BUSINESS SAVVY: From Shopper to Bargain Hunter
Originally Published In Manayunk.com Magazine
While talking heads continue to debate micro-retail trends on a nightly basis, far less ambiguity exists within the realm of resale, which boasts a robust seven-percent growth rate for each of the last two years, according to the Association of Resale Professionals.
With four such shops—Worn Yesterday, Remix, The Attic and Greene Street Consignment—clustered tight enough on Main Street to keep a bargain-hunting fashionista from breaking stride, Manayunk is revealing itself as a destination for the growing legions drawn to the art of rediscovery. Consider this: About 15 percent of Americans visited a consignment/resale store last year, according to a study by America’s Research Group. Conventional clothing shops drew 19.6 percent, and department stores, 21.3 percent. That’s likely not quite the gap you imagined.
And for good reason: Top-shelf brands, worn or used a handful of times, are being sold for dimes on the dollar. For sellers, recouping some of that expense (to put toward new stuff) is always better than getting nothing (and leaving it to clutter the closet). But there are nuances to both sides of the experience. What follows is a field guide to shopping and selling consignment in Manayunk. It’s not likely to stem your significant shopping habit, but it will mold you into a ruthless bargain hunter.
Do your homework. All of the aforementioned shops have Web sites, and all of them list the prominent brands that they sell (and buy) or, at least, a clear description of the styles (couture, vintage). Save yourself the time and trouble of shuffling bags of clothing from shop to shop and read up online first.
If you’re feeling especially studious, ask, by email or phone, what sells best at a store. After all, says Remix owner Ljupka Malinovska, “Our criterion for determining what to accept is basically whether or not we believe we can sell it, plain and simple.” (For the record, she can’t stock enough Italian- and French-made designer handbags.)
Featured just as prominently on the sites is a rundown of the stores’ expectations regarding the condition of the stuff they buy. Heed it. Just because an Alexander McQueen label is stitched to the inside of your V-neck dress doesn’t mean that anyone’s going to gloss over the syrah stain just below the right shoulder.
“I turned away my own daughter’s stuff back in the day, when she was this age, because I knew just exactly where her spots would be,” says Davida Levin, who’s been buying and selling children’s and maternity clothing at her consignment store, Worn Yesterday, for the last 26 years.
Negotiate, but cautiously. There’s almost always some wiggle room with the price. But understand, first, that you’re getting a bargain to begin with and, second, the price was agreed upon by the store and the seller, which places the salesperson in the somewhat precarious position of wanting to unload a given piece quickly, but doing so without undermining the seller.
The Attic operates a bit differently from the conventional consignment model. It buys the clothing it sells outright. Because owner Margo Kuronyi maintains complete control of the pricing, she has the flexibility to offer insider-type sales to email subscribers and Facebook and Twitter followers. She also runs a Sunday promotion that changes monthly.
Ask for help. This should go without saying, but, apparently, it needs to be said.
Approach consignment shopping with an open mind because, really, there’s no way to know beforehand exactly what you’ll come across. That’s part of the lure, after all. But should you hone in on something particular and don’t find it, leave your name and contact information with the store along with a description of the object of your desire. The inventory changes every day, and even the store owners themselves don’t know what to expect. So, it couldn’t hurt to have an extra pair of eyes working for you.
“The only thing I can’t do is when somebody says to me, ‘Davida, could you call me when something cute comes in in size four?’ ” Levin says. “You gotta be specific. Ask for a Burberry plaid shirt in a size six. Because I see every piece that comes in.”
Be aware, though, that while most stores will act as a lookout, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be inclined to act beyond notifying you when it surfaces. The inventory turns over quickly because demand is at least as high as the supply. Basically, be prepared to move fast.
“In all reality, the best way is to stop in often because we’re adding new clothing every day, and since we only have one of every item, your dream piece of clothing could fly out the door before you ever see it,” Kuronyi says.
Even before that point, ask for guidance in case what you’re looking for is hidden in plain sight. Because of the aforementioned—the rapid turnover, one-of-a-kinds—even the most precise consignment shops lack the clean, sterile organization of Walmart. As Levin says, “You never know what’s hiding in a corner.”
With four such shops—Worn Yesterday, Remix, The Attic and Greene Street Consignment—clustered tight enough on Main Street to keep a bargain-hunting fashionista from breaking stride, Manayunk is revealing itself as a destination for the growing legions drawn to the art of rediscovery. Consider this: About 15 percent of Americans visited a consignment/resale store last year, according to a study by America’s Research Group. Conventional clothing shops drew 19.6 percent, and department stores, 21.3 percent. That’s likely not quite the gap you imagined.
And for good reason: Top-shelf brands, worn or used a handful of times, are being sold for dimes on the dollar. For sellers, recouping some of that expense (to put toward new stuff) is always better than getting nothing (and leaving it to clutter the closet). But there are nuances to both sides of the experience. What follows is a field guide to shopping and selling consignment in Manayunk. It’s not likely to stem your significant shopping habit, but it will mold you into a ruthless bargain hunter.
Do your homework. All of the aforementioned shops have Web sites, and all of them list the prominent brands that they sell (and buy) or, at least, a clear description of the styles (couture, vintage). Save yourself the time and trouble of shuffling bags of clothing from shop to shop and read up online first.
If you’re feeling especially studious, ask, by email or phone, what sells best at a store. After all, says Remix owner Ljupka Malinovska, “Our criterion for determining what to accept is basically whether or not we believe we can sell it, plain and simple.” (For the record, she can’t stock enough Italian- and French-made designer handbags.)
Featured just as prominently on the sites is a rundown of the stores’ expectations regarding the condition of the stuff they buy. Heed it. Just because an Alexander McQueen label is stitched to the inside of your V-neck dress doesn’t mean that anyone’s going to gloss over the syrah stain just below the right shoulder.
“I turned away my own daughter’s stuff back in the day, when she was this age, because I knew just exactly where her spots would be,” says Davida Levin, who’s been buying and selling children’s and maternity clothing at her consignment store, Worn Yesterday, for the last 26 years.
Negotiate, but cautiously. There’s almost always some wiggle room with the price. But understand, first, that you’re getting a bargain to begin with and, second, the price was agreed upon by the store and the seller, which places the salesperson in the somewhat precarious position of wanting to unload a given piece quickly, but doing so without undermining the seller.
The Attic operates a bit differently from the conventional consignment model. It buys the clothing it sells outright. Because owner Margo Kuronyi maintains complete control of the pricing, she has the flexibility to offer insider-type sales to email subscribers and Facebook and Twitter followers. She also runs a Sunday promotion that changes monthly.
Ask for help. This should go without saying, but, apparently, it needs to be said.
Approach consignment shopping with an open mind because, really, there’s no way to know beforehand exactly what you’ll come across. That’s part of the lure, after all. But should you hone in on something particular and don’t find it, leave your name and contact information with the store along with a description of the object of your desire. The inventory changes every day, and even the store owners themselves don’t know what to expect. So, it couldn’t hurt to have an extra pair of eyes working for you.
“The only thing I can’t do is when somebody says to me, ‘Davida, could you call me when something cute comes in in size four?’ ” Levin says. “You gotta be specific. Ask for a Burberry plaid shirt in a size six. Because I see every piece that comes in.”
Be aware, though, that while most stores will act as a lookout, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be inclined to act beyond notifying you when it surfaces. The inventory turns over quickly because demand is at least as high as the supply. Basically, be prepared to move fast.
“In all reality, the best way is to stop in often because we’re adding new clothing every day, and since we only have one of every item, your dream piece of clothing could fly out the door before you ever see it,” Kuronyi says.
Even before that point, ask for guidance in case what you’re looking for is hidden in plain sight. Because of the aforementioned—the rapid turnover, one-of-a-kinds—even the most precise consignment shops lack the clean, sterile organization of Walmart. As Levin says, “You never know what’s hiding in a corner.”
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