This is the Goodwill store and donation centre. Essentially a secondhand clothes store that provides work for disabled and out of work people and a goldmine for hipsters and those with money.
I spoke to Rachel, who has an important person in the store. She's been working there for 17 years, since it opened, having been trained in another shop and transferred over once she knew the ropes. She's the manager now and everyone who walks in knows her, recognising her authority with a salute or a joke.
This warehouse of clothes supports the economy and reduces good clothes from going into landfill whilst also providing jobs. Rails and rails of clothes sorted by colour and gender, also "Holiday Season" provide a great opportunity for those with to give and those without to gain, whilst not being a charity hand out.Â
Differently to the American Vintage shops I saw on Melrose Avenue, where more of a clothes exhange system operates, clothes were given as a donation, not sold by the giver. Therefore they can be bought for a few dollars to be worn, not stored. I bagged myself a brand new floor length cardigan and some over ordered sunglasses.
On the other hand, being able to sell your clothes and make back a small proportion of what you paid does have a certain draw and benefits. Psychologically you feel like you've gained something and lost less. Maybe?
It made me think about what clothes I had languishing in my wardrobe that could be given a good home with another person. But what model to follow...
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