From Piedmont Civic on March 8, 2019:
In honor of Women’s History Month, Dress Best For Less shares the origins of Dress Best for Less.
In 1982, Wendy [Webster] Willrich, along with Jeanne Clark and other mothers of Havens Elementary School children, started collecting clothing and household items to sell to the community in order to raise money for the schools. This was the genesis of what would later become Dress Best for Less.
The enterprise quickly outgrew the space at the school and decided to open the Dress Best for Less shop at its original location on Piedmont Avenue where the store remained for almost 3 decades until moving to its current location at 3411 Lakeshore Avenue, Oakland, CA 94610.
For 37 years (and counting), DBFL has raised funds for the Piedmont Education Foundation. DBFL is the single largest contributor to PEF, with donations totaling over $1 million dollars.
In addition, DBFL is proud to contribute to the community at large, regularly donating to community groups in the East Bay and beyond, such as Bay Area schools, St. Vincent de Paul, animal rescue organizations, Oakland Children’s Hospital and more.
To this day, Dress Best for Less remains a woman-run organization. The bulk of the DBFL team are volunteers, most of whom are mothers of current and former Piedmont School children. DBFL is living proof of what a few dedicated and driven woman can accomplish.
Mercury News on February 20, 2020:
PIEDMONT — Dress Best for Less, which has donated nearly $1.2 million to help Piedmont students through the Piedmont Education Foundation since the store started 38 years ago, is moving. A grand opening celebration featuring music and a raffle is planned for March 7 in the new location at 4020 Piedmont Ave. in Oakland.
As of this week, the entire store inventory of its current location at 3411 Lakeshore Ave. is on sale for 75% off. The last day at Lakeshore will be Feb. 28.
[...]
“The space at 4020 Piedmont Ave. became available last fall, and the DBFL board decided to investigate to see if the new space would work for our needs,” said Linda Smith Munyan, the DBFL board’s president. “We were excited about the opportunity to move back to Piedmont Avenue, where we had a retail store for many years and have many loyal customers. Our lease on Lakeshore expires at the end of February, so the timing worked perfectly. We enjoyed our time at the Lakeshore location.”
[...]
DBFL started with a parent’s idea. Wendy Webster Willrich took a leap of faith and signed a lease in the 1980s on Piedmont Avenue in her own name. Her idea was to collect gently used items to resell to benefit the Piedmont schools, and the idea took off. The parents used an extra room at Havens Elementary to get started in 1982 before the move to a store space. DBFL is governed by a 16-member volunteer board of directors who meet monthly during the school year.
About Dress Best For Less (DBFL)
Formed in 1982 by a group of forward-thinking Piedmont parents who decided to support the schools by collecting donated household items and clothing to sell to the community, the group was given an unused room at Havens School and grew quickly to form a successful nonprofit, Dress Best for Less. With a storefront on Piedmont Avenue and a donation center on Magnolia Ave across from PHS, DBFL offers affordable fine vintage and gently used clothing for the whole family as well as home decor. Residents can support DBFL by donating quality items at the Marking Room at 799 Magnolia Ave and by shopping at 4020 Piedmont Avenue.
First address on Piedmont ave - Oakland Tribune - December 25, 1982
Another ad in the Tribune on May 11, 1988 also lists this address
Oakland Tribune - July 28, 1999
Historical Locations:
Havens School (1982)
The enterprise quickly outgrew the space at the school and decided to open the Dress Best for Less shop at its original location on Piedmont Avenue
3820 Piedmont Avenue (1982 - 1988 at least)
Where the store remained for almost 3 decades until moving to its location at Lakeshore
In 1996 ads mention the spot at 399 Magnolia Ave in Piedmont. That was the site of the old wood working shop that was used by DBFL before it was torn down for the new Piedmont Pool.
3861 Piedmont Avenue (1999 - 2016)
From a Piedmont Civic article:
"Recently, the owner of the shop’s property informed Dress Best For Less (DBFL) they would not be renewing the long held lease as Commis Restaurant would be taking over the space to increase the size of its popular upscale restaurant. Most of the clients of the thrift store originate from the Kaiser Hospital facilities making it an ideal location for DBFL."
3411 Lakeshore Avenue (April 1, 2017 - until February 28, 2020)
Instagram post has date as April 1, 2017 on Lakeshore Ave
4020 Piedmont Avenue (March 7, 2020 - Present day)
From their website they donate to:
Bay Area schools:
DBFL provides donations of books and art supplies to schools in Oakland, Piedmont and Richmond.
Oakland SPCA, Hopalong Animal Rescue and Milo Foundation:
DBFL provides donations of blankets, towels, and other supplies for pet adoption agencies.
Oakland Children’s Hospital:
DBFL donates books and toys to Children’s Hospital for their patients and visitors.
Loved Twice:
DBFL donates children’s items to Love Twice – a non-profit organization that provides newborns in need with quality reused baby clothing for the first year of life.
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