Friperie Karma–a donations-based thrift store in Knowlton where profits are invested back into the community– is preparing for an upcoming move to the basement of St-Paul’s Anglican Church. Just under three years of making a difference in the local community, mother-daughter duo Tammy Lace and Annalise Milroy are hoping to take advantage of the enlarged space and make Friperie Karma more than just a thrift store.

“We knew that we wanted to move. We had the idea that we were just going to kind of expand, but we weren’t really looking at that location,” said Milroy. “Pastor Tim (minister for St. Paul’s), he heard through the grapevine somehow. We are not sure who told him, but he heard that we were looking and he offered us the space.”

Milroy and Lace were happy to welcome the collaboration.

“He thought that his views and our views are very aligned. We are very community oriented so it was a win-win for the both of us,” mentioned Milroy.

With their lease coming up at their current location at 255 Knowlton Rd., it marked the perfect time to move.

“It just gave us an idea like okay, what can we do next? For him (Tim), I think it’s because it goes with the times. People are struggling and he sees what we are doing and he loves what we are doing. Also, they have the whole space in the basement so a light bulb just went off in his head too,” added Milroy.

In terms of what people can expect when walking into the new space, Lace said that there is so much space and that Milroy already has big plans.

“It will allow us to keep things longer. Just for my specific clothing section, I can now have a larger men’s section because right now I only have shirts, but now I can have shirts and pants,” said Milroy. “There is kind of a little zone where there is couches so we can have maybe coffee and people can relax a little bit longer.”

The idea is to make Friperie Karma more than just a place where people go to shop.

“It won’t just be a store anymore. It will be kind of like a zone where people can come out and talk. It already is that so now we’ll have space to do that; to read books, you can have coffee, you can chat. It will be really fun,” said Milroy.

The enlarged space will allow Milroy and Lace to continue to carry out its mission in the community. They have donated to various organizations and causes over the years.

“A bigger space means a lot more items that will be out on display and a lot more people donating as well,” said Lace. “I’ve already had contact with so many of the congregation from St. Paul’s that come in to check out to see what kind of items we sell.”

At the end of the day, Friperie Karma’s goal remains the same.

“It’s just that now we have a bigger, better, location and there’s no downsides, only pluses to it. We are very, very, excited because it’s now, I think, in line with what we wanted to do,” said Milroy. “Now the location will allow us to accomplish things that we’ve always wanted to do, but easier.”

Friperie Karma is taking over the basement of St. Paul’s Church on June 1 and will be taking the entire month to move. The thrift store is expecting to open at its new location around July 1.

Listen to the full interview with Milroy and Lace below: