Thrift shopping and disability advocacy intersect directly at arc Thrift Stores, a Colorado-based nonprofit retail chain with a location at 9131 North Washington Street in Thornton. The organization has operated since 1968, which makes it one of the longer-running thrift operations in the Denver metro area, and every purchase made in its stores funds a specific cause: supporting the chapters of The Arc across Colorado and New Mexico, organizations dedicated to advocacy and support for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Rather than existing purely as a secondhand retailer, arc Thrift Stores describes its core purpose as increasing employment opportunities for people with Down syndrome, autism, cerebral palsy, and a range of other intellectual and developmental disabilities, making the Thornton store part of a mission-driven network rather than a standalone thrift shop.
The Thornton location, like the chain’s other stores, stocks a broad mix of secondhand goods aimed at outfitting an entire household: clothing for every member of the family, kitchen items, and general home goods, all priced for budget-conscious shoppers and donated by the surrounding community. The chain markets its locations as clean and well-lit, a detail that matters to secondhand shoppers who have had mixed experiences with cluttered or poorly organized thrift stores elsewhere, and arc Thrift Stores has been recognized with Best Thrift Store awards in past years, a sign of consistent local reputation across its Colorado footprint.
Shopping hours at the Thornton store run Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., giving shoppers a wide window throughout the week to browse. Donation hours run on a slightly different schedule, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays, which allows the store to keep accepting community donations even outside of standard evening shopping hours. That distinction between shopping and donation hours reflects how central donated inventory is to the store’s operating model: unlike a traditional antique dealer sourcing from estate sales or wholesalers, arc Thrift Stores relies directly on the community dropping off used goods, which then get sorted, priced, and put on the sales floor.
Thornton sits in the northern Denver metro area, and the Washington Street location serves shoppers across that corridor looking for affordable clothing and household goods while directly supporting a cause tied to disability advocacy and employment. For donors, giving to arc Thrift Stores carries a dual benefit beyond the usual decluttering motivation, since proceeds flow toward advocacy chapters and job opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities rather than a purely commercial bottom line.
In short, arc Thrift Stores in Thornton is a nonprofit thrift retailer operating since 1968 that sells donated clothing and household goods to fund The Arc’s advocacy chapters in Colorado and New Mexico and to expand employment opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
