Global Thrift Store celebrates 30 years on Moody Street

It’s not hard to find longtime customers of Global Thrift Store, the Moody Street staple, which marks 30 years in business this July 1. 

Starting about 15 years ago, Waltham’s Emmett McCleary recalls scoring a $1 record by iconic jazz musician John Coltrane, $5 Levy’s 501 jeans and his first Polaroid camera at Global Thrift.

For years, Chestnut Hill’s Liz Jesionek has furnished her home with linens, dishes and knick-knacks from the store. Her haul last Friday: a high-end men’s shirt, J.Crew flip-flops, two pairs of cool sunglasses and jewelry. 

When you come into the store, “you’re coming into a party,” said Jesionek, referencing its bright art murals, upbeat music and steady flow of customers. 

Owner Cindy Pochesci has spent 30 years recreating thrift shopping as a fun and community-driven experience on Moody Street. To celebrate the July 1 anniversary, her team is planning “30 surprises” for customers throughout the month.

Pochesci has no shortage of stories over the last few decades. Highlights include the wife who donated her husband’s entire closet after finding out he was cheating, “pictures that we shouldn’t have gotten” amid larger donation bags and a customer who found her $20 wedding dress at the shop. 

“I’ve had people meet here and get married,” she added.

But her greatest pride is the store’s impact.

“She has done a lot for the community,” said Nancy Hanley, a longtime friend who now works at Global Thrift.

Social Media Manager Astrid Pozo added, “She’s an incredible store owner, woman and single mother. Being able to have all that on her shoulders and to just be successful, and the store is thriving.” 

Origin story 

Entrepreneurship runs in Pochesci’s family: Her great-grandmother had a store in a trendy part of Philadelphia, and her dad owned a trailer and container company in New Jersey. But she didn’t always plan to follow this path. 

After earning a master’s degree at Boston University, she worked as a rehab counselor for people with traumatic brain injury at Spaulding Rehabilitation. There she got to know Goodwill Industries, which funds rehab programs through its thrift stores. Eventually she decided to create her own shop at age 25. 

With no business experience, she quit her job, got a loan from her dad and drove around looking for store locations using a gas station map book. “This was way before Waze,” she said. 

She chose Moody Street mainly because she could afford the rent. Pochesci said,“Cronin’s was the department store on the corner that was condemned. Jordan’s Furniture’s very first store was across the street. There was a costume shop and some random restaurants, but it was dead down here.” 

She signed a five-year lease. When she told her landlord she was starting a thrift store, he replied, “I won’t sue you if it doesn’t work out.” 

She hired her first four employees from a nearby unemployment center and rented space at a condemned gas station where she parked a trailer to collect donations. To stock her shop, she bought items from stores going out of business, including all the hangers at Bradlees in Framingham (now Target) for $800. 

After her accountant insisted, “I need a name,” for the business, she spotted a globe driving down Moody Street and decided to name the store Global Thrift. “It reflects that you can come here and there’s so much,” she said.

Pochesci slept on friends’ couches until she could pay herself and rent her own apartment. She later moved to an apartment a few blocks from the store, and eventually expanded the shop by taking over space previously owned by Bernie & Phyl’s. 

The thrift store experience

From the start, Pochesci has modeled Global Thrift in the tradition of Goodwill, relying on community donations and offering most items for under $10. Her team stocks a staggering 1,500 items a day, ensuring a fresh selection with every visit. 

To keep prices low and inventory turnover high, items aren’t individually priced. For example, it’s $8 for blouses and $5 for T-shirts, and yellow-tagged items are just a couple of dollars more than the standard unit pricing. Pochesci loves when customers find deals, such as a jacket someone bought that was later appraised for $5,000. She welcomes everyone, including those who can’t afford retail prices, resellers, bargain hunters and thrifting fans alike. 

“You’ve got to come in and search, because I want to get this stuff out as fast as I can,” said Pochesci. 

Community support is central to Global Thrift’s mission. Though Global Thrift is not a non-profit, it has donated proceeds to charities for families of missing children, the homeless and childrens’ arts education programs through Rose Conservatory in Brockton. 

From day one, Pochesci has provided $25 vouchers to those in need, including guests at the Community Day Center of Waltham. “This is the foundation of Global,” she said.

She also offers free space for entrepreneurs to sell their goods, and supports local university students and artists. 

“I started buying art to help artists because no one was really doing that after COVID,” Pochesci said.

Global Thrift now features an impressive array of artwork in the store, and a vibrant mural by Hailey Bonia on the Moody Street storefront. “I grew up in an era where window displays were like works of art,” Pochesci said. “I wanted to bring back the window display.” 

Her son Rocco, a recent Waltham High graduate, is a fan: “When you come down Moody, it’s the first thing you see.”

To reimagine the store for future generations, Pochesci has introduced new ideas, like holding monthly bin sales where customers can pay $15 to fill a large bag with outfits. She estimates each bag can hold about $200 of adult clothes or $400 of kids’ clothes.

She’s also working with the team, including her social media manager Pozo, to reach more young people. On Instagram, Pozo often spotlights attention-grabbing outfits from the store, such as a brown and white polka dot dress that mirrored what Julia Roberts wore in the movie Pretty Woman. 

Running Global Thrift hasn’t always been easy. Recently, Pochesci was forced to reduce her floor space to curb utility costs, and like other independent stores, shoplifting poses a challenge since it’s not feasible to use the security measures that are increasingly adopted at chain stores. She focuses on business sustainability so she can continue to benefit the local community, and because she knows how much her employees count on their paychecks.

‘My employees are like my family’   

The store has between 15 to 20 employees at a given time. To Pochesci, “my employees are like my family … I can’t do anything without them.” 

“She has basically no turnover here,” said Hanley. “Her employees are awesome. Never in my life have I managed such a great group of people.” 

Rocco has started working at the store part-time during the school year and full-time over the summer. But he’s been at the store since childhood, when he recalls playing with toys and a basketball hoop in the back. 

“For me, this is like a home,” said Rocco. “It’s a second family.” 

At first, his work responsibilities began in the back room, and he has increasingly taken on more customer-facing roles. This fall he’ll start classes at Bunker Hill Community College, helping build on what he’s learned at the store. 

His mom and others see a bright future for Rocco. “He has the gift,” said Hanley. 

“Expectations are high, but I like that,” said Rocco, stealing a glance at his mom, who’s smiling nearby. “If she can take it 30 years, I want to take it 60 years.”  

With many independent stores struggling to survive, often without a next generation to take over, Global Thrift seeks to break the mold. 

Longtime customer McCleary is rooting them on: “If Waltham is to be a place people can afford to live, a thrift store is essential. Waltham is definitely changing. I hope it does retain what I loved so much about it as a kid who didn’t have a ton of money to spend. I hope it remains available to people of all creeds and income brackets.” 

For Pochesci, it all comes back to the local community: “I started here, I love this community … I love unconditionally.” 

Global Thrift Store, at 322 Moody St., is open Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. Donations are accepted during store hours (guidelines). For updates, follow the store on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok.