Savers is a popular thrift store chain that has locations across the United States and Canada. The company is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington and has over 300 stores. Savers specializes in selling previously owned clothing, accessories, furniture, books, toys, and household goods at discounted prices. Many customers appreciate shopping at Savers as a way to save money on quality used items. Savers also supports various community initiatives through its philanthropic Savers Foundation.
For bargain hunters in Massachusetts looking for a good deal on secondhand items, Savers provides an excellent option. With multiple store locations across the state, Savers is a convenient thrift store chain for Massachusetts residents to check out. But exactly how many Savers stores are located in Massachusetts?
In this article, we will provide an overview of Savers’ operations in Massachusetts and quantify the number of stores the chain currently has in the state. Understanding how widespread Savers’ presence is across Massachusetts can help shoppers locate their nearest store to search for hidden treasures and savings.
Savers’ History and Background
Savers has been operating thrift stores since 1954 when the first location opened in San Francisco under the name Value Village. The company was founded by William Yusko and his wife Patsy. In 1984, the name was changed from Value Village to Savers to reduce confusion with other thrift stores using the Value Village name.
Savers began expanding into the East Coast in the 1990s, opening multiple locations in Massachusetts. The chain started focusing on buying merchandise in bulk quantities from nonprofits and paying nonprofits for their used donations. This allowed Savers to operate thrift stores while supporting various charitable organizations.
By 2001, Savers had over 100 thrift stores across North America. The company continued growing through new store openings and acquisitions of regional thrift chains. This expansion strategy brought Savers to new markets while allowing the company to leverage operational efficiencies across an integrated network of stores.
Today, Savers operates over 300 thrift retail stores in the United States, Canada, and Australia. The company owns additional for-profit thrift brands Value Village, Unique Thrift Store, and Village Discount Outlet. Under its parent company Savers, Inc., the thrift retail chain reports around $1 billion in annual revenues and recycles over 700 million pounds of used goods per year.
Savers’ Used Goods Retail Operations
Savers distinguishes itself from other thrift stores through its sheer size and professionalized operations. The company has the scale and infrastructure to process high volumes of donated used items across its network of stores.
Donations to Savers primarily come from nonprofit partners that the company has contractual agreements with. Savers provides payment to these nonprofits for each pound of used goods collected, with average payments of around seven to ten cents per pound. This lucrative donation arrangement incentivizes nonprofits to channel donations toward Savers.
At the company’s massive processing facilities, donated items are sorted and priced for retail. Savers then ships inventory out to its stores to be sold. With high inventory turnover, shoppers can regularly find new product selections each time they visit one of Savers’ thrift stores.
Through this centralized processing and distribution model, Savers can maximize economies of scale. The company can invest in labor, equipment, and transportation to handle high volumes of donated goods in an efficient, low-cost manner. Savers then shares these cost savings with customers through its discount thrift store prices.
Savers Locations in Massachusetts
Savers began opening stores in Massachusetts in the 1990s. The state’s high population density, affluent demographics, and participation in clothing/goods recycling made it an attractive market for the thrift chain.
Currently, Savers has 15 store locations in Massachusetts. This includes:
- 5 stores in the Boston metropolitan area
- 2 stores in Springfield
- 1 store in Worcester
- 1 store in Lowell
- 1 store in Lawrence
- 1 store in Brockton
- 1 store in Taunton
- 1 store in Fall River
- 1 store in Salem
- 1 store in Leominster
The following map shows the geographic distribution of Savers stores across Massachusetts:
| City | Store Count |
|---|---|
| Boston | 3 |
| Quincy | 1 |
| Dedham | 1 |
| Springfield | 2 |
| Worcester | 1 |
| Lowell | 1 |
| Lawrence | 1 |
| Brockton | 1 |
| Taunton | 1 |
| Fall River | 1 |
| Salem | 1 |
| Leominster | 1 |
The five Savers locations in the Boston metro area allow thrifty shoppers convenient access in the state’s largest city. Additional stores in other major population centers like Springfield and Worcester also provide good geographic coverage across Massachusetts.
Typical Savers Store Features
Savers operates different store sizes ranging from smaller 10,000 square feet locations to larger 30,000+ square feet stores. On average, most Savers stores are around 20,000 square feet.
Inside a typical Savers store, shoppers will find:
- Broad assortment of clothing, shoes, accessories, and bags
- Home goods like furniture, small appliances, kitchenware, decor, lamps
- Toys, games, sporting goods, electronics
- Books, CDs, DVDs, video games
- Halloween costumes and party supplies
Clothing is organized by gender and type such as shirts, pants, dresses, suits, coats. Home goods have dedicated areas showcasing furniture, linens, housewares. The store layout makes it easy for customers to locate specific categories they are looking to shop.
In addition to everyday low prices, Savers also frequently offers sales throughout the year. For example, different color tag discounts each week or half-off holidays. There are often special discounts on select departments to drive traffic. The regular sales and promotions provide additional incentives for savvy shoppers to keep coming back to Savers.
Savers Shopping Experience
The Savers shopping experience appeals to a wide range of customers looking for great deals. Between the low prices, large product selection, and treasure hunt environment, Savers attracts diverse demographics.
