Thrift is not an affair of the pocket, but an affair of character.
S.W. Straus
My family attends The Crossing, a multisite Christian church with campuses located in rural Illinois, Missouri, and Iowa. Our benevolence ministry is funded by our 8 thrift stores, located in the surrounding areas.
Just a few fun facts about our thrift stores:
- the first store was established in 2008
- nearly $900,000 of assistance distributed to their communities
- vouchers are often provided to those needing clothing or household items
- 10,000-12,000 people served annually through food pantries supplied by thrift stores
- 340,000 pounds of recycle gathered annually (this translates into $$$ that is given to communities)
- one store works directly with the local prison to provide clothing to those recently released
These thrift stores are an amazing ministry. They provide our church with an on-the-street ministry that reaches every day people in an everyday manner. Bruce, who oversees the thrift store and benevolence ministry at the church, has an incredible heart for every aspect of this ministry.
Disclaimer: Bruce wants you to know that his team and the church feel this way too – he doesn’t want to take the credit for making this ministry as awesome as it is. These stores are a labor of love and our church is behind this ministry 100%.
But he is the client in this story, so I’m gonna talk about him. Sorry Bruce. And also thank you – you’re awesome.
You’ve never known someone who cares so much about a thrift store. He wants them to be clean, attractive, pleasing, organized, everything you’d want from a shopping environment. But he also understands that he’s overseeing a thrift store and not a boutique. So he takes great care to make sure that the stores are not so refined that they’re intimidating or confusing. After all, isn’t that part of the fun of thrifting? That it feels a little like an adventure? Not to mention, these are ministry-based thrift stores. They are funding a ministry. Which means he doesn’t just get to dump money into aesthetics like any other typical storefront would be able to. Quite a task.
And oh, is he the man for the job.
Our thrift stores have had the same logo design now for more than 9 years, and it was time for a facelift. I was super excited to tackle this project, because I especially enjoy working with Bruce. He just cares. He also knows that he’s better at caring than designing. (Those are the best kind of clients, amiright?)
He wants a clean, modern, attractive logo that will help his stores seem current, without losing the context that it is indeed a thrift store. I started thinking of stores that have really simple, recognizable branding, like Gap or H&M. I started wondering things like, if H&M had a thrift store, what would the logo look like?
But alas, the name. The Crossing Thrift Store. This was my stumbling block. It’s just so . . . long. Part of the issue with the current logo is that there’s just so much of it. I couldn’t wrap my mind around a minimalistic logo with so many words.
So now we start thinking outside of the box.
What if we change the name?
Initials weren’t doing much for me, plus we’re still just a local business. “TCTS” doesn’t mean anything to anyone, which means the logo would be initials and still have to include the name to explain the initials. Nope.
Branding 101: don’t try to identify your business with initials or symbols that need too much explanation if your community isn’t already familiar with you.
Unless that’s your bit.
So what’s the important part of the name? Thrift. Yes, it’s connected to The Crossing, but that doesn’t identify anything for the shopper. But thrift? They want to know that.
Legally, the stores are still called The Crossing Thrift Store, and the entire name is still in the logo, but I’m really looking forward to people heading to Thrift for some cool dishes or to donate their sweaters at Thrift. I feel like we didn’t just update the logo, we updated the whole identity.
Our thrift stores aren’t just thrift stores, they have heart and purpose. You may bring in your old clothes just to get them out of your house, but someone else may really need them. Or, your stuff may be in such terrible shape that they have no choice but to recycle it (which is 100% okay with them). But the money from those recycled clothes is going to help put food on someone’s table, or pay for a gas bill, or buy a kid a backpack.
Thrift – it isn’t just an affair of the pocket, but an affair of character.
Interested in learning more about our thrift stores? You can find our different locations on facebook, or email Bruce at brucef@thecrossing.net! He would love to hear from you!
Superb!!! Love the new look (and name!) for our thrift stores. It just makes me wanna go in…
Thanks friend!! Hopefully you’re not the only one! ♥️