Goodwill Columbus to open first Columbus flagship store

Goodwill Columbus will hold a grand opening of its first Columbus flagship store on Friday.

The store, at 5526 Renner Rd., just south of Hilliard, will open at 10 a.m. immediately following a ribbon cutting ceremony.

A half hour before the store opening, music, doughnuts and coffee will be available, and the first 100 shoppers through the door will receive goodie bags. In addition, the grand opening will include raffles with prizes including $25,000 in cash, $50 gift certificates and a flat screen television.

The flagship is “an exciting milestone for us because it’s the first of five stores we will be building from the ground up over the next three years,” said Tim Salvato, senior vice president of retail operations. The new stores will be “unlike any Goodwill Columbus stores.”

The new flagship store will span 18,000 sq. ft. and feature natural lighting, exposed ceilings, polished concrete floors, and a covered donation drop-off area. Each store will also feature displays of artwork created by artists with disabilities and other barriers.

Construction on a second local flagship store near the intersection of Hamilton and Morse roads in Gahanna is currently underway, with an opening date set for September.

http://www.dispatch.com/content/blogs/the-bottom-line/2015/04/goodwill-to-open-first-columbus-flagship-store.html