Hillcrest Thrift Store

Great store. We make a Saturday trip every other week just to shop. Great price on furniture.

My first time here, thought it was a nice clean store, good prices. Descent selection of furniture and lamps. Not a lot of home goods or décor, not much vintage on the day I was there. There is was an abundance of books and lots of space to got around. Plenty of parking too.
They had a great selection of nice shoes, picked up a pair of vintage Converse All Stars. Also picked up some nice playing cards.

Last night I bought a new table lamp for my bedside to replace the one I’ve had for nearly 25 years that died. I was truly delighted to walk out with a new lamp and shade and a new tote bag. This is my favorite Thrift Store in the metro. I can always find what I’m looking for, the prices are reasonable, and the staff friendly. Good selection and great lay out … and it doesn’t smell like some some Thrift Stores do. Had to upgrade to a 5.

My husband and I regularly shop here and many more thrift stores around the metro. We just happen to frequent this one because it’s close and usually has good stuff.
Some other reasons; the store is clean with low odor, the restrooms are always clean, and most items are organized very well with room to move about.
The only problem I have with this particular thrift store is the climbing prices. They need to calm down a little bit and remember that each one of those items has either been in some stranger’s mouth or on someone else’s butt — so price accordingly please!

I went to Hillcrest Thrift Store on a mission. I needed a statement shirt, blazer, & some accessories for a concert that night. I had no idea this place existed until the Unilocal phone app let me know where all the thrift stores were at in Lee’s Summit.
I was impressed when I first walked in. The place is large & spacious unlike many thrift stores which are usually cramped. There is a nice women’s clothing section immediately to the left when you enter that is organized with regular store displays & racks. A note — the items on the mannequins are not for sale. Strange.
Hillcrest Thrift Store’s strongest feature is its organization. Everything is in its place. I learned later that this store is ran by Hillcrest Ministries which makes sense with all the sharp-​mouthed older ladies walking around. They run that place like a tight ship.
The furniture section is clean. Most of the pieces were ordinary run of the mill furniture. Not any unique pieces. They have a «Retro» section that I got really excited about at first but it turned out to be mostly plastic ware. I saw a Garfield lunch box. That was cool.
There is a book section that looked well organized. I didn’t venture over there — that’s usually my husband’s go-​to place. So I don’t know if they have any DVDs (another one of my Hubby’s hobbies). It looked clean & not messy.
I noticed they have a cute toy section. Its carpeted & contained with white picket fencing. All the toys are within kid’s reach and the section is next to women’s clothing so you could potentially let your kids play with toys while you shop nearby.
Women’s clothing was organized by size, of course. Each size had its own rack which I think is a step above normal thrift stores.
So, why a 3 star rating? Why is this place just «A-​OK»?
Honestly I was completely underwhelmed by the lack of clothing. There were literally only two circular racks per size in the Women’s section & maybe 20 blazers. This narrows down variety drastically since I didn’t have much to choose from. I felt most of the pieces were hand picked by the Ministry that runs the place. Most of the items were not on trend for women under the age of 60.
The same goes for shoes, purses/​bags, housewares, & men’s clothing. I’m sure as a thrift store they get tons of donations. I don’t understand why they didn’t have more clothing out on the floor. They didn’t have much of anything. I was quite disappointed. Its like they drastically limit the items on the floor to keep it organized but in doing that they are also limiting the selection of items to choose from.
My expectation of a thrift store is rows & rows of clothing so I can sort through to find that perfect gem. I like the hunt.
Hillcrest Thrift Store is still worth a look. I ended up finding a soft vintage radio station ringer tee & a sheer scarf.