As I have been spending more and more time with our international customers, I have found that the term “consignment shop” is not always the norm. One of our UK clients informed me that a common term there is “dress agency.” After that, I noticed some of the hashtags Aravenda follows on Instagram were attached to businesses with “dress agency” in the title. What is commonly known as a “thrift shop” in the US and Canada might be referred to as a “charity shop” in the UK or an “opportunity shop” (or op shop) in Australia and New Zealand.
As you are out shopping in the resale shops of the world, you may have noticed there are a lot of different terms for “old.” For something to truly be an “antique”, it must be over 100 years old. According to Etsy, anything over 20 years old can be categorized as “vintage.” If you hang onto your wardrobe long enough (and you stay the same size) it will go from being “out of style” to a cool version of “vintage.” If I had known that everything I wore in high school would now be replicated in today’s fashions, I would have hung onto more of my wardrobe to be sporting true “retro” fashion.
I got my love of shopping resale shops from my mom. When I was growing up, she always knew the best places to go. While my friends at school would show up wearing the latest trends (and basically all looking like different versions of the same thing) I would come in wearing my own eclectic style. When asked where my clothes came from, I would just shrug and say “my mom picked it up somewhere.” Back then I was embarrassed because I really wanted to wear the newest looks like my friends. Now when asked the same question, I just shrug and say “online” because I don’t want to share where I get the high-end designer pieces at rock-bottom prices. I recently met my mom for lunch and I noticed she was driving a different car than the last time I saw her. When I questioned her about it, she said she picked it up at the “second-hand place.” I looked at her for a few moments and said “you mean the used car lot?”
One of our international clients dreamed of being a version of The Real Real in their country. With a combination of brick & mortar and e-commerce, they are now billing millions of dollars a year trending upward every month.
You have a lot of choices in resale, consignment, estate sale, pawn shop, and swap meet software. Aravenda is the only platform that offers 24/7 service and enables inbound shipping allowing someone who has a dream of becoming the next Real Real to actually execute it.
I would love to chat with you about taking your resale business to the next level. Aravenda can grow your small business, please schedule a time to talk about your needs here.
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