Winnetka Thrift Shop of Northbrook

Winnetka Thrift Shop of Northbrook is a thrift store in Northbrook, IL, situated at 992 Green Bay Road. The shop sells donated goods and operates as a fundraising arm of the Counseling Center of the North Shore, with every dollar of proceeds directed toward the counseling center's mental health services. Donations are accepted during posted hours throughout the week, and items that cannot be sold in the store are passed on to other organizations or recycled. The shop serves shoppers looking for affordable secondhand clothing and household goods, and roughly seventy percent of its customers return for repeat visits.

The Winnetka Thrift Shop has a history that reaches back more than a century. It was originally established in 1912 by Mary Garretson as the Clothing Sales Committee of the Relief and Aid Society, created to provide affordable clothing to people in need in Winnetka and to give local charitable donations a direct outlet in the community. The store first operated out of the Winnetka Village Hall, then moved to the Winnetka Community House, before settling at its present Green Bay Road location in 1973. Today the shop is staffed by Elana Shein as Store Manager and Mary O'Brien as Assistant Manager. It is a member of the Winnetka Northfield Glencoe Chamber of Commerce. The store is currently preparing for a renovation, with a fundraising campaign underway to support the work. Shopping runs Monday through Saturday from 10am to 5pm, and the donation door is unlocked during all open hours.

The shop carries a rating of 4.30 from the customers who have reviewed it, reflecting steady approval from the community it has served for more than five decades on Green Bay Road. With a century of operation behind it and a continuing role funding mental health care on the North Shore, the Winnetka Thrift Shop remains one of the longest-running secondhand retailers in the area.