Out of the Closet Thrift Stores provides funding for the AIDS Healthcare Foundation through customer purchases and donations. Credit: Julianne Kerver | Lantern Reporter
A local thrift store provides more than the usual ugly Christmas sweaters, funky lampshades and random picture frames to its customers.
Out of the Closet Thrift Store in the Short North is part of a national chain that offers free HIV and STI testing in addition to clothing, shoes, home goods, furniture and a pharmacy. Another store is expected to open in Columbus, Ohio, within the next two years, but the exact location is to be determined, Jaela Snyder, senior head of sales at the Short North store, said.
Since the Columbus store opened in 2013 as the first Midwest location, the chain has continued to grow, with new locations in Chicago and New York, Snyder said. The Short North Arts District store ranks third in sales out of the 23 Out of the Closet locations across the country, Snyder said.
“Out of the Closet is part of AIDS Healthcare Foundation, so all the money that we raise goes towards keeping our testing centers and our pharmacies open,” Colton Pitstick, junior head of sales at the Columbus store, said.
For every dollar the store makes, Pitstick said 96 cents goes to the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. The foundation is the largest provider of HIV and AIDS medical care in the world with over one million patients, according to its website. The foundation offers care through Out of the Closet testing centers, healthcare contracts and other strategic partnerships.
Testing at Out of the Closet requires no paperwork and is conducted by certified counselors, according to the store’s website.
“Obviously our main focus is to identify those living with HIV, but we also understand that there are other STIs out there that are also pretty damaging to the system, so we’re wanting to find them for those people as well,” Jacob Shrimplin, program manager for the testing programs for AIDS Healthcare Foundation in Columbus, said. “All in all, our goal is to try to eradicate the virus as much as we can.”
Shrimplin said HIV testing requires blood and urine samples, as well as an oral swab, and is conducted using an INSTI test, the fastest HIV rapid test currently on the market. He said in 60 seconds, patients will have their results and a nurse practitioner will be present to answer questions.
“When dealing with sex as a young adult, your sex organs are very precious to you. So any time anything is, you know, a little off, it usually makes people nervous,” Shrimplin said. “So having that opportunity to ask questions and get the answers right then is — if anything — we’re here to help with the anxiety as well.”
Out of the Closet funds the AIDS Healthcare Foundation with the help of donations. Pickstick said a driving team heads out five days a week in the store’s truck to pick up donations. At least two pieces of furniture are needed to qualify donors for a pickup, according to the website.
When they come back to the store, the items are sorted in a backroom Pitstick referred to as a “little nest.” Items that can be sold are sorted by category in the backroom before being tagged and placed into circulation in the store for customers.
“Things that we can’t sell but are still usable we actually end up donating to other charities, so even if we can’t make money off of it, we can still make sure somebody who needs it can get it,” Pitstick said.
On the list of items the store won’t take are bed frames, baby carriages, cribs and mattresses, Pitstick said.
Snyder said customers and donors remain the lifeblood of the store.
“I just hope they know that they’re a part of the whole experience too,” Snyder said. “Whatever they spend, they’re helping the charity. They’re the reason we’re functioning and helping everyone else.”
Out of the Closet Thrift Store, located at 1230 N. High St, is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. HIV tests are available Monday through Saturday during normal store hours. STI tests are available from 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m Mondays through Thursdays, with same-day treatments available from 2:30 to 6:30 p.m on Mondays and Thursdays. The store offers “no bag,” student and military discounts.
