Thrift Store Chain to Mark Openings

The Out of the Closet Thrift Store chain, which raises funds for the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, will open a North Hollywood branch today on Victory Boulevard and reopen a revamped bargain basement store on Laurel Canyon Boulevard.

Both stores will have ribbon-cutting ceremonies, special markdowns and raffles, entertainment and light refreshments in honor of the opening of the chain’s ninth store.

The new 7,100-square-foot Victory Boulevard store is an upscale thrift store, said Ged Kenslea, director of community relations for the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “It’s not your father’s Salvation Army,” he quipped. “It’s quite a dynamic store.”

Among the items for sale at the Victory Boulevard site will be a refectory table donated by comedic actress Ellen DeGeneres and items from the Max Factor estate.

The existing Laurel Canyon Boulevard store, meanwhile, has been retooled, Kenslea said, with weekly markdowns. If an item at the “last chance” store is still on the racks after a month, it will be donated to charity, he said.

The chain, which has stores in Atwater Village, Los Feliz, Fairfax District, West Hollywood and elsewhere, sells donated clothing, furniture and knickknacks. Last year, the chain raised $2 million for the foundation, Los Angeles’ largest community-based medical provider.

The “last chance” store, at 6247 Laurel Canyon Blvd., will open at 11 a.m. For information, call (818) 769-0503.

The new store will open at noon at 12135 Victory Blvd. For information, call (818) 761-9777. To make a donation, call (800) 558-8220.