Thrift shopping is having a moment with college students eager to save the planet and their wallets.
Online consignment giant ThredUP released a resale report saying that globally, second-hand clothing sales have increased from $96 billion in 2021 to $119 billion in 2022, with sales expected to rise. $99 billion by 2026.
Four Northeastern University students majoring in fashion or the environment, three of whom are from California, told News@Northeastern their favorite physical locations and open markets to save in and around Boston and Oakland, home to Mills College in Northeastern.
They also explained why they buy thrift and why they plan to give thrift gifts this holiday, describing some of their finds.
Why save?
“I’ve had this whole journey through college with the environment and finding ways to get people involved in climate solutions,” says Nia Beckett, a fifth-year journalism major majoring in global fashion studies.
“I think saving is a big part of that, because everyone puts on clothes in the morning. And we know that fast fashion is a huge problem that contributes to landfills and workers not being treated properly.”
Ava Rognlien, a fourth-year student majoring in environmental studies with a minor in design, says she also prefers to buy second-hand clothes to extend the life of the garments and avoid the fast-fashion cycle of rapidly producing new clothes. and economical that ends up in landfills. .
“My passion definitely lies in stable fashion,” says Rognlien, who volunteers with the NGO Fashion Revolution which works to protect the rights of garment workers around the world.
She says that saving is also about self-expression and building community.
“I am the eldest of three children. My stuff has always been passed down to my brothers,” says Rognlien, who is from California. He now he shares clothes with his roommates. “We never need to go to the store.”
“With fast fashion, you can find a really cool piece, but everyone has the same piece,” says Kiki Pearson, a sophomore majoring in international business with a minor in global fashion studies.
“I think it’s good to intentionally buy things and also buy secondhand,” says Evelyn LaVelle, a sophomore environmental engineering student.
“When you are saving, you can find unique things. That’s the most rewarding part, says Pearson. “For environmental purposes, second hand is much better than fast fashion and buying new things.”
What are your favorite thrift stores?
“A big one that everyone likes is the Garment District in Cambridge, says Beckett. “Another one that I really like is the Buffalo Exchange (in Brookline). Sometimes they get pieces that still have the price tag on them.”
The Goodwill store in Roxbury and Boomerangs in Cambridge are on LaVelle’s list.
But her all-time favorite is the Alameda Point Antique Fair near Oakland, a once-a-month outdoor flea market where she has shopped with her mother since LaVelle was in high school.
“That flea market is so big,” LaVelle says. “It’s a fun place to go.”
Pearson also grew up in California and is more familiar with thrift stores in Oakland, San Francisco and Berkeley than Boston.
“My favorite is called Wasteland. It’s in Haight. It is a high end thrift store. He has Prada and Yves St. Laurent. They are quite selective with what they get.”
Rognlien, a part-time sales associate at Boomerangs Special Edition in Boston’s South End, says, “I love Boomerangs in general. The one in Jamaica Plain is also amazing.”
Rognlien also enjoys the Boston Outdoor Market in Copley Square, which runs from late May to late September. The market is home to independent designers as well as antique dealers.
Cambridge Vintage Antiques is also on his list. It has several floors of clothing, furniture, and jewelry. “I could spend hours there,” Rognlien says.
Northeastern journalism student Nia Beckett shows off a favorite find, a vintage suit from the Buffalo Exchange. Photo by Alyssa Stone/Northeast University
Northeast journalism student Nia Beckett shows off patchwork corduroy pants by Social Tourist from Buffalo Exchange and a Calvin Klein coat from Goodwill in Cambridge. Photo by Alyssa Stone/Northeast University Nia Beckett, a journalism major from the Northeast, shows off some of her favorite thrift store finds, like a vintage suit from Buffalo Exchange, patchwork corduroy pants from Social Tourist, also from Buffalo Exchange , and a Calvin Klein coat from Goodwill in Cambridge. Photos by Alyssa Stone/Northeast University
Favorite finds?
A $10 Calvin Klein coat from the Goodwill Store in Cambridge is one of Beckett’s most prized secondhand possessions.
“I’m from Florida, so I didn’t come up with outerwear,” she says. “Always a great find.”
A hot pink Moschino T-shirt from the Wasteland tops Pearson’s thrift finds list.
“A lot of tops today are cropped. This is a full length fitted t-shirt. I like to wear it with low rise jeans. It’s kind of a 2000 silhouette that I think is coming back a bit.”
Rognlien says he bought a trunk of Boomerangs in Jamaica Plain that he considers one of his smartest second-hand purchases, as it can store a lot of clothes.
She says she should mention a long black faux fur coat from Goodwill in Roxbury. “Is incredible.”
For LaVelle, a brown Gap sweatshirt purchased at the Alameda flea market is a comfortable favorite piece of clothing. “It’s an extra-large size, but it’s a kid’s size,” so it fits her well, she says.
Other flea market treasures include a large flowery shirt that she cut up to sew two tank tops together.
Would you save a gift?
“I actually just did that,” LaVelle says.
She says she bought, at Indigo Vintage in Berkeley, a sweater, candle, chandelier, and leg warmers as a gift from “Secret Santa.”
“I think it just depends on who you’re giving the gift to and whether they can appreciate the story behind it,” says Pearson.
“My parents aren’t big fans of” secondhand gifts, she says. “Some of my friends are really interested.”
“You want it to be nice or something that that person really appreciates,” Beckett says.
Rognlien says he bought a shirt, a men’s diesel jacket and an initial necklace from thrift stores this year as gifts for loved ones.
“All my gifts this year were second-hand gifts,” mainly from Boomerangs and the online thrift store Depop, says Rognlien.
“It’s not about the price,” she says. “It is being able to express to someone that you are thinking of them. The gift is so personal to that person.”
The downside of saving
The students say the low prices typically associated with thrift stores can tempt people to buy too much.
“It’s important not to buy too much,” says LaVelle.
“Just because it’s less expensive doesn’t mean you should buy something if you’re not going to use it,” Beckett says.
Sometimes “you have to sort through a bunch of things that aren’t so great,” says Pearson.
“It’s not like you just go to Newberry Street and find what you’re looking for.”
The growing popularity of the second-hand economy is driving up prices, a phenomenon Rognlien calls “the gentrification of the second-hand economy.”
“Prices are going up because there is a lot of interest,” she says. While buying thrift is a good thing, Rognlien says it’s important to keep in mind that people on lower incomes may rely on thrift for everything from clothing to dinnerware.
don’t forget to exchange
Swaps are a way to exchange clothing and other goods without exchanging funds, says Rognlien, who helped co-found a Northeastern clothing exchange called Tailored Collective in the fall of 2021.
Exchanges take place every semester, with the last one taking place in October.
“People say, ‘I’ll trade you this for this.’ It’s just amazing,” says Rognlien, who has also organized clothing drive donations for homeless shelters and other programs.
“Just because you don’t want it doesn’t mean someone else can’t take advantage of it.”
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