Ann Arbor, Mich. July 23, 2008 - In response to increased consumer demand in a “spending conscious” economy, Children’s Orchard, the nation’s first franchised chain of upscale-resale, children’s boutiques, announced today that it has doubled the size of its flagship store in Ann Arbor, Michigan. To mark the occasion, the national franchisor will host a celebration on Saturday, August 2, 2008 at the newly expanded 3,600 square foot facility, located in the Colonnade Shopping Center at 887 West Eisenhower Parkway, between Panera Bakery and Subway.

The celebration will feature children’s activities, including face painting, prize drawings, balloon animals, and interaction with a live cartoon character.  While celebrating, parents and families can explore the store for big savings on fall fashions and beat the rush for back-to-school shopping. 

“After nearly 20 years of serving families in the Ann Arbor community, we reached a point where we needed more space to serve our loyal customer base,” said Taylor Bond, president and CEO of Children’s Orchard.  “With gas and food prices skyrocketing, we’re seeing more inventory than ever before, so the new space will help us spread out a little bit to make way for increased customer traffic. This is an exciting milestone for the company, and we look forward to offering local parents even more treasures at deeply discounted prices.”

With the Ann Arbor store now double its original size, parents and families feeling the economic squeeze can find twice the selection of inventory marked 40-80% less than original retail prices. Children’s Orchard of Ann Arbor is one of over 70 franchise locations across the country that buys and sells children’s gently-used clothing, toys, furniture, and accessories.

Children’s Orchard also offers the “20-Minute Guarantee,” which promises that walk-in customers looking to sell up to two bags of items will receive cash or store credit in 20 minutes or less, or they get $5.00 towards their next purchase at Children’s Orchard. The Ann Arbor store also makes appointments for customers who prefer a scheduled time or have a large quantity of items to sell.

“Children’s Orchard has always been a fundamentally, earth-friendly business.  Since 1980, Children’s Orchard has sold or donated more than 100 million pieces of gently used children’s clothing”, Bond said.  “More and more Ann Arbor families are realizing that buying and selling  gently used kids stuff at Children’s Orchard is an effective way to recycle and leave your kids a gently used planet.”

About Children’s Orchard
Founded in 1980, Children’s Orchard is the nation’s first franchise of gently used and new name-brand children’s items.  With nearly 70 franchise locations, each Children’s Orchard location buys and sells quality used and new children’s brand-name clothing, toys and accessories in an upscale retail environment.  Children’s Orchard stores are designed to emphasize quality, value, comfort and commitment to the local community.  For more information, please visit the Web site at www.childrensorchard.com or call (800) 999-KIDS.

Filed under: Retail