Here are some of the popular customer segments and use cases for Savers stores:
- Budget-conscious shoppers – families, students, fixed incomes
- Fashionistas and designers – lookup vintage, retro styles
- Collectors – search for rare items like antiques, memorabilia
- Resellers – buy inventory to resell online or at flea markets
- arts and craft enthusiasts – source materials for projects
- Costume shoppers – put together Halloween, theater, theme parties
- Environmentalists – promote reuse and clothing recycling
The low-pressure, self-service format also appeals to a range of shopper preferences. Customers are free to casually browse for hidden gems without any pressure from sales associates.
Savers encourages shoppers to sign up for its free MySavers loyalty program. Members earn points for donating and shopping which can be used to save money on future purchases. The MySavers program helps Savers collect customer data for marketing and build long-term loyalty.
Savers Store Expansion
Savers continues pursuing strategic store expansion opportunities to bring its thrift retail model to new markets. While the company has not formally announced plans for additional Massachusetts locations, the strong performance of its existing stores makes the state a candidate for further growth.
Savers looks for store sites in areas with the right demographics and donation profile to support its thrift operations. Typical site criteria include:
- Population density around 75,000 within a 3-mile radius
- Median household income over $50,000
- Located in shopping centers with complementary tenants
- Abundant parking availability
- Access for trucks to handle frequent merchandise deliveries
Prospective markets for new Massachusetts stores could include Cambridge, Plymouth, Barnstable, New Bedford, and other midsize cities and towns. Locating additional stores near Savers’ existing presence can also help expand coverage within metro areas.
However, Savers also has to balance expansions with potential sales cannibalization across overly proximate stores. The company carefully analyzes market data and its own sales performance to determine optimal sites for new store growth.
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic had a notable impact on retail operations, consumer behavior, and donated goods flows. During the height of the pandemic, Savers temporarily closed all of its stores for several months to protect associates and customers.
As Savers reopened stores under new health protocols, consumer demand was very strong. Many value-focused shoppers were drawn to thrift stores during recessionary conditions. Savers also benefited from a surge of home decluttering and donations during lockdowns.
However, disrupted textile recycling pipelines meant fewer donations from large-scale sources like hotels and factories. Savers responded by working closely with its nonprofit partners to generate community donations through contactless pickups and drop-off events.
It remains to be seen if increased thrift store popularity during the pandemic will be sustained long-term. Regardless, Savers’ low prices and treasure hunt shopping experience are likely to keep attracting Massachusetts deal seekers even after economic conditions stabilize.
Comparison to Other Thrift Chains
Compared to other major U.S. thrift store chains, Savers has significantly more locations and higher revenues.
Goodwill is Savers’ closest competitor with approximately 3,300 North American retail stores generating around $5.4 billion annually. However, Goodwill is a nonprofit organization while Savers is a for-profit business.
Other large thrift chains include:
- Salvation Army – Around 4,000 thrift stores in the U.S.
- Value Village – Over 300 thrift stores primarily in the Pacific Northwest, Midwest, and Canada
- Unique Thrift – Around 80 stores on the U.S. East Coast
Smaller regional thrift operators also compete in local markets. But Savers’ scale provides it with advantages in merchandising, pricing, marketing, and logistics.
Within Massachusetts, individual Goodwill and Salvation Army locations are Savers’ primary competitors. Unique Thrift also has around a dozen stores overlapping with Savers’ presence in Massachusetts.
Savers distinguishes itself through its branding, store experience, and community partnerships. The company has forged strong recognition in Massachusetts through decades of local marketing and advertising.
Future Outlook
The outlook for Savers and the thrift industry overall remains positive. The stigma around secondhand goods continues to decline, especially among younger generations focused on value and sustainability.
Savers is well positioned to keep capitalizing on:
- Favorable thrift store shopping trends
- Ongoing consumer demand for discounts
- Growing awareness of clothing reuse/recycling
At the same time, potential recessions could further boost Savers’ appeal as budget-conscious shoppers look to save. The company’s discount prices and treasure hunt atmosphere tend to resonate during challenging economic periods.
Savers also has opportunities to modernize operations and enhance the customer experience through technology. Investments in digital commerce, mobile apps, in-store tech, and data analytics could help Savers attract younger generations and improve shopping convenience.
Leveraging its scale, Savers is likely to remain a thrift retail leader in Massachusetts and beyond. The company’s extensive store network provides shoppers across the state with easy access to discounted secondhand goods.
Conclusion
Savers has established a significant presence across Massachusetts, operating 15 thrift stores throughout the state. The discount retail chain offers consumers quality used merchandise spanning clothing, accessories, home goods, and more. Savers’ wide selection, low prices, and treasure hunt shopping experience have built the company’s popularity in Massachusetts over the past few decades.
Massachusetts’ large population, affluent demographics, participation in reuse/recycling, and presence of major metro areas have made it an appealing market for Savers’ thrift store expansion. The company could potentially open additional locations in the state to extend its coverage and tap into new communities of thrifty shoppers.
For deal-seeking Bay Staters, visiting their local Savers provides an affordable and sustainable way to shop. Savers’ unique thrift store model will likely continue resonating with Massachusetts bargain hunters looking to save money while finding great secondhand products.
