The Salvation Army Family Store

Definately the right place to shop if you are on a budget in need of a lot of T-​shirts. Also, like to check out their selection of furniture and home good items downstairs. Although it’s the «Salvation Army» I wish they would invest a little time and money into cleaning it up and upgrading it a bit to look a little more like Savers and not feel so dirty or run down. But, I have come across many great finds in this store and will continue to shop there!

The only Salvation Army I’ve seen help the needy by letting them sleep in the store in plain view of the customers. Seriously? no one is going to shoo the homeless winos off the couches they are sleeping on?
It’s a huge building, but the selection sucks, most furniture is fake wood, torn up and overpriced, the stench of the mattresses lined up against the back wall downstairs was so pungent I almost puked. I’ve found an antique shadowbox here and some frames, but I haven’t been in quite some time, Hold your breath if you try it.

There is no Salvation Army (that I have yet encountered) that is better all around than this one, in terms of overall selection, price, organization, space, and even (relative) cleanliness.
This gigantic, two-​story warehouse of apparel, shoes, media (DVDs, VHS, CDs, tapes, vinyls, 8-​tracks), books, furniture ($ 24.95 for a well-​loved but solid wood desk), shoes, accessories, appliances, dishware, and even bedding has been here for decades. I began trawling the racks back in junior high, and have continued ever since to visit during vacations, breaks, and trips back home. Thus, I’ve found myself here most often in the dead of winter, wearing the ugliest stuff that can pass as clothing and clogs (for easy removal when trying things on), running from the free 2 hour street parking into the warmth (because you’d be a fool to bring a heavy jacket in here when athletically sorting through pounds of clothing), trying not to slip on ice or twist an ankle on rock salt.
There are always assorted carriages for use, and it’s worth grabbing one, because soon, that carriage will be heaped thrice high in possibilities, costing no more than $ 7.99 a pop. When I see the prices, I try not to grumble, and chalk the hikes up to inflation and charitable ambitions. In any case, the most expensive stuff here will be about a tenth the price for ten times the quality of the crap being hawked in the overfished vintage stores of larger cities. Also, the affluent neighborhoods radiating out from Haverhill Massachusetts, ensure donations that are more likely to be tees with company logos and Ralph Lauren cabled sweaters rather than the crotch stained sweatpants off a derelict’s corpse or some hipster’s half-​finished, raggedy wearable art project. In other words, this store embodies the Salvation Army’s overarching mission of providing the poor (or the opportunitstic and merely thrifty) with dignified solutions to living… and dressing.
The trousers, skirts, and jeans are no longer assorted by size, but they are still assorted by color. The same goes for blouses, sweaters, jackets, and dresses. It’s amazing… it’s like a shabbier version of Cher’s closet in Clueless, over and over and over again. Most important, that filmy, itchy, creepy, dusty, parched feeling that befalls the hands when grasping through society’s discards is kept at a minimum here. I’m not exactly sure why this is, but my guess is that it has something to do with mass-​sanitation of the donations, as well as the tremendous amount of space, which allows for proper organization, which prevents items from sinking into stratii of age-​old grime.
When I was here the other day, I combed every last molecule of the store and tried everything on one by one in the amply spaced section with two rickety fitting rooms and full length mirrors out in the open for those who don’t have to get naked to filter their finds. One by one, I narrowed it down. Vintage EMS down jacket was made for a 6’6″, 230-​lb. man. Out. DKNY linen knit tunic made me look like I was a respectable 50 years old. Out. The size 9 Blue Asphalt bellbottoms were an inch too skinny for my expanding waist, and I couldn’t fudge it because jeans before the year 2002 weren’t 50% spandex so we could all be forever 21 and stay 5,7,9 (bonus for the readers who understand this last reference). And so on.
That day, the green tags were half off, so I made a steal on a plaid jumper (a little bit school girly but still viably so for this THIRTY-​ONE year old to wear in public without looking like a role play participant). Everything else happened to have a white tag, and my mother told me that on Wednesdays, ALL tags would be half off. So, I stood frozen like a doomed squirrel in the middle of an Interstate highway, actually entertaining the thought of extending my visit through Wednesday and leaving my selections up to chance just in case I could come back and find them all for half price. It didn’t take me too long to realize this was silly.
So, I waited nervously as the aproned cashier rang up my Annie soundtrack vinyl, ESPN Jock Jams Volumes 1 and 2 (don’t judge me), a thermal sweater, a windbreaker coincidentally from my high school, a huge green hockey sweater (for all those times I’m going to be reborn as a 12 year old boy and be an extra in D2), coral cotton sweater, lacy bolero cardigan, and said plaid jumper. I cringed, waiting for the damage.
«$ 34.13» she said, and I burst out laughing, doing a stomp-​and-​clap dance while she watched with a dull gaze and pressed lips. Handed my credit card over, and my semi-​annual donation to the Haverhill Salvation Army was complete… though, as always, I think I came out on top again.
What to bring on your visit: TIME, water, nutrition bars, slip-​off shoes, clothing you don’t care about, and another person to move the car or watch your stuff while you take an off-​site bathroom break.

Things to bring when visiting the Salvation Army Store:
1. Patience
to search and deal with the «interesting» clientele you will find here
2. Time
to go through all the racks thoroughly and find all those deals and bargains
3. Handy wipes
’Cause you’re gonna feel dirty after the first hour
4. Tank top and shorts
Under your clothes so if you need to try something on. You do not want to use the dressing room
5. Cash
Although they take credit, there have been many visits in which the machine was down
6. Water
You’ll get thirsty after the first hour and won’t want to lose your groove
Armed with those tips, happy shopping! If it’s jeans you need, you’ll usually find 4 – 5 racks full of women’s jeans. Purses, coats, sweaters and more. Some with the prices still on them!
Need assorted household bric-​à-​brac? Got it! Don’t forget to go downstairs and check out all the furniture!

Although this is one of the smelliest and oldest SA’s, its the least expensive one in the area. but not the best selection. you really have to search for what you want.
I think the pricing is based on general median income for the area? Compared to the salem, nh one this one it like ½ price.
The same people worked there for years and I believe they employ several bilingual people, which may be helpful for some patrons.
Make sure you check out the basement level… dont be scared to go down into the crypt!
They have excellent prices on furniture. I bought awesome REAL wood end tables and things here.

Pretty good thrift store in downtown Haverhill. Its HUGE with mens and womens clothes, furniture, dishes, books, lamps, etc.
I love the excitment of the hunt as you never know what treasure you may find.
1^st floor is wheerchair accessable.