Two thrift stores that are next door to one another on a prominent Clairemont intersection plan to close this weekend.
The stores, Goodwill and Bridge Thrift, on the northeastern corner of Clairemont Drive and Balboa Avenue, have served as a discount shopping destination for people in Clairemont and surrounding neighborhoods for years, anchoring a decades-old shopping center once packed with small businesses. Steps from Goodwill, Clairemont Liquor is also preparing to close its doors.
Goodwill’s last day is Saturday. Bridge Thrift will close on Sunday.
The 4.6-acre site that includes these stores, Garfield Shopping Center, is in escrow for an undisclosed sales price, according to data from real estate tracker CoStar. Workers at the two stores said the spaces are earmarked for residential development — a move that would align with Clairemont’s community plan, approved by the San Diego City Council in late 2025, to add around 14,000 homes.
Several other businesses moved out months ago. Sew Hut, Cash 4 Less and Discount Pool Supplies relocated to Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, signs posted in their vacant storefronts said Wednesday morning.
Goodwill is searching for space in Clairemont to replace the site in the Garfield Shopping Center, said Darlene Cossio, the director of marketing for Goodwill San Diego. Meanwhile, a new Goodwill will open soon in University City, the nonprofit added.
With days to go, shoppers came out to both Goodwill and Bridge Thrift for one last hunt for goodies — at clearance prices. Some of the offerings at Goodwill: $5 leather shoes by Vince, an unlabeled smocked little girl’s dress in what looked like green shantung silk for $4, a “Waffle WOW!” machine for $4 and a hefty dart board for $2.50. These prices reflect the discount. Everything in the store is half off through its last day.
It was Paul D’Agostino’s first visit. He lives in University Heights and usually goes to the shops downtown and in North Park. The store’s closure doesn’t hurt deeply, especially because it’s just one of many Goodwills. If they were all closing, that would be a different story, he said. Still, he added, the store’s absence will leave a mark on the community, because of who Goodwill serves.
“Goodwill is interesting, because it does connect all demographics. There’s people that come here for need. There’s people that come here for desire. So something that’s a little more egalitarian like that would be nice, but who knows,” he said.
He left with a special find: a Cleveland baseball shirt. “This is hilarious to me,” D’Agostino, 46, said. Hilarious, because he is from Cleveland and the shirt with a bright C popped up on a San Diego thrift shop rack. “Just to find this here, I was like, sure, why not.”
A few aisles down, in homewares, Stephanie Driscoll, 34, was picking up a platter for Thanksgiving and a stoneware jug.
“Someone probably hand-made it,” she reflected.
Usually, she shops to resell on Facebook Marketplace, but these items were for her. She has visited this Goodwill three times a month for the past six years or so, more recently driving 20 minutes from National City after moving out of this neighborhood.
“I feel like a lot of places that are small are closing in San Diego,” Driscoll said. “It’s sad to see it go. I think a lot of people loved this one, and the one next door.”
Cossio said Goodwill wanted to stay and was told by the new owner that the property is earmarked for housing.
“We are actively looking for a new location. We have not had any luck yet,” she said. “The community has really supported this location, and we’re very sad to be closing.” Goodwill is receptive to tips for vacant retail spaces in Clairemont, she added.
A new Goodwill is heading to University City, in the space once occupied by Rite Aid. That will open before the end of 2026, Cossio said. A new donation center at a YMCA facility will open Tuesday at 3401 Clairemont Drive.
Also next week, Clairemont Liquor plans to close at 3949 Clairemont Drive and reopen across the street, at 4225 Balboa Ave. on Tuesday.
The family business has been in Clairemont since 2002 and at the Clairemont Drive location since 2015, the owner’s son, Dwan Khairo, said.
He is glad to be staying in the neighborhood. The move is disruptive, but it’s also a new beginning. “We’ll make the best out of it there, and hope to see everyone come through,” he said.
Bridge Thrift is closing in Clairemont. Its other locations are on Garnet Avenue and in Spring Valley. (Roxana Popescu / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
At Bridge Thrift, signs posted the discount timeline through its closure on Sunday. Items are half off through Friday, and 75% off through Sunday. Another Bridge Thrift opened last year in Pacific Beach, at 1772 Garnet Ave.
“I’ve been shopping with them for a long time, and I’m happy that they opened one in PB,” said Julianne Moss, 35, who lives in Pacific Beach. She had Christmas decorations in her cart. “So I don’t have to go too far.”
Staff writer Jennifer Van Grove contributed to this report.