Goodwill Industries Opens New Store

Newhall resident Sandra Chortkoff was driving along Reseda Boulevard when a Goodwill Industries of Southern California retail store caught her eye.

She parked her car and went in.

Several minutes later, she walked out with four panels of draperies at $5.99 each.

“Those run about $45 to $55 per panel at department stores,” said Mike Seukunian, manager of Goodwill’s newest retail store in Reseda, which opened Saturday.

As part of the grand opening ceremony, which featured a live band, Councilwoman Laura Chick donated a rack of clothing to the store.

Clothing accounts for 70% of the inventory at the 13,000-square-foot store, Seukunian said. Prices range from 99 cents for T-shirts to $15 for well-known labels, such as Yves St. Laurent sport coats and London Fog raincoats.

The inventory also includes bedroom, dining room and living room furniture, dishes, TVs and VCRs, golf clubs, books, records, tapes, compact discs and issues of National Geographic magazine dating back to the 1960s.

“Prices are typically about 10% to 15% of retail,” said Seukunian, who added that all items are donated by Valley residents.

Founded in 1919, Goodwill Industries is a nonprofit agency whose mission is to provide educational opportunities, on-the-job training and job placement assistance for people with disabilities and vocational disadvantages, said Peggy Smith, director of development.

About 90 cents of every $1 sold goes to fund Goodwill’s education, training and job placement programs, Smith said.

In the Valley, Goodwill has retail stores in Canoga Park, North Hollywood, Panorama City and San Fernando. It also has stores in Glendale and Saugus.

The new Reseda store, at 7126 Reseda Blvd., is open from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.