The newly opened Roosevelt Island community Transit Thrift Shop is hosting it’s Grand Opening this Saturday, May 9. Yesterday, I took a tour of Transit Thrift and spoke with with co-owner Stephanie Herlihy. According to Ms. Herlihy:
I’m working with a team of four women, all with deep roots on Roosevelt Island.
Transit Thrift is a community thrift store. It’s a secondhand store. We sell clothing, shoes, any wardrobe accessories, some cool hats, belts, scarves, home decor, and books.
We want to keep it very accessible, so you can definitely find some good prices here. We really want to keep things in motion. That’s the whole idea behind Transit Thrift. It’s the idea of keeping things connected, keeping things moving….
… It’s for everyone. We really wanted it to be as accessible as possible and we hope everyone can find a fun treasure here….
We opened two weeks ago. This Grand Opening is for everyone to come and celebrate. We really want to meet you all. I think everybody really wanted this for a long time. So, we want to celebrate all together. We’re going to have games, there’ll be music and deals. So, come. We really want everyone to be here….
Take a tour of Transit Thrift with Ms Herlihy.
As previously reported by Transit Thrift co-owner Lauren Blankstein:
… This pop-up is located at 521 Main Street and will run through July as we plan for a permanent future if the community embraces adding this to Main Street.
Hours: Wednesday–Friday, 2pm–8pm; Saturday, 10am–8pm; Sunday, 12pm–6pm
Our inventory of men’s, women’s and kid’s clothing, comes primarily from community donations, which we collect most Sundays, along with select pieces sourced off-Island. We accept gently used clothing, accessories, décor, and home goods, and offer a shopping discount for every donation drop-off. Items we don’t keep are passed along to charities or organizations that recycle responsibly. Roosevelt Island is an ideal place to foster a circular economy—Transit Thrift gives neighbors a way to pass on what they no longer need while finding affordable, secondhand items. As part of our mission, we operate as a social enterprise and have committed to donating a portion of our profits to Island youth sports programs….
5/10 Update – Walking the Red Carpet at Transit Thrift Grand Opening on yesterday.