From Bargains to Bonds: How Mission Thrift Uses Loyalty to Build Community

Key Facts

Business: Mission Thrift Store

Founded: 1989, Chilliwack, B.C.

Key Achievement: Launched a nationwide loyalty program for 40+ stores.

Sales Growth: Increased member sales by 274% year over year.

Integrations: DataCandy, Logivision POS by Secure Retail.

 

Growth and Future Vision

Today, Mission Thrift Store has grown into a nationwide network of 52 stores, each committed to supporting local communities and global causes by diverting waste, repurposing goods, and providing funds for their joint ministry work with Bible League Canada.

Over the past 35 years, Mission Thrift Store has become a household name in Canadian thrift retail, recognized for their commitment to charitable work, community engagement, and sustainability.

The Challenge

As Mission Thrift Store expanded nationwide, strengthening customer relationships became a top priority. We sat down with Eric Ames, Director of Marketing at Mission Thrift, to chat about their loyalty program.

To reach their goal, Mission Thrift introduced a loyalty program designed to reward long-standing customers, encourage repeat visits, and gain insights into shopping habits—ultimately elevating the overall shopping experience based on their collected data.

Implementing this initiative across more than 40 independently operated stores posed its challenges. Many locations used different systems, and unifying everyone under a single, cohesive loyalty solution required careful coordination and technical expertise.

The Solution

To tackle these challenges, Mission Thrift partnered with DataCandy to implement a program tailored to their unique needs. DataCandy's solution offered flexible POS integrations that fit their different systems and dedicated account managers to oversee the implementation.

"The customer service has been really high-end," says Ames, "[DataCandy has] gone the extra mile to make sure we have what we need to make this a successful program."

One of the biggest selling points for Mission Thrift was DataCandy's ability to work with their unique organizational structure, and charitable status.

Initially, 13 stores partnered with DataCandy on an individual basis using the small-business version of the loyalty software. However, as their footprint expanded, it became clear that a unified, enterprise-level solution was essential.

By transitioning to a cohesive program that's fully aligned with their national brand identity, Mission Thrift can deliver a consistent customer experience across all locations, strengthen their community-focused values, and better leverage loyalty data to inform their long-term strategy.

Mission Thrift Rewards

To become a member, Mission Thrift customers can sign up at the cashier, receive their loyalty card immediately, and accumulate points for every dollar they spend.

Members can also earn points when they donate items at certain stores, helping to support the circular economy and boost store inventories.

Loyalty points are redeemable for dollar savings on member purchases. On top of that, they can enjoy exclusive personalized offers based on their shopping habits, bonus points to celebrate their birthdays, and cash back on purchases.

With Mission Thrift Rewards, thrift store treasure hunters get to see even more value every time they visit.

 

The Rollout & Promotions

Launching the loyalty program across 40+ stores was not an easy feat. "We faced challenges in coordinating the rollout since each store is independently managed," says Ames. "But this program has unified our stores in a way we hadn't anticipated." By creating a shared loyalty framework, they fostered a stronger sense of community amongst their national network of stores.

The loyalty program has already produced positive results, with Mission Thrift experiencing more customer engagement as shoppers take advantage of their loyalty rewards.

One of the most successful initiatives was their National Thrift Shop Day promotion on August 16-17th.

The two-day campaign offered double points for purchases. It resulted in a significant boost in memberships and 10% more member sales with points accumulated compared to the monthly average.

"We saw a measurable increase in sales, we saw an increase in new members, we saw an increase in store traffic," says Ames "and when our stores saw the impact of that they've started to get more and more excited about the program."

Rewards Beyond Purchases

All Mission Thrift stores are, for the most part, powered by volunteers. And what better way to express gratitude to the volunteers than by making them active members of the loyalty program?

With this in mind, they are currently exploring a plan to offer loyalty points for volunteer hours.

"We're considering rewarding customers for more than just their purchases," says Ames. "It's all about building a connection within the community."

This flexibility within the loyalty program has enabled Mission Thrift to customize their rewards to meet the unique needs of their members.

Whether it's providing discounts for regular shoppers, incentivizing donations, or rewarding volunteers, the program has become an integral part of the store's community engagement strategy.

Results

Since launching Mission Thrift Rewards, they've noticed a shift in customer behavior. "We're seeing incremental growth in average basket size and the number of items per sale," explains Ames. "Our customers feel more appreciated, and that's driving them to come back and shop with us again."

In fact, the average Mission Thrift Rewards member shops at the stores 6.3 times a year.

The loyalty program has also empowered Mission Thrift to gather valuable data about customer trends and behaviors, which has helped the marketing team tailor their promotions to different customer demographics, allowing them to run more targeted campaigns.

"It's critical having the customer data broken down in the backend so that we can segment and run campaigns," says Ames, "and I can now prove to different stores the ROI, which is incredible."

By prioritizing their long-time customers and donors, the program builds loyalty and strengthens the sense of belonging within their stores.

“When I visit stores across the country, managers tell me about their regulars—people who come in like clockwork, searching for treasures. They’re like family, and being able to offer this to them makes them feel appreciated,” Ames adds.

This approach reflects Mission Thrift's broader commitment to being the most community-focused thrift store in Canada, and treating loyal customers like gold while building connections that extend far beyond transactions.

Future Plans

Looking ahead, Mission Thrift has ambitious plans for their loyalty program. "Our focus now is on increasing customer account completions, so they can take full advantage of their rewards," says Ames. The marketing team is already planning an account completion campaign to ensure more customers can redeem their points.

As the organization continues to expand their reach across Canada, the loyalty program will play a key role in strengthening customer retention and engagement in new regions. "The loyalty program is going to be critical as we continue to grow and open new stores," says Ames. "It's a great way to connect with our customers and show them that we value their loyalty."

“

The system itself works really well—it’s straightforward, and the points program has been very well-received by our customers.”

Eric Ames

Director of Marketing at Mission Thrift

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