First-rate idea
Goodwill transforms former Plano Walgreens into first small-format store
An old Walgreens has become a new Goodwill store in Plano.
Leave it to Goodwill to find a second use for a former Walgreens. The nonprofit is transforming a vacant drugstore building in Plano into its first ever, small-format store.
According to a release, Goodwill Industries of Dallas will debut the first-of-its-kind store at 3000 McDermott Rd., Plano, on Thursday, August 6.
The organization has converted the former pharmacy into a 10,000-square-foot thrift store and donation center. For comparison, that's less than one-third of the size of the massive, 31,000-square-foot "Broadway store" that opened in Garland earlier this year as the largest Goodwill in Texas and the second largest in the U.S.
The nonprofit says the new concept is designed to serve neighborhoods with a smaller footprint while still offering a steady flow of merchandise. Shoppers can expect about 5,000 new items to hit the sales floor each day, ranging from clothing and housewares to books, toys, and other donated goods.
It's also a creative example of "adaptive reuse" for one of the many drugstores have have shuttered in recent years around Dallas-Fort Worth. (CVS, are you listening?)
The Plano location will create 70 jobs, they say, and include a donation center where residents can drop off gently used items to support Goodwill's workforce development programs.
The opening comes as resale shopping continues to surge nationwide, Goodwill notes. According to the 2024 ThredUp Resale Report, the U.S. secondhand market grew 11 percent in 2023 — seven times faster than the broader retail clothing industry — and is projected to reach $73 billion by 2028.
"This store is a blueprint for how Goodwill Dallas turns vacant spaces into neighborhood assets, creating jobs, funding workforce development, and keeping quality goods accessible to families who need them most," Goodwill Industries of Dallas president and CEO Tim Heis says in the release.
The timing is also fortuitous for shoppers: The store will debut just ahead of Texas' 2026 Tax-Free Weekend, August 7-9, which will offer clothing, footwear, school supplies, backpacks without state sales tax.
Once doors on August 6, open the Plano store will operate 9 am-9 pm Monday-Saturday and 10 am-7 pm Sunday.
Goodwill Industries of Dallas has served North Texas since 1923, using proceeds from its retail stores to fund free job training, employment placement, and career services for people facing barriers to employment across eight North Texas counties.
Inspired by more than a century of Shiner brewing tradition, the collaboration celebrates Texas heritage with apparel designed for everything from brewery patios to dance halls.Photo courtesy of Texas Standard and Shiner