Once Upon A Child

Once Upon A Child is a secondhand clothing store that buys and sells used clothing, shoes, toys, books, and other baby equipment. Currently, they have over 400 stores across the United States and Canada. While the company is a chain, stores are individually owned and operated.

History

Lynn and Dennis Blum started Once Upon A Child in 1984, opening their first store in Ohio.[1] The ideas for Once Upon A Child was to provide financial relief for parents who were constantly purchasing new items for their children due to their rapid growth rates.[2] They sold the franchise rights for Once Upon A Child to Winmark Franchise Cooperation in 1992.[1]

Clothing model

Once Upon a Child pays sellers same-day, in cash, for items sold to the store.[3] They do not offer any other form of payment, including store credit. Items brought to the store and checked against pre-determined guidelines which vary by location, but generally include condition, style, brand and safety standards.[3] Items accepted by the store are checked for product safety and measures all toys and other products against safety standards and recalls.[4] Clothes, accessories, and shoes normally accepted by the store must not be more than 5 years old, but this varies by item and location.[5] If a customer chooses to sell items, the store offers them a 15% discount on goods purchased that day.[5]

Locations

The first Once Upon A Child store was opened in Perrysburg, Ohio in 1984.[1] Since then, over 400 locations have opened across North America.[6]

Once Upon A Child Locations[7]
State/Province Number of Stores Cities/Locations
United States
Alabama 2 Hoover, Madison
Alaska 2 Anchorage, Fairbanks
Arizona 6 Gilbert, Glendale, Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, Tucson
Arkansas 4 Bentonville, Conway, Fayetteville, Jonesboro
California 12 Chico, Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Modesto, Newark, Oceanside, Rancho Cucamonga, Redding, Roseville, Sacramento, Tracy, Vacaville
Colorado 8 Arvada, Centennial, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, Grand Junction, Greeley, Littleton, Longmont
Connecticut 8 Bristol, Danbury, Enfield, Manchester, Meriden, Orange, Waterbury, Wethersfield
Delaware 2 Dover, Wilmington
Florida 31 Altamonte Springs, Brandon, Cape Coral, Clearwater, Daytona Beach, Fort Myers, Jacksonville (4), Kissimmee, Lakeland, Largo, Melbourne, Naples, Ocoee, Orlando (3), Oviedo, Panama City, Pensacola, Port Charlotte, Royal Palm Beach, Sarasota, Stuart, Tampa (2), Vero Beach, Wesley Chapel, Winter Haven
Georgia 12 Austell, Buford, Canton, Columbus, Douglasville, Duluth, Gainesville, Jonesboro, Marietta, Newnan, Savannah, Snellville
Idaho 2 Idaho Falls, Twin Falls
Illinois 10 Bloomington, Bolingbrook, Crest Hill, Elgin, Fairview Heights, Harwood Heights, Naperville, Orland Park, Rockford, Springfield
Indiana 19 Anderson, Bloomington, Carmel, Clarksville, Crown Point, Evansville, Fort Wayne, Goshen, Indianapolis (5), Lafayette, Mishawaka, Muncie, Schererville, Terre Haute, Valparaiso
Iowa 5 Cedar Rapids, Coralville, Davenport, Sioux City, Urbandale
Kansas 1 Overland Park
Kentucky 8 Bowling Green, Elizabethtown, Florence, Lexington, Louisville (2), Owensboro, Paducah
Louisiana 6 Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Mandeville, Metairie, Monroe, Slidell
Maryland 6 Ellicott City, Gambrills, Glen Burnie, Salisbury, Timonium, Waldorf
Massachussetss 2 Seekonk, West Springfield
Michigan 16 Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Brighton, Canton, Flint, Jackson, Lansing, Monroe, Novi, Okemos, Portage, Saginaw, Traverse City, Troy, Walker, Wyoming
Minnesota 15 Anoka, Burnsville, Duluth, Eden Prairie, Mankato, Maple Grove, Maplewood, Minnetonka, Rochester, Roseville, Saint Luis Park, Shakopee, Spring Lake Park, Waite Park, Woodbury
Mississippi 4 D'Iberville, Hattiesburg, Ridgeland, Southaven
Missouri 9 Arnold, Ballwin, Bridgeton, Cape Girardeau, Columbia, Kirkwood, Lee's Summit, Springfield, St. Peters
