Business Spotlight

Local church project operates with many volunteers

by Kris Ann Hegle

SBJ Contributing Writer

It started out as a big rummage sale. Several women from St. Mary's Guild of Christ Episcopal Church on Walnut Street wanted to sell some clothing that had been donated by members of their congregation.

The clothes sold quickly, and more donations poured in. Before long, the rummage sale took on a life of its own. Today, some 50 years later, the members of St. Mary's Guild are still selling clothes through a nonprofit business they've founded called Next-to-New.

Most of the clothes at Next-to-New are sold on consignment.

However, the store still accepts clothes donated by members of the community.

One of the first consignment shops in Springfield, Next-to-New has seen the number of second-hand clothing stores and consignment shops increase significantly during its 50-year history. But Next-to-New still commands its share of business and has many faithful customers, according to Irma Wehner, store manager.

"You'd be surprised who comes in here," Wehner said. "We serve a broad cross-section of people."

Unlike clothing found at rummage stores or garage sales, which usually have small flaws or defects, most of the clothes at Next-to-New look as though they've barely been worn. The clothes sold on consignment also are in excellent condition.

"Just look at this suit," said Sally Williams, who works as a volunteer at Next-to-New. "There's nothing wrong with it. I bet whoever owned this just couldn't fit in it anymore."

Williams, who has a background in retail sales, is one of 50 volunteers who work at Next-to-New.

In fact, Wehner is the only paid employee who works at the shop. Most of the volunteers belong to St. Mary's Guild or attend Christ Episcopal Church, but occasionally a volunteer will be referred by a church member. Last year, the men and women who volunteered at the shop donated 7,208 hours of labor, according to Wehner.

"It's really a friendly, fun place to shop," Wehner said. "We have great volunteers who work hard, but they also have a lot of fun. Volunteering here is a great way to give back to the community and make friends at the same time."

According to Wehner, volunteers perform tasks ranging from bookkeeping to staffing the store to sorting and tagging clothes. Indeed, tagging and hanging clothes is the most labor-intensive task at the store. On Tuesday and Thursday, volunteer crews collect the clothes that have been donated, put them on hangers and inventory each item.

On Wednesday and Friday, garments are tagged and moved to the sales floor.

Every Monday, volunteers check each garment tag. If the tag indicates the clothing item has been on sale for more than six weeks, it's taken off the floor and donated to Crosslines of Springfield or the Council for the Blind.

According to Wehner, it's important to keep the merchandise moving because clothing is seasonal. In the fall, it's not unusual to see a customer come in with someone who needs a winter coat. Through the holiday season, other customers will come in to purchase a gift certificate for a friend.

"It costs so much to clothe a little family these days," Wehner said. "Some people wouldn't take charity, so they come here where they can afford to shop. We're really here to help the community."

To help customers, Next-to-New has a layaway plan, according to Wehner. The store also doesn't charge any sales tax because it is a nonprofit organization.

According to Wehner, one-third of the store's profits go to Christ Episcopal Church; one-third goes to missions, and one-third goes to local charitable organizations in the community, such as The Kitchen, the Family Violence Center, Meals on Wheels and many others.

This year the store donated $6,000 to the AmeriCorps program of Ozarks Fighting Back, which works to tutor children and make home repairs.

NEXT-TO-NEW SHOP

Year Founded: Around 1950

Address: 416 S. Kimbrough Ave., Springfield, Mo. 65806

Phone: (417) 862-7708

Owner's name: Nonprofit run by St. Mary's Guild of Christ Episcopal Church

Business philosophy: Provide economical clothing, provide charities with financial support and provide consignors with a place to market good, used clothes.

PHOTO CAPTION:

Next-To-News offers used clothing that has been donated or is on consignment. From left are: Peg George, a volunteer for 35 years; Aidan Griffin; Irma Wehner, manager; Pam Tynes, president of St. Mary's Guild; Jan Mellers; and Irene Curits, co-chair of the Next-To-New board. More than 50 volunteers logged more than 7,200 hours at the Kimbrough Avenue store.

PHOTO CAPTION:

Peg George shows a sweater to Irene Curtis at Next-To-New. They take part in the store's management. [[In-content Ad]]