Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Audrey’s: a Resale Boutique and community treasure
“As soon as you drive up you feel the pull to park, and as soon as you enter the door you find a place of peace and a connection. There’s always a smile and a ‘hi how are you?’ so genuine you can’t help but love it. Right away you feel attached. …And all of the items are donated with love, not dumped! Carefully placed and hung around the store with purpose and handled with care. There is a gentle spirit here that comes and goes with you and you feel it while you look around. Every piece was someone’s treasure. A table with six chairs that a family sat at and ate meals and shared stories. They still linger. You touch and run your finger over dishes, trinkets, jewelry and clothing and see if it fits. Shoes that walked places you never did. Someone’s life. The journey continues through and out the door of Audrey’s and the lives it touches…”
That’s Lynn Marie, a longtime Audrey’s aficionado, writing about the Resale Boutique in Bella Vista. The store, its shoppers and volunteers are like a family, with manager Kristy Danna at the helm. All proceeds from the boutique benefit the non-profit Audrey’s Home of Hope, an organization that empowers young mothers.
Lynn discovered Audrey’s after a friend told her about the store a few years ago. Lynn was newly retired at the time, and getting back to the things she used to love.
“When I walked in here, time kind of stopped. I come in here and I feel attached. Everything in here belonged to somebody. They were precious to somebody. They feel like treasures. It’s not junk,” Lynn says. “When you come in here you feel like you’ve entered a haven.”
Lynn Marie shows off a new necklace she found at Audrey’s that day. She thinks of shopping at Audrey’s as treasure-hunting, saying “this isn’t something you bought, this is something you caught.”
Now when Lynn Marie visits Audrey’s it’s just as much to shop as it is to visit with Kristy and other volunteers and regular shoppers. It’s not the kind of place for shopping in anonymity.
If you visit on Monday or Friday, you’ll get tail-wagging welcome from Sophia Grace, a sweet Bichon Frisé who is at the store on those days with her owner, dedicated volunteer Shiela Lettow.
Now through Memorial Day, all the red, white and blue clothing in the store is 20-50% off. And if you wear red, white and blue into the store you get an extra 5% off.
The first sidewalk sale of the season is also happening this Saturday, May 25. The outdoor shopping tradition will continue the last Saturday of every month through the summer and is a great place to find extra marked down items.
Audrey’s recently helped a young woman get out of a bad situation and get her life together by providing furnishings and household items for a place of her own. Another Audrey’s alumni, a single mom, has her first apartment away from the system, paying rent on her own. Audrey’s helped her furnish it.
While we visited, someone came in looking for a jogging stroller. Kristy didn’t have any and was telling the woman where else she might look, when Lynn Marie piped up saying “I have one that my daughter is almost done with!” They exchanged contact information and promised to work out the details.
“See, that’s what happens here,” Lynn said. “Connections.”
Your gently loved items do a world of good at Audrey’s and donations are always welcome. The store is always in need of good furniture. And they’ll even pick up and deliver your treasures. Call to arrange pick up, or text the cellphone number to send pictures of your items.