ThriftSmart, Nashville

Steeped firmly in the community, the entirety of ThriftSmart's proceeds from its gently used apparel and housewares benefit local charities. The staffers rotate the varied inventory daily, stocking dresses, shoes, and men's and women's tops that are both fashionable and casual enough for glamorous grocery store runs. They also blanket their brightly lit aisles with a multihued miscellany of furniture and appliances and furnish shelves with books ranging from fiction to self-help.

ThriftSmart furthers its community involvement with help from a band of volunteers, who lend a hand sorting new items in the warehouse or lifting heavy furniture.