By Kaitlyn Rigdon
Staff Writer
EL DORADO — The Rhea Lana’s spring/summer consignment event will be open to the public Sunday through Thursday, March 2 at the El Dorado Conference Center. The event will have over 55,000 items including clothes from newborn to teen sizes, baby products, maternity clothes, toys and furniture.
There will be a pre-sale today with certain passes to shop before the public.
The half price days are Wednesday, March 1 and Thursday, March 2.
“We moved in on Tuesday, we did check in on Wednesday and Thursday and people will start shopping tomorrow,” said owner of Rhea Lana’s of El Dorado, Melissa Polk. “It goes pretty fast.”
The event contains items that are brought by local consignors that sell them for 60 to 80 percent off retail. 70 to 80 percent of the money goes back to the consignors so it stays in the community. There are 600 families that have brought clothes or baby gear to sell. Everything is organized by size and product for customer convenience .
The organization partners with local nonprofits as well. They are featuring a Heart Gallery from Project Zero that includes photos of foster children that are up for adoption. “We are partnering with them so we can encourage families to think about adoption,” Polk said.
At the end of the event, the consignors can choose to donate their items that don’t sell and Rhea Lana’s ends up with thousands of items that they are able to donate to local nonprofits. “We’re trying to make a big difference while we’re here,” Polk said.
They donate the items to The CALL, which allows foster families to come and shop for free. They also donate to the College Avenue Church of Christ’s clothing drive and the Agapé House Children’s Home.
The event takes place in El Dorado twice a year and this is their 14th time to organize it. Rhea Lana’s is a franchise company including 92 franchises in 26 states. The El Dorado branch is in the top 10 in the nation.
It has grown so much that they are having to expand into two rooms. The primary room contains all of the clothes, toys and accessories. The secondary room is the big ticket room, containing baby beds, strollers and high chairs.
Times are Sunday, Feb. 26, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday, Feb. 27, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 28, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday, March 1, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Thursday, March 2, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
They accept credit and debit cards with a valid ID and cash.
Kaitlyn Rigdon is a staff writer at the El Dorado News-Times and she may be reached at 870-862-6611 or by email, [email protected].