Beloved thrift store Boomerangs reopening in Cambridge

Boomerangs, the beloved Boston thrift store that shut its doors in June, is making a return.

More Than Words, a South End nonprofit and bookstore that supports and employs at-risk youth, announced it is taking over and reopening the used clothing store on Mass. Ave in Cambridge’s Central Square. 

“We’re taking the torch from Fenway Health whose iconic Boomerangs stores raised funds for HIV/AIDS causes for two decades,” the nonprofit said in a statement. “Our new Boomerangs by More Than Words will feature curated second-hand fashion, accessories, books, home goods, and music, continuing the store’s long legacy of mission-driven thrift in Cambridge. It will be managed and staffed by our graduates, accessing supportive employment as they work on education and career goals.”

The store at 563 Massachusetts Avenue will reopen this year, according to More Than Words.

Fenway Health, which previously operated the Central Square Boomerangs storefront along with additional locations in Jamaica Plain and the South End, announced in May that all the shops would close due to financial losses. Started in the mid-1990s, the stores raised money for HIV services when they were launched by AIDS Action, which later became Fenway’s Public Health Division. 

More Than Words said that under its new stewardship and with the new name — Boomerangs by More Than Words — the thrift store “will provide customers with the same sense of community that existed for years at Boomerangs.”

“This store will allow More Than Words the opportunity to expand its program that supports young adults in foster care, court, homeless, or out of school to take charge of their lives by taking charge of a business,” the nonprofit said on its website.

More Than Words is also exploring the possibility of opening a store in the space where Boomerangs operated in Jamaica Plain, but the nonprofit said on its website that given the location of its own bookstore, there are no plans to open a second storefront in the South End.

The nonprofit is accepting donations of clothing, books, and other items for sale in the reopening thrift store.