Second Home Thrift

Second Home, nestled in the comfortable island community of Alameda, is a popular consignment shop fi lled with an ever-changing inventory of quality home furnishings. For over twenty years, the shop has been a destination for locals as well as those who are visiting the quaint Bay Area island. Shop owner, Suzette Smith, has worked hard to establish a reputation that locals call “the best treasure hunting on the island”, but she needed help solving her store lighting issues.

Over the years, Ms. Smith had become disenchanted with the lack of natural light in her store’s retail space. The staff attempted to solve this problem by positioning floor lamps throughout the store but this did little to improve the lighting and only ran up their electric bill. Ms. Smith was thrilled to learn that Alameda Municipal Power had an offering for business customers, the turnkey Commercial Lighting Program.

The Commercial Lighting Program (CLP) provides step by step assistance to local businesses who are interested in energy efficiency measures and has been supported by incentives generated through AMP’s renewable energy credits. Derek Avery, CLP Energy Consultant, conducted a thorough audit of Second Home and created a detailed proposal for Ms. Smith that outlined projected energy savings, bill savings, and the rebate amount available from CLP to help off set the cost of the project.

Once Ms. Smith approved the proposal to replace all of the interior overhead lights from the outdated T12 linear fluorescent lamps to the more powerful and highly efficient T8’s, the project was quickly underway. “The whole process was fantastic,” said Ms. Smith “The contractors on the project were impressive. They never inconvenienced the staff or customers and they were always pleasant. If they had to move a piece of furniture, they put it right back exactly as they found it.”

With the project completed, the value is being felt across the board. “Our retail space looks so clean and organized and the product even looks better! Everyone who works here has more energy and we’re all feeling refreshed since it feels lighter and brighter in the store,” commented Ms. Smith. With Commercial Lighting Program rebates covering up to 95% of the project cost, the out of pocket expense for Ms. Smith was less than a few hundred dollars.