Tucked into the Fairwest Plaza at the corner of York Street and Rectory Street, the Mission Store is the retail arm of Mission Services of London, a registered charity now marking 75 years of service to the city. Unlike a standalone thrift shop, every dollar the store earns is routed directly back into Mission Services programs, which include emergency shelter, mental health support, addiction treatment, and broader outreach services for people experiencing homelessness and crisis in London, Ontario, making a simple secondhand purchase here part of a much larger local support system rather than a one off transaction.
The store organizes its sales floor into twelve distinct departments, giving it a scope closer to a small department store than a single rack of donated clothing. Shoppers can work through sections for clothing, books, housewares, cameras and electronics, and purses and accessories, with rotating weekly colour tag sales marking down specific sections further to move older inventory and make room for fresh donations. That department structure makes the Mission Store easier to browse efficiently than many smaller thrift shops, since shoppers looking for a specific category can head straight to it rather than digging through a single undifferentiated bin of mixed goods.
Regular hours run Monday through Friday from 9 in the morning until 6 in the evening, with Saturday hours from 10 until 5, giving both weekday and weekend shoppers a reliable window to visit. The store also runs an Emergency Voucher Program Monday through Thursday mornings from 9 until 1, allowing referred individuals in crisis to access essential clothing and household items directly through the charity’s broader support network, a service most conventional thrift stores simply do not offer. Shoppers who visit regularly can join the store’s Blue Card loyalty program, earning a stamp for every 10 dollars spent toward future rewards, and gift cards are available starting at just 5 dollars, making the store an accessible option for gift giving as well as personal shopping.
Beyond the physical Fairwest Plaza location, the Mission Store also offers donation pickup and drop off services along with an online shopping option, extending its reach to donors and shoppers who cannot easily make it to the York Street storefront in person. That combination of a full department store style layout, a structured loyalty program, an emergency assistance service tied directly into the charity’s crisis programs, and 75 years of continuous operation in London gives the Mission Store a depth of community integration that goes well beyond typical secondhand retail. The Mission Store in London, Ontario is a 75 year old, twelve department thrift retailer whose entire sales revenue funds Mission Services of London’s shelter, mental health, and addiction recovery programs, making every purchase a direct contribution to the city’s crisis support network.
