The Hospice Boutique made the move from Prospect Street to Dundonald Street in February — closer to the university campuses and the students who frequent the shop.
Hospice Boutique is a non-profit thrift store in Fredericton with an extensive inventory of clothes, accessories, books and décor.
Katherine Del Salto, a first-year student at St. Thomas University, has been thrifting at the shop since she moved to Fredericton.
“I found this bracelet and ring that I really love,” Del Salto said. “They didn’t come as a set, but they matched pretty well.”
Students like Del Salto choose to thrift rather than shop fast fashion. She said thrifting benefits the planet, is cheaper and offers the potential for a retro or vintage wardrobe.
“I love vintage clothing,” said Del Salto. “I get excited when I find items that I can easily recognize from certain eras. I like being able to find something that obviously belonged to someone else and then adding it to my personal style.”
Del Salto said that other thrift stores, like Value Village, feel more franchised and lack the special touch that small businesses have.
The Hospice Boutique differs from other thrift stores in the area because of its business model. All profits from the store go to “compassionate end-of-life care to individuals and their families,” and “grief and bereavement services to families and caregivers,” according to the store’s website.
Kayla Curran, also a first-year STU student, said she likes that the store donates to a charitable cause.
Curran recently visited the new location on Dundonald and found it was well organized, creating separate racks of clothing for different sizes.
“They also had a good book section,” she said.
Ana Hernandez, another first-year student at STU who visited the new store, said the space was well-organized, had good lighting and fair prices.
“It’s easy to find what you’re looking for.”
Maya Buchanan is a first-year student at STU who thrifts at the Hospice Boutique.
She said clothing at Hospice is diverse and high quality and although prices for vintage clothing continue to rise, theirs remain reasonable.
“I’ve found a variety of really interesting things there,” she said. “I would definitely recommend it to others.”
The Aquinian reached out to Hospice Boutique, but it was not interested in an interview.
