07-16-2023 Baltimore's Best - Flipbook - Page 12
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The Baltimore Sun | Sunday, July 16, 2023
BALTIMORE SUN’S BEST READERS’ CHOICE 2023 LIFESTYLES & SHOPPING
Mark Foster, president and CEO of Second Chance, sits among items in a Father’s Day display. The nonprofit sells furniture, decor, building supplies and other items
salvaged from homes and buildings. KIM HAIRSTON/BALTIMORE SUN
BEST ANTIQUES, THRIFT STORE
SECOND CHANCE INC.
1700 Ridgely St., Baltimore. 410-385-1700.
secondchanceinc.org
Inside Second Chance Inc.’s 250,000-squarefoot retail warehouse, there are clothes, doors,
windows, appliances, spare lumber, art and trinkets for sale.
The pre-loved finds come from homes and
commercial buildings up and down the East Coast,
including Baltimore, where local landmarks — like
the letters from the old Domino Sugars sign —
have ended up in the shop’s care.
“[There’s] yard sale stuff all the way up to the
very expensive art” is how Mark Foster, the president and CEO of Second Chance Inc., described
it. “We say pack a lunch if you’re gonna walk the
whole warehouse, because it’s a journey.”
Prices range from two cents all the way up to
$20,000, he added.
Founded two decades ago by Foster, 66, Second
Chance Inc. offers training and work opportunities to people facing unemployment — whether
because they have been formerly incarcerated or
hit other hurdles in search of a job.
At Second Chance Inc., workers deconstruct
donated homes to fill the warehouse with items of
all different design styles.
“You’re looking to remove the materials carefully enough that somebody else would be able
to reuse them,” Foster explained. “That’s obviously going to benefit the environment, it’s going
to benefit the ability for people to learn new
skills.”
Traveling to collect items for the warehouse also
opens employees’ minds, according to Foster.
“If you want people to grow and seek a future
for themselves, they have to be able to think of it
in bigger terms than their current surroundings,”
he said.
When warehouse visitors learn about the
group’s mission and the background of its employees, “they’re surprised, because they may have
stereotyped them in some way,” Foster said.
The way he sees it, that’s part of Second Chance
Inc.’s success.
“It’s a combination of appreciating the efforts
we’re making for the people in the community
who need the most help, as well as the fact that
there’s such an eclectic blend and such a massive
amount” of goods in the warehouse, he said.
— Abigail Gruskin
Honorable mentions:
Perry Hall White Tiger Martial Arts
Empire Dojo
Guardian Baltimore
ANTIQUES
SECOND CHANCE INC.
Honorable mentions:
Belle Patri
Charlotte Elliott and The Bookstore
Nextdoor
The Shabby Button, LLC
MEDISPA
SEIDENBERG PROTZKO EYE
ASSOCIATES
Honorable mentions:
Titanium Medspa
LifeMed Institute
The BodyPlace of Maryland
BARBERSHOP
OLD LINE BARBERS
Honorable mentions:
Signal Barbershop
Brian Bunce Barbers
Route 1 Barbershop
MENSWEAR
JOHN’S MEN’S CLOTHING
Honorable mentions:
Macy’s
The Dapper Luq, Custom Clothier
Different Regard (tie)
HLK Custom (tie)
BARRE CLASS
INLINE BARRE - PERRY HALL
Honorable mentions:
Merritt Clubs
The Mine
The Arena Club