Montana 2 Bozeman, Great Falls
Nebraska 1 Lincoln
Nevada 2 Henderson, Reno
New Hampshire 2 Manchester, Portsmouth
New Jersey 7 Deptford, Edison, Fairfield, Howell, Maple Shade, Paramus, Randolph
New Mexico 1 Albuquerque
New York 11 Blasdell, Clifton Park, New Hartford, Rochester (2), Scarsdale, Seaford, Syracuse, Vestal, Victor, Wappingers Falls, Webster
North Carolina 16 Asheville, Cary, Charlotte, Concord, Durham, Fayetteville, Goldsboro, Greensboro, Greenville, Hickory, Jacksonville, Matthews, Raleigh, Southern Pines, Wilmington, Winston Salem
North Dakota 4 Bismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks, Minot
Ohio 28 Anderson, Beavercreek, Canton, Cincinnati, Columbus (2), Dayton, Dublin, Fields Ertel, Findlay, Gahanna, Grove City, Huber Heights, Hyde Park, Lima, Mansfield, Mentor, Niles, Perrysburg, Poland, Sagamore Hills, Sandusky, Stow, Sylvania, West Chester, Western Hills, Westerville, Westlake
Oklahoma 2 Norman, Oklahoma City
Oregon 2 Clackamas, Salem
Pennsylvania 12 Allentown, Cranberry Township, Dickson City, Erie, Exton, Harrisburg, Huntingdon Valley, Lancaster, Monroeville, Paoli, Pittsburgh (2), York
Rhode Island 1 Warwick
South Carolina 11 Anderson, Bluffton, Charleston, Columbia (2), Florence, Greenville, North Charleston, Rock Hill, Spartanburg, Surfside Beach
South Dakota 2 Rapid City, Sioux Falls
Tennessee 11 Antioch, Chattanooga, Clarksville, Collierville, Cordova, Franklin, Johnson City, Kingsport, Knoxville (2), Murfreesboro
Texas 38 Abilene, Amarillo, Austin, Baytown, Beaumont, Carrolton, College Station, Colleyville, Corpus Christi, Denton, El Paso, Flower Mound, Garland, Georgetown, Houston (4), Hudson Oaks, Humble, Katy, Leon Valley, Longview, Lubbock, McKinney, Mesquite, Odessa, Pearland, Plano, Port Arthur, Rosenberg, Round Rock, San Antonio, The Woodlands, Tyler, Universal City, Waco, Webster
Vermont 1 Williston
Virginia 16 Chesapeake (2), Christiansburg, Colonial Heights, Danville, Forest, Fredericksburg, Harrisonburg, Newport News, Richmond (2), Roanoke (2), Virginia Beach (2), Winchester
Washington 3 Kennewick, Spokane Valley, Vancouver
West Virginia 3 Morgantown, Parkersburg, Triadelphia
Wisconsin 9 Appleton, Brookfield, Eau Claire, Green Bay, Kenosha, La Crosse, Madison (2), Wausau
Wyoming 2 Casper, Cheyenne
Canada
Alberta 10 Calgary (3), Edmonton (2), Grande Prairie, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Red Deer, Sherwood Park
British Columbia 9 Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Coquitlam, Kamloops, Kelowna, Langley, Nanaimo, Surrey, Victoria
Manitoba 3 Brandon, Winnipeg (2)
New Brunswick 3 Fredericton, Moncton, Saint John
Nova Scotia 1 Halifax
Ontario 32 Ajax, Barrie, Belleville, Brampton, Brantford, Burlington, Cambridge, Concord, Etobicoke, Guelph, Hamilton, Kanata, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Markham, Milton, Mississauga, Newmarket, Niagara Falls, Oakville, Ottawa, Richmond Hill, Sault Ste Marie, Scarborough, St. Catharines, Stoney Creek, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Toronto, Whitby, Windsor
Saskatchewan 3 Regina, Saskatoon (2)

Awards

The company currently ranks in Entrepreneur's Franchise 500.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c "About | Once Upon A Child Columbus, OH". onceuponachild.com. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  2. ^ "What Drives the Mission for Once Upon A Child?". www.winmarkfranchises.com. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Kim, Jennifer (April 5, 2022). "How is Once Upon A Child Profitable?". iStrategy Conference. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Start a Once Upon A Child Franchise in 2024". Entrepreneur. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  5. ^ a b "FAQ". onceuponachild.com. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  6. ^ "Once Upon A Child". onceuponachild.com. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
  7. ^ "Once Upon A Child Store Locations". onceuponachild.com. Retrieved October 21, 2024.