Barn Good Is Back, Baby!
It’s the moment we all didn’t know we were waiting for. Get excited. Tell your friends, your ex-lovers, your professors, your parents: Barn Good is reopening full-time for the first time since pre-covid.
It’s likely that very few of you know about Barn Good, the coolest campus thrift store around. That’s because this underground, if-you-know-you-know venue was only marginally functional this past semester. After being shut down by COVID-19, there wasn’t enough funding to hire student workers to keep the store open full-time. The result was random, poorly advertised hours, which kept the space not very well known throughout campus.
Maggie Spire ’26 was one of two student employees working at Barn Good last semester and is the only returning employee. She says of her time there: “We had pretty limited hours because it was just the two of us working, so we only saw a few customers each week, but the store has a great inventory, and I’m excited to see it reach its full potential… as well as revamp the space a little bit.” Maggie’s optimism is not misplaced; the struggles of Barn Good for the last year and a half are a thing of the past.
Barn Good is now under the care of SLU Close the Loop, an environmental club started in the spring semester of 2021 by Valeria Obregon ’24. You may know this club from their collections of used clothes donations in the student center and their clothing swap events held over the past few semesters. The club’s focus on slow fashion, upcycling, and intentional consumption makes it a logical candidate for kickstarting Barn Good back to its pre-COVID-19 excellence.
Valeria writes about the club’s vision for the year, “Barn Good Thrift is a place at St. Lawrence University that has a lot of potential, and by connecting it with Close the Loop, we are now able to really take advantage of this. We have so many ideas of what we can do with it, from having a bulletin board where students can advertise stuff they’re trying to sell, to having a permanent swapping space, to holding environmental events, as well as providing a service to the Canton community!”
As Valeria said, SLU Close the Loop has big plans for the space besides just selling clothes. They are also planning on continuing the “swap” model of donations, where students can take an equal amount of the clothes from the store that they donate (kind of like take a penny, leave a penny, except for jeans). They also hope to hold events, such as sewing and upcycling workshops, and themed swaps for holidays such as Halloween and school traditions like Titus.
So, you’re the average SLU student who wants to spice up their closet without breaking the bank or buying from Shein. Where and when can you peruse the glorious wares of Barn Good?
The store’s grand opening is Monday, Sep. 18th, from 12 pm-6 pm. To get there, find the Java theme house (5 University Ave.) and walk through the parking lot directly to the right. You’ll find the store hiding behind a couple of strategically placed dumpsters! Currently, they are only accepting cash payments.
The store’s regular weekly hours will be:
Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday: 12 p.m.- 6 p.m.;
Friday and Saturday: 12 p.m.- 4 p.m.
Make sure to stop by sometime in the opening week to check out what Barn Good has to offer, and keep your eyes peeled for upcoming events in the future. You can stay updated by following their Instagram: @barngoodthrift. And while you’re at it, drop off your gently used clothes at Close the Loop’s drop-off event this Thursday, Sep 14., from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. on the first floor of the Student Center — they’ll be collecting donations for the store! Stay thrifty, SLU; we can’t wait to see your stylish selves very soon!