The Ivy Bookshop, voted Best Bookstore, is located on Falls Road. COURTESY
MUSIC LESSONS
BICYCLE CONNECTION
BALTIMORE SCHOOL OF
MUSIC
Honorable mentions:
Joe’s Bike Shop
Baltimore Bicycle Works
Bike Doctor Bel Air
Honorable mentions:
Katy’s Music Studio
School of Rock
Music Land
BOOKSTORE
PET GOODS STORE
THE IVY BOOKSHOP
HOWL
Honorable mentions:
Greedy Reads
Atomic Books
Snug Books, LLC
Honorable mentions:
The Mill of Bel Air
Baron’s K-9 Market
Petco
BRAIDING
POOL
QUEEN AISHA AFRICAN
HAIR BRAIDING
MERRITT CLUBS
BICYCLE SHOP
Honorable mentions:
The Arena Club
Eagle’s Nest Country Club
Fountain Green Swim Club
BRIDAL SHOP
K & B BRIDALS, BEL AIR
Honorable mentions:
Betsy Robinson’s Bridal
Gamberdella
Jill Andrews Gowns
Jeremy Robbins, the chief operating officer and lead instructor of Krav Maga
Maryland, voted Best Martial Arts facility. KARL MERTON FERRON/BALTIMORE SUN
DAY SPA
HAIR SALON
BROW THREADING
EEYAH HOLISTIC SPA
VIBE & CO. SALON
CHARM CITY SKIN
Honorable mentions:
BRIGHTWATER | The Spa at Skin
Care Institute
B’More Wellness Studio
Titanium Medspa
Honorable mentions:
Posh Hair Studio
Rock Paper Scissors The Salon
About Faces Day Spa & Salon
Honorable mentions:
Richa’s Threading
Dipa Threading & Spa
CAR DEALERSHIP
JONES JUNCTION
GIFTS
Honorable mentions:
Heritage Honda Bel Air
Bill Kidd’s Timonium Toyota
Honda of Owings Mills
BMORE BOMB BATH &
SKINCARE, LLC
THE PIED PIPER
Honorable mentions:
Sideshow at the American Visionary
Art Museum
The Nest on Main
Found Studio | Shop
CLOTHING BOUTIQUE
GROCERY STORE
BRAY & EM BOUTIQUE
WEGMANS
Honorable mentions:
The Teal Antler Boutique
Poppy & Stella
Brightside Boutique
Honorable mentions:
Trader Joe’s
Eddie’s of Roland Park
MOM’s Organic Market
CONSIGNMENT/RESALE SHOP
GYM
THE SHABBY BUTTON, LLC
E.A. FIT CLUB
Honorable mentions:
Second Chance Inc.
Turnover Shop Inc.
Uptown Cheapskate Timonium
Honorable mentions:
Merritt Clubs
INLINE Barre - Perry Hall
Onelife Fitness - Hunt Valley
CHILDREN’S CLOTHING
HEALTH FOOD/SUPPLEMENT
STORE
MOM’S ORGANIC MARKET
Honorable mentions:
David’s Natural Market
OK Natural Food Store
The Vitamin Shoppe
JEWELER
SMYTH JEWELERS
Honorable mentions:
Saxon’s Diamond Centers
Meritage Jewelers
Charles Nusinov & Sons Jewelers
LIQUOR STORE
TOTAL WINE & MORE
Honorable mentions:
The Wine Source
Wells Discount Liquors
Rocks Liquors
MARTIAL ARTS
KRAV MAGA MARYLAND
RETIREMENT COMMUNITY
BROADMEAD
Honorable mentions:
Lorien Health Services
Residences at Vantage Point
Oak Crest
SHOE STORE
VAN DYKE & BACON SHOES
Honorable mentions:
Ma Petite Shoe
Holabird Sports
Poppy & Stella
SPIN CLASS
REV CYCLE STUDIO
Honorable mentions:
Merritt Clubs
The Mine
Kore Bootcamps and Cycle Studio
THRIFT STORE
SECOND CHANCE INC.
Honorable mentions:
Savers
The Shabby Button, LLC
2nd Ave Thrift Superstore
YOGA STUDIO
SHIFT YOGA STUDIO
Honorable mentions:
The Yoga Center of Columbia
BreakAway Yoga Studio
Breathing Dragon Yoga Harbor Point
Editor’s note: Winners and honorable mentions were determined by popular vote. Readers were invited to nominate and vote online from April to June. The results are generated solely by readers’votes. The Baltimore Sun does not take responsibility for the services offered or advertised by those listed.