The local thrifting community flocked to Boulder’s Goodwill store to search for great deals at its grand opening on Saturday — from musical instruments and ski gear to furniture and clothes.

Goodwill Boulder at 1741 28th St. has been open since 2023, but Saturday was a chance for the store’s workers to celebrate an end to 18 months of remodeling and construction.

“When you’re undergoing construction, you never really get to have that full-fledged excitement in a grand opening,” said Karla Grazier, chief executive officer of Goodwill of Colorado. “That’s why we delayed it until it was all finished, and we could be the best we could be.”

Goodwill Boulder used to be on Baseline Road before moving to 28th Street. It took the place of a Halloween pop-up store, according to Goodwill staff.

Grazier said Goodwill of Colorado diverted nearly 250 million pounds of products from landfills statewide last year. She said Goodwill Boulder plans to record the number of donations it receives going forward, which will allow the store to be more specific in measuring how its waste diversion is helping the environment.

People can drop off donations at the drive-thru behind the store. Boulder also has another Goodwill location, just for donations, at 3043 Walnut St.

“The Boulder community is a very philanthropic community,” Grazier said. “I think the idea of sustainability and circularity of goods really resonates.”

On Saturday morning, the grand opening began with a ribbon cutting ceremony featuring members of Goodwill of Colorado and the Boulder City Council.

Despite snow, dozens of shoppers were lined up outside the store before its opening at 9 a.m. Goodwill staff handed out gift cards to the first 65 customers in the door.

“I’m glad that they had such a good turnout,” said Boulder mayor pro tem Lauren Folkerts. “I think it just shows how much a place like this is really needed in our community. We’ve seen a lot of thrift stores closing, and so I’m happy that they’ve been able to find a good spot.”

Kai Franks, a University of Colorado Boulder student, considered buying a camcorder and a disco ball on Saturday.

“I’m definitely an avid thrifter,” said Franks, who also enjoys shopping at Apocalypse in Boulder and Arc Thrift Store in Louisville.

Fellow CU Boulder students Zach Cunningham and Charlie Craver were among the first shoppers in the store. Their early finds included vintage Grateful Dead shirts.

“We knew that there was going to be some good stuff,” Cunningham said. “We still got some really good first picks. That’s what we were kind of aiming for.”

Grace Abboud and her sister needed two shopping carts to carry all of the clothes they were interested in. Some of their favorite finds were a leather jacket and overalls.

“I really like vintage shopping and vintage clothes,” Abboud said. “Everything is really unique, and the quality is so much better than the clothes that you can buy now.”