Consignment shops once conjured images of dusty bins and cramped rooms overflowing with junk, but with many middle-class Americans still pinched for cash, more people are buying second-hand goods. The Association of Resale Professionals reports the resale industry grew 7 percent in the last two years and has annual revenues of about $13 billion nationally.
Newer consignment shops are taking cues from their retail brethren with brighter stores and attractive displays that bring in both frugal consumers and young people seeking eclectic and affordable room dcor. Who wouldn't be thrilled to snag a chic coffee table for $40, or that perfect dress for $20?
In the last several years, more than a dozen consignment stores have opened in NH, and many say business is on the rise. Cynthia Ward, owner of Mill City Antiques and Consignment in Manchester, is on the heels of this rebirth. Mill City opened in late June and features a mix of home dcor items and furniture in a stylish setting. Items are displayed in themed scenes, which Ward says helps customers visualize how the pieces would work in their homes. It's typically been older people that shop consignment and antiques, but now its younger people, Ward says. Many customers are college students and 20-somethings looking for dcor with flair, but on a budget.
Ward says her sales are double what she expected them to be since opening and she is debt free. Mill City Antiques and Consignment had 1,200 customers on opening weekend. She recently started using a second space in the building for weekend flea markets and auctions to sell consignor items too high-end for the store. Ward also picks up items from clients' homes, runs estate sales, and refinishes items, making the store an all-in-one resale center.
I Do, Again in Milford is also growing into a budget-shopping destination. The store opened last November and has more than 500 formal dresses ranging from $75 to $350, a steep discount from the thousands it can cost at high end retailers. Owner Mary Mattingly says prom dresses are her most popular item, selling more than 100 between January and May. Business is so good that she moved to a larger location in Milford in August. She is making her store a one-stop wedding destination and has deals with a local wedding cake bakery, Carol's Cake Creations, to order cakes. She also sells hair accessories, jewelry and casual dresses starting at $15.
Children's consignment store Gently Loved Baby in Salem has worked hard to erase the stigma of consignment stores. Owner Simone Vermette created a bright, clean store that is organized and easy to navigate for parents. She sells everything a new mom needs, from strollers to play clothes, and she only accepts high-quality items. For clothing, Vermette pays clients 50 cents to $5 depending on the item, while furniture and other large items can be consigned for 50 to 60 percent of the selling price. In both cases, sellers who take store credit for payment get a 40 percent bonus.
Vermette says that the attitude around secondhand shopping has definitely changed in recent years. When I was a little kid, my mom would take me secondhand shopping, buts she'd duck her head while she was in and walk right out. Times have changed. I wanted to make a store where you felt good being in, walking in and say wow'.