Thunderbird Salvage opens second location, in Kensington, with Christmas and NYE pop-up

East Kensington’s beloved Thunderbird Salvage has opened a second location just a 15-minute walk away from the original, with even more thrifted and antique treasures.

Store owner George Mathes bought the vacant building on 2856 Frankford Ave. as a new storage place for his overflowing inventory of thrifted and antique finds. (His processing warehouse near Temple University is scheduled for demolition.) But seeing a lack of retail shops in the Kensington neighborhood, he decided to open a weekend storefront where folks can stock up on items in bulk, score discounted collectibles, and attend community events.

“The community needs a starting point — there’s nothing there other than little food corner stores,” he said. “When I opened up Thunderbird Salvage in the church [at 2441 Frankford Ave.] in 2017, I was the first retail shop there, and it took off after that. Now, there’s a stretch of retail stores and small businesses that are doing really well. So, that’s what I can see here — helping a new growth on this part of Frankford Avenue.”

The store is celebrating the soft opening of its second location with a holiday pop-up, which began Black Friday and runs until New Year’s Eve. The shop is open Friday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with Forin Cafe serving and selling its wine on Fridays and a photo booth.

In the new year, the ADA-accessible and dog/kid-friendly store will be open during the same hours with bulk inventory sales. Visitors can buy clothing by the pound, tools and books by the box, antiques and collectibles for “dramatically” discounted prices, new and old furniture pieces, and items in fill-a-box sales, said Mathes.

“When we do our estate clean-outs, we get lots of inventory that nobody sees because we don’t have the space to display it,” he said. “[This will] help the quantity that we get move [out] fast.”

Engaging the community is a big part of Thunderbird store number two, Mathes said.

Inside the two-story former lodge house of the Improved Order of Red Men, which claims to be the oldest fraternal organization in America, according to Hidden City publication, an organized and categorized collection of items will sit on the first floor while community events like bingo nights and mini flea markets will be on the second floor, which has a stage and room for 200 people.

Mathes plans to partner with people like Steph Irwin, an experiential event and installation producer/promoter who runs Now & Then Marketplace, for various events, including a talent show in April. Event ideas and inquiries are encouraged, so reach out if you have an idea.

“We just want to do things that are creative and outside the box in this beautiful event space upstairs,” he said. “It’s a good place for people to meet, and I think that [the neighborhood] needs that.”

Mathes said you can probably expect to find furry friends taking over this location, too. Vader, a Russian Blue, and Rey, a tortoiseshell, live at the original Thunderbird site where they guard the cash register, lead quality control, and help sell items.

“Currently, there’s a litter of kittens that live in a lot [at the new location] — we need to make friends,” he said.

📍2856 Frankford Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19134, 🕑 Friday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., 🌐 instagram.com/thunderbirdpopup