Here Are the 5 Things Vintage Dealers Wish You Knew
I asked, you answered!
Last week, I asked (on Instagram): “If you could instantly educate vintage shoppers on ONE thing, what would it be?”
The question received so many incredibly thoughtful responses, and sparked dozens of great conversations in my DMs. Over 50 people chimed in with their thoughts!
Out of all the responses, there were a few common threads (pun intended). The most frequently mentioned topics were, in order:
Time & Labor - 13 people mentioned a lack of understanding around the true breadth of work required to sell vintage.
Value & Quality - 11 people mentioned shoppers missing the knowledge to properly assess garment quality. Because many consumers are unable to identify quality in materials, design, and construction, they often struggle to recognize the true value of vintage.
Sizing & Measurements - 8 people mentioned customer confusion around size and fit. Half of these people also brought up specific issues around plus size vintage.
Terminology - 7 people mentioned misunderstanding or misuse of words like “thrift” and “vintage.” Several sellers expressed frustration at their shops being incorrectly referred to as “thrift stores.” A couple people also brought up a widespread lack of vocabulary to describe garments more generally.
Garment Care - 7 people mentioned skills such as mending, repair, and proper laundry practices.
If you’ve been nodding your head in agreement reading this list, you’re in the right place! All of these issues are things I care about deeply, think about constantly, and frequently write about here on Substack. I think big changes are possible, and we’re going to make them happen together. Here’s how it’s gonna go:
You’re going to find the people who are able and willing to create resources to educate others on this information. You’re going to support that work in all of the ways available to you. You’re going to share that work with as many people as you can, with kindness and enthusiasm. Rinse, lather, and repeat until the water runs clear.
If this feels like shameless self promotion, you’re right! I’ve written numerous pieces on a lot of these topics already, and these conversations are helping shape what I’ll be writing about in the future. If you haven’t already, please subscribe to my Substack! Share my posts, restack, follow me on Instagram and share there too. If you can afford a paid subscription, know that your generosity and support is sustaining my practice. I am truly dedicated bettering our collective relationship with fashion and clothing, and writing is one of the ways that I feel most empowered and effective.
Below, I’ll be linking my own past work alongside other creatives, dealers, and experts that I think are effectively tackling some of the biggest issues in vintage. If you’re a fellow dealer wishing customers were more informed - do more informing! You don’t even need to come up with the right words or the flashiest video, because so many amazing people are already doing it for you. If you’re a shopper wishing you knew more about taking care of vintage or wanting to learn about garment quality, here are some amazing resources to start you on your journey.
Time & Labor
A Peek Behind the Curtain is the only piece I’ve written that covers the day to day elements of vintage vending, specifically the BTs of a weekend showing at a major NYC trade show. And while it’s not exactly about the work behind vintage, but I also wrote How To: Not Be a Bad Shopper about secondhand retail etiquette.
This is actually one of the only categories where I couldn’t come up with too many sources that really illuminate the scope of labor behind professional vintage sales. There are plenty of creators that make “thrift with me” type sourcing content, or that focus on specific BTS elements like market setup or restoration. I hope more dealers start sharing insight into their process beyond the pretty finds and the satisfying before-and-afters, and I’ll also work on sharing more on labor myself.
Kari Koty of Passage Keeper has written a few really beautiful pieces about the wonder and intimacy of sourcing and curating - my favorites are The death that led me to collecting vintage. and What I found in an abandoned factory… Michelle Moore of Blaksands covers the nitty gritty of pop ups and markets, like in My pop-up Market set-ups ( then & now ) and Market Prep for Small Businesses.
Garment Care
Putting this piece together has shown me that this is the topic I’ve covered most extensively so far here on Substack! This is clearly something I enjoy writing about, but I also know of multiple other great resources already out there. Now that I’m seeing just how many pieces I’ve already written all in one place, this may be a topic I step back from while I focus on highlighting others.
Here’s what I’ve already written:
How to: Built Your Best Laundry Kit
Hunting for Vintage: the Skips & the Fixes
New (to me) Laundry Product Alert!
A few of my personal favorite resources for laundry info are Melissa Pateras, Jeeves NY, and Lexie Butterfly Vintage. Larissa of Criteria Vintage covers both laundry and mending/repair content. Viv Chen of The Molehill does really engaging writing about tailoring & alterations, like in what does $95 worth of tailoring get you? and how i recreated the iconic uptown girls birthday dress.
Sizing
I wrote What’s Up With All of the Tiny Vintage? almost two years ago, and I still think it’s one of the best things I’ve published on Substack. I revisited the piece on TikTok last year and got a great response - maybe I’ll make it an annual tradition to bring the piece back and remind people that everyone was actually not “just smaller back then.”
I can’t believe I haven’t written more here on Substack about sizing and measurements! I have a lot of thoughts, so keep an eye on this space for more on this topic soon. I was interviewed by Rae Witte for Fashionista in 2022 for the piece How Do I Shop for Vintage Denim Online? after creating a fit guide for denim on IG. My advice is still the same several years later!
Courtney of Sonic Wave Vintage is a great social media resource for getting accurate measurements, check out her story highlight “MEASURING” for some very helpful video walkthroughs. Her story sales always include thoughtful details and advice about best fit.
A few respondents expressed frustration about the idea that plus size vintage either doesn’t exist or is impossible to find, and that couldn’t be more wrong! Just a few of my favorite size plus size and size inclusive sellers: Berriez, Armoury Shop, Goldies Vintage, and Luvsick Plus. One of the best ways to find more plus vintage is by following plus size creatives, artists, models, and sellers, as they often collaborate with or share size inclusive businesses.
Terminology
As a certified word nerd, this may be one of the topics I find myself thinking about most often! I have quite a few half baked drafts around some of the most pressing vocabulary challenges in the vintage industry - I’m taking this as my sign to get cookin’.
I published the piece Don’t Call Me a Reseller earlier this year and definitely felt like I struck a chord with fellow sellers. The Deal with Deadstock is about a term with a different use in vintage versus traditional retail. How to Become a Fiber Expert was from my early days on Substack, and I think it was really slept on! It’s a great read if you’re looking to educate yourself (or others) on garment construction and quality markers.
Amanda Lee McCarty of the Clotheshorse Podcast has dedicated numerous episodes and Substack essays to the specifics of garment construction and manufacturing, including an ongoing series about synthetic fibers. I also highly recommend their piece Is it true… or is it clickbait? for a crash course in fashion media literacy online.
Earlier this summer, Emily Stochl of Pre-Loved Podcast published the results from her 2025 Secondhand Sellers Income Survey. She’s been doing excellent work in the secondhand space for years, and her survey findings illuminated many of the common issues people in the vintage industry face. If you’re a fellow seller, I recommend becoming a paid subscriber to Emily’s newsletter for full access to her survey results!
I want to write what you want to read! Is there a specific topic covered here that you’d love to see me cover? Is there someone I didn’t mention that you think is an excellent resource in the vintage education space? Is there something you wish more people knew that wasn’t included here? Chime in!
Thanks for the shoutout, Alex!!
thanks for including that cute photo of my booth setup from Renegade San Francisco!