The secondhand and vintage shopping scene is serving a specific group of shoppers who are frugal, eco-friendly, and fashionable.
But, DC fashion is still taking a backseat to more established areas like San Francisco and New York, where shoppers can choose from dozens of thrift stores and vintage shops.
They’re not the first
Just like the clothes in vintage shops, there is nothing new about secondhand shopping.
Brooke Kao, who started the popular DC Fashion blog “The Fashion Void That Is DC,” has featured secondhand pieces in her daily outfit posts since 2007.
“It’s certainly gotten a lot more popular recently,” Kao said.
“A lot of people think they are new, even though they are not.”
Kao said she didn’t like how popular secondhand shopping had gotten.“It is so sad because so many people know about it now,” Kao said.
“All the good stuff is going to get picked over.” Gillian Kirkpatrick, better known as the DC Goodwill Fashionista, has been shopping vintage and secondhand in the DC area for almost 20 years.
“I started shopping for vintage fashion at thrift stores back in the late 1980’s at local stores, as well as taking regular trips to Georgetown to a great thrift store, Classic Clothing, that no longer exists,” Kirkpatrick said via email.
BEING DIFFERENT
Many, like Kao, shop secondhand to find one-of-a-kind styles.
“I like really busted up stuff that need a lot of work, I like to put it back together again,” Jane Schwartz, assistant manager at Mustard Seed, said. “We got in a super old Gucci dress and the armpits were ripped out. It was a total mess and I’ve been lovingly restoring it.”
Vintage garments were manufactured better than newer trend pieces, making them easier to take apart, repair, or reconstruct. “If you go to a real vintage store with pieces 20 years or older, a lot of them have higher quality construction,” Kao said. “Basically, you get something that’s better made and more unique then a regular retail store.”
But, vintage shops are taking advantage of the fact that the typical shopper may be more focused on looking fabulous than being frugal. “The price points in these stores have gotten a lot more expensive because they know their audience is growing,” said Kao.
“I guess compared to other places like New York it isn’t so bad.
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Kirkpatrick said she had noticed the price hike, too. She associated the high prices with careful pre-selection. “[In some stores] the merchandise has been hand-selected for quality, designer, recent trends, and materials,” Kirkpatrick said. “You pay a little bit extra for the work that goes into finding and collecting the garments.”
BEING GREEN
Secondhand shopping also reduces waste. Buying vintage clothing keeps factory production down and decreases landfill.
“Recycling clothes helps save the earth,” Kirkpatrick said.
“No sweatshops, no pollution, no landfills.”
“It basically all comes down to waste and throw away,” Jessica Taich, who’s worked in both secondhand shops and regular retail, said. “People go out and they buy clothes, and then they wear them for a year, and they get rid of them, and they buy new clothes. The cycle isn’t going around if you buy secondhand.”
HOW DOES D.C. STACK UP?
Here’s a breakdown of some major secondhand spots in DC:
1. Annie Creamcheese—Georgetown
2. Remix—Capitol Hill
3. Mustard Seed—Bethesda
4. Second Time Around—Georgetown
5. Secondi—Dupont Circle
