  

In addition to improving the customer and employee experience, Armstrong added that the updates are a signal to the West End community that Goodwill is investing in the neighborhood. 

“We’ve been committed to serving that community for a long time, which is why we’ve never wanted to move the store. It’s important for us to stay there,” Armstrong said. “We know these neighborhoods don’t always get the investments that some of the other neighborhoods do, and it’s important for residents in those communities to have quick access to things that they want and great shopping experiences. We’re always going to be committed to staying there, improving the quality of life there and just being a great neighbor.”

Last year, the team renovated nine locations, including Cobb Parkway, Covington, Fayetteville, Powder Springs and others. Several North Georgia stores are slated for updates this year, but the team is still in the process of selecting the locations. Until then, Armstrong invites nearby residents to check out the refreshed digs in the West End.

Goodwill of North Georgia has 69 second-hand retail stores in its network, which are used to fund the 14 careers centers around the region. For the last three consecutive years, Goodwill of North Georgia was named the top Goodwill in the nation for connecting folks with jobs.

“When you come into a Goodwill store, you can find the treasures that you’re looking for [and] you can have a great shopping experience,” Armstrong said. “You can feel good at the end of the day because you’ve done something good for your community.”