Managers tell patrons they’re in same building, not not believe rumors
OCEAN CITY — Second Chance Boutique is still standing after its move to the second floor in the Shoppes at Asbury building at 801 Asbury Ave., despite rumors that the shop had closed or moved without notice.
Since the move upstairs, the thrift shop no longer has the visibility it once had. The change in elevation at the same location disrupted the business’ usual flow of customers. It has a good local following but relies on loyal seasonal customers who visit during the summer.
“We are afraid that those people coming back into town aren’t going to find us,” manager Mary Schoenewald said.
The boutique’s finances have taken quite a hit since the move. The business lost customers from foot traffic on the avenue and some members of the community who would stop in for a cup of coffee or a snack who have not returned since the move.
The boutique benefits the richest and the poorest among those in Ocean City; the diverse customer base consists of the homeless to the owners of multiple homes.
“It’s an interesting mix of people,” Pastor Butch Norton said, referring to those who could not make ends meet if they did not shop at the boutique and those who own multiple properties down the beach block who still shop at Second Chance Boutique.
The staff says its largest demographic is middle-class people whose shopping at the low-cost store helps them better navigate their finances.
“Second Chance has weaved its way into the community and has become a part of the fabric of downtown Ocean City,” Norton said.
A vintage, second-hand and thrift shop, Second Chance Boutique sells clothes for men, women and children; houseware items such as pots and pans, kitchen utensils, dishes and small appliances; and furniture.
The shop’s biggest sellers are women’s clothing and furniture, although it specializes in all houseware and clothing items.
Customers love that children’s clothes sell for only 75 cents apiece, and sometimes make their way back to the boutique once the children have outgrown them.
People are happy to donate to and buy from the boutique knowing that 100 percent of the shop’s inventory is from donations and supports a good cause.
It is easier to list what the Second Chance Boutique does not accept as donations than what it does: computer equipment, printers, vintage televisions, flat-screen televisions without a remote control, cassette tapes and hangers.
The mission of aiding the people of Ocean City followed the boutique’s move upstairs.
Cornerstone Community Church opened Second Chance Boutique in 2009 to expand on its mission of helping those in need. Second Chance funds the ministry.
The community benefits from free or discounted clothing and furniture items for those in need. The shop also distributes food cards to ACME, helps people with rent and utilities and offers furniture delivery to the buyer’s house.
“We help people with social needs — we help people figure out their finances and get them into housing and food stamps,” Schoenewald said.
The name comes from the church members’ belief that everyone deserves a second chance, and the fact the boutique had opened on the second floor of the building from which the church operated.
Some of the shop’s first employees came from community service and they do not shy away from their ideology of redemption, offering people who have had a rough past a new start at the shop.
“From the pettiest of crimes to the worst, people can change and that’s why you give them a second chance,” Schoenewald said.
By JOELLE CARR/For the Sentinel
