Habitat's ReStore makes big changes

FINDLAY – The sign out front says ReStore, but things look different inside. The 14,000 square feet of retail space have been transformed and rearranged. "We felt it was time for the store to grow up a little bit," said Manager Eddie Black. ReStore serves as an integral component for Habitat for Humanity of Findlay/Hancock County as 40% of the affiliate's income is generated by the store's revenue. Inventory is provided by donations of new and used products from individuals and businesses and sold to the public at discounted prices. The remaining return goes for maintenance, salaries and upkeep on the Habitat building. Black has only been at the helm for about three months, but already he's making changes. His first few months on the job were spent watching people shop, seeing what they bought and listening to their feedback. "We wanted to know, what were our main issues? What should we look at changing?" he said. Armed with the responses he got, Black went to his director, Wendy McCormick, executive director of the local Habitat affiliate. "I told her I had a "crazy idea. Don't shoo me out of your office. I want to make some changes," he recalled. "She said, what do you want to change? I said, everything." They talked about retail science, safety and feedback. Customers wanted more space, a cleanly place to shop and an environment that was more accessible to all. A plan started to come together, and McCormick gave her OK to the project. "When they first moved into the building, they probably didn't realize what the traffic was going to be like. We didn't realize what donations they were going to be getting," he said. "In over seven years, we're kind of starting to figure it out a little bit." Over four days and a few hours, more than 120 volunteers came together in mid-February to transform shopping space. Black said the old layout offered shoppers coming in the front door a view of industrial shelves filled with items for construction and plumbing. It also blocked off windows and the natural light, he said. The problem was fixed by moving the units to another location while construction materials found a new home in a new at the back. The front area now showcases furniture which, according to Black, is probably the store's top seller. "Furniture is expensive," he said. "They can also get older stuff that's much better quality. So a lot of customers might come looking at us for secondhand because the quality of the furniture is nicer than what they're getting right out of the box." He also wanted to stage different areas using the couches, chairs, tables, lamps, desks and bookcases. "We wanted to put things in a manner that you can envision in your home. Putting it in rows and putting it in a warehouse kind of atmosphere, you don't really picture it in your house," Black said. "By putting the furniture out there so you can envision it, so you can see it, it's more pleasing to the customer." The highlight of coming into ReStore now is roomy areas that are nicely arranged and large aisles for meandering. "The question people ask the most when they haven't been here for a while is where did you put everything?" he laughed. "We didn't get rid of it. It just got moved to a different location." The store brought in some items that are brand new like bedding and rugs, but old favorites can still be found like knicknacks, dishes, games, books, DVDs, record albums and CDs. The store even has a new slogan - "Have You Stopped at the ReStore?" "You never know what you're going to get here," Black said. So far, the response has been phenomenal, he said. One shopper who uses a wheeled walker told Black this is the first time she's been able to get all the way around to find some of the little things she wanted to see but couldn't access the area. "Our biggest thing is, it doesn't matter if we like it. It's a matter of whether the customer likes it because if they're not purchasing with us, then we're not being able to fund the families that we're serving," he said. Habitat built six houses in 2025 and is looking to do another six this year. They also provided 47 critical repairs last year, he said. "When someone donates, when somebody volunteers their time, when you make a purchase, when you round up to the nearest dollar when you're checking out, all that goes to those families that we're serving," he said. Phase 2 will include painting, cleaning floors and general maintenance. Black said the outside will be a focus this year as well. "I told the team, we're just getting started. I think there's a lot more gas in the tank. There's a lot more feedback the consumers have given us, and we want to try and make sure we're checking off all of the boxes." The store is located at 1200 Commerce Parkway. Shopping and donation hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Donations are taken at the back of the store. Donations can also be picked up by scheduling an appointment on the website at findlayhabitat.org or calling 419-429-1400, option 2, and leaving a message.