The Salvation Army Family Store & Donation Center — Attraction in Worth Township

I’ve visited many Salvation Army stores throughout Chicagoland, but this location has been by far the most unwelcoming and problematic. Beyond the disorganization and extremely high prices, the most troubling issue is how customers are treated, especially those who are African American, Hispanic, or simply appear as if they don’t belong in the eyes of the staff.

There is a repeated pattern of racial profiling and false accusations. I’ve personally witnessed several incidents where African American customers were followed around the store, accused of switching price tags without cause, and treated with clear suspicion. In one incident, a young woman held clothes up to herself over her outfit to see if they would fit, since there is no dressing room. A staff member immediately accused her of trying to steal. That level of hostility is completely inappropriate. This is a thrift store, not a high-security facility.

Ironically, most of the staff are minorities themselves, primarily Hispanic women who have worked there for many, many years. Yet they continue to target their own community, along with African American customers, creating an environment of constant judgment and control. One particular woman, who has been there the longest, insists on always being at the register and refuses to let anyone else take that position. That kind of control is concerning, especially when it seems to be tied to who gets followed, accused, or mistreated.

On a personal note, I experienced this behavior when visiting with my boyfriend, who is African American and a practicing attorney. He was followed through the store and accused of altering a price tag, with absolutely no evidence. When we raised our concerns to staff, we were completely brushed off.

In addition to the unacceptable treatment of customers, I believe the Salvation Army should conduct a full audit of this location. The prices are far beyond what is reasonable for a secondhand store, and there are real concerns about whether items are being priced and tracked appropriately. The way some employees behave, it is as if they are personally losing money. There is no other explanation for the level of aggression and defensiveness we have seen from them.

This store does not reflect the values the Salvation Army promotes. The staff operate in a culture of suspicion and blame, treating people especially minority shoppers as if they are criminals rather than individuals simply looking for affordable clothing and household items.

I sincerely urge Salvation Army leadership to investigate this location thoroughly. What is happening here is not only unacceptable, it is harmful to the very communities the organization is...

I will NEVER shop at this store again. There were two things that bothered me. First: I see a box fan that looks to be in pretty good shape so I put in my cart thinking the price said $15.96, only to realize it read $155.96. 😲 I just knew it was a typo but a worker confirmed that it wasn’t. Took that out my cart very quickly. 🤔$160 is half of my car note so No, I’m not paying that for a box FAN. (Yes, I said fan, not air-conditioner). It’s terrible that they are charging such outrageous prices for items that were donated to them. Don’t believe me, I took a picture that is attached to this review. Second: there was a bag of CPK clothes in a bag behind the counter that cost $15.96. I wanted to purchase but needed to first see the entire contents of the bag but was told I couldn’t open it. Why not? You want 16 bucks for a used item, yet I can’t inspect it? Total garbage. I have purchased CPK doll clothes before that have been dry-rot and I wanted to ensure that wasn’t the case before I spent my money. Other thrift stores have allowed me to do so but they open the bag and if I decide not to purchase, they reseal it. Don’t understand why this wasn’t allowed. These two experiences have caused me to no longer patronize this business. I will also no longer donate to this organization. They pride themselves on “doing the most good,” but they are also “doing the most swindling” with their...

I can not believe at the level of service I received from this store. The assistant manager named B that attended us was ferociously disrespectful to me and my family. We had simply asked for the price of a dresser set that they had on sale. The information on the tag said a set of four pieces but we only saw two pieces for the set. We kindly and calmly asked if we were able to receive a discount on the two dressers since it was priced for four pieces. The assistant manager named B started yelling at me and my family about how they can’t change and give a discount on the dressers. The more she had to explain the situation the more she was raising her voice and being disrespectful to us. We spoke to a different assistant manager that agreed to a set price of the two dressers and we were able to purchase it the next day. We came the following day and the store manager switch the tags to a different set of dressers that I did not want to buy because it was broken and I had already had an agreement to purchase the original set of dressers. Which the store manager of this disrespectful establishment did not honor at all. I am highly not satisfied with how my family and I were treated. I recommend to stay away from this store completely they do not deserve my money or anybody else’s...