Debunking: Vintage vs Thrift Stores
With the rise of secondhand shopping, many have yet to understand the differences in the many genres of second hand stores.
There is nothing like walking into a thrift store, with the dull smell of worn clothes waiting to be revived. Whether it be in a vintage or a thrift store (yes, there’s a difference), there is no experience that gives a person the same rush as finding an item of clothing that fits them perfectly. But running a thrift store in the age of secondhand fashion is nothing short of overwhelming – this writer would know from running Threadlightly, a community-based thrift store.
With over 3.6 and 11.3 billion views on TikTok respectively, #thrift and #vintage have boosted secondhand fashion in becoming the ethos of the fashion world. From shopping tips and tricks to hauls, secondhand fashion content has taken over the internet.
What’s So Great About Shopping Second Hand, Anyways?
Over the last couple of years, fashion influencers have rebranded thrifting to be the new cool, yet sustainable way to buy affordable statements for your wardrobe. Gen Z researcher Greg Petro cites that the younger generations are willing to spend the extra money for a more sustainable product instead of purchasing a cheaper unsustainable one. Essentially, caring about the environment has blurred the negative judgements that have historically come with buying used clothes at a thrift store, such as worries about hygiene and the perception of being a part of a lower class.
Though heavily popularised, thrifting and vintage have unknowingly become synonymous, despite massive differences in price, distribution and range. Many have visited Threadlightly in search of the vintage apparel triad — graphic tees, windbreakers and jeans — and while the store carries all three, none of the items classify as vintage, as vintage stores and thrift stores are mutually exclusive.
Every fad comes with its perils, and for secondhand shopping, there is a dangerous habit of mislabelling products. Whether you’re shopping in a thrift store or a self-proclaimed vintage store, the store owners are to be held responsible for the misrepresentation of secondhand shopping.
The Reality of Shopping Secondhand
Thrift, in itself, means to buy something at a low price. Unfortunately in recent years, the term ‘thrift store’ has been looped in with the concept of vintage and secondhand stores. The hard truth is that the causal effect of its misuse has been tremendous towards both business owners and consumers.
Thrift stores and charity shops both fall into the category of secondhand stores. However, unlike charity shops, thrift stores do not necessarily have to bring a huge value to their local community besides being a place to offload unwanted goods/clothes.
Whether it be an item adopted from a fast-fashion brand or an extra-rare, deadstock vintage product, the label of "thrift" or "charity" shops comes with the responsibility of pricing with caution. Here’s where it gets tricky: in comparison to departmental thrift stores in the United States like Goodwill or Savers, Singaporean thrift stores are not always going to be the honeypot of authentic vintage wear.
Despite this, taking home the unwanted load from somebody else’s closet and giving it thirty more wears, or upcycling it into something completely is a completely viable, and encouraged option to stay within the circular fashion system.
What’s So Special About Vintage Stores Then?
Despite Singapore’s small size, vintage shopping remains immensely popular, with new stores and vintage events popping up every so often. How exactly are these stores filling the vintage clothing gap that other secondhand stores are unable to fill from collecting donated items?
Cue vintage curators. Despite spending time explaining true vintage in a digestible manner and how it differs from just being a ratty graphic tee, LoopGarms – one of the original contemporary vintage stores in Singapore – still get messages to this day questioning their ethics; mostly stemming from netizens unhappy about the steep price range due to the misunderstanding of what classifies an item to be vintage.
Getting ripped-off is common, especially to those just looking for a pretty find instead of focusing on the item's rich history. Fashion applications like Depop are spider-webs when it comes to the mislabelling (and eventual mispricing) of vintage items: just because an item is old, does not necessarily mean it is vintage.
Co-founder of LoopGarms FJ Sai cites a story about when a customer asked her if his white Uniqlo-brand tee will be considered vintage twenty years from now. “Technically, yes,” Sai explains. “But what cultural implications has the Uniqlo white-tee in particular made within the fashion scene in the next twenty years?”
According to Sai, the true value of vintage also comes from the graphic, copywriting, stitching, and clothing tags. Celebrity influences and rarity of the product also plays a huge part in vintage wear, and in turn, affects the notorious price point.
“We had a bunch of 90s American Thunder Tees that we sourced overseas for LoopGarms that were not flying off the racks when we first put them up,” says Isaac Ang, the other co-founder of LoopGarms. “It wasn’t until Travis Scott was seen wearing it at one of his Astroworld shows that we got messages and calls from past visitors who had seen the shirt in store, and wanted it because of Travis.”
“If only Travis Scott had worn it a year earlier, the tees would have gotten off our shelf way faster.” says Isaac. “There was a definite price markup within other stores that did have it in stock, and Travis is to thank for that.”
Isaac acknowledges that it can get pricey, but that’s what makes vintage stores completely different from other second hand stores. While the style and story behind vintage clothing is what attracts customers, the prices are usually the deterrent for items that don’t come with the celebrity factor.
The Disadvantages of Mislabelling Products
Like stamps, lamps and chairs, vintage-wear all come from a different time and offer a different story. Not all things old present a meaning and true vintage value – Ang and Sai both urge consumers to be wary, and ask for more details on the time before making a purchase.
Reputable vintage stores will provide the proper information you need to deduce the authenticity of their product. Red flags could include “vintage” stores who chase ever-changing micro-trends instead of keeping to a type of wear or era in fashion, failure to explain the high prices of their items, and more.
Not only that, while vintage items are a rarity (but not inevitable) at our local thrift stores, should the pricing not be one that is out of reach to most, since thrift essentially means a low price point? While there has been free knowledge on the importance of labelling available on the internet, not all have been enlightened.
“Whenever we get visitors we always remind them that we’re a contemporary vintage store, and not a thrift store, hence the higher price range. If you go to a thrift store and you find a 1995 Phantom shirt then good for you,” says Sai. “Perhaps it could be just another tee to you, but someone who knows the real value of the shirt is definitely going to benefit from it.”
While lower-income individuals have long been represented as the face of thrifting, this no longer applies, based on the massive shift in the socio-economic demographics of thrifters. However, a majority of those people still remain those of a lower socioeconomic status. It’s only right for store owners – with items that fall into the secondhand clothing category – to label and price their items accurately and fairly.
Labelling an item vintage and pricing it at a huge price point when it isn’t would only devalue true vintage, which later on results in price gouging. On the other hand, not being as well-versed in the nature of true vintage would result in the possibility of getting ripped off, which nurtures the stigma that secondhand stores are being gentrified.
So have you been manipulated into believing that exorbitant prices are normal in a second-hand store? Or are your local vintage stores just serving you the reality of what true vintage really is? We'll let you decide.
