Recently, the idea of consuming in thrift shops became very popular worldwide – and, in big brazilian urban centres, it even became a fever. Many youtubers, such as Bárbara Graves, Nataly Néri and Simone Montillares, among others, started to make videos on the topic, influencing people to consume that way.
On the meantime, thrift shops expanded their own means of selling to the internet, represented by classy and entrepreneur women, who are tired of the ethical and environmental impact of the fashion industry, and started to buy second-hand attires on thrift shops worldwide to set their business on fire, mostly on Instagram and other platforms such as enjoei.com.
Therefore, I will present you five of these inspiring insta-thrift shops and their owners, who were interviewed by me. There will be also a full description on the style each Instagram sells.
1. @donavintageshop, by Yasmine Borba (São Paulo, SP)
Image Source: Instagram
Located in São Paulo, Dona Vintage Shop is often acknowledged by brazilian vintage it-girls on the spot, but not without a reason: the owner, Yasmine Borba, is delicate and cautious with her research and with her clients, who are mostly women in the range of 18 to 24 years old, because she believes thrifting can truly change the fashion industry.
The pieces displayed on her instagram are mostly state-of-the-art, presenting nice fittings, a cool variety of sizes and a beautiful colour palette. Sometimes, Yasmine even digs and sells some true vintage clothes and accessories, mostly from bazaars, displaying, on her site, their measurements. And this work justifies the price, which is around 30-90 reais.
In an interview with Yasmine, she confessed the idea of an online thrift shop begun when she was applying to a chair in university (she studied fashion) that consisted in going to thrift shops, buying clothes and transforming them. She was also inspired by her Portuguese grandmother’s closet, which contained a load of old clothes in different apparels and fabric, becoming the sparkle of her interest in old fashioned, or vintage, clothing.
Image Source: Dona Vintage
But soon she noticed the most physical thrift shops in São Paulo did not have a clear vintage curatorship, and the ones that had were kinda pricey. But, as she dug and found accessible old fashioned apparel, she had the urge to share it with the public through her instagram.
Inspired by fashion icons such as Twiggy and Coco Chanel, she describes her store as a vintage outlet that presents a wholesome variety of pieces that either are true vintage or modern clothes that rereads the vintage style.
Image Source: Dona Vintage
2. @tres_marias_brecho, by Amanda Marques (Lins, SP)
Image Source: Instagram
Wide known by many vintage personalities on the web, Três Marias Brechó is a thrift shop located in Lins, interior of São Paulo, which sells beautiful pieces, many of them true vintage or digged outside the country. They also use their instagram platform as a blog, posting editorial pictures of the clothes that are being sold, and display on the site their profile on Medium, where they write about their daily lives.
3. @garimpados_com_amor, by Flavia Guinho (Jacareí, SP)
Image Source: Instagram
Famous around men, women and even old ladies who enjoy “antique clothes”, Garimpados com Amor was first indicated to me by a friend who is very into Victorian fashion. But the owner, Flavia Guinho, who resides in the interior of São Paulo, near São José dos Campos, does an even more fashionista twist: she transforms some of her pieces, making them become modern and more usable nowadays, without losing its vintage touch. Actually, Guinho’s inspired by “accounts that resemble the vintage universe”, such as @lucillebercejazz.
Flavia confesses her thrift shop begun as a way to sell clothes she didn’t really wear anymore, as well as most online thrift shops, until she sold all her pieces – and her clients, who mostly came through her personal account, asked for more and more. Then, her thrifting project was born, with a very personal touch and a very characteristic retro style. In an online interview, she affirms that love is the ultimate value she wants to pass along her clients, doing her “digging” mostly on local thrift shops and selecting the pieces of clothing that fit the most the idea of Garimpados.
4. @brecho.forestofmysoul, by Ana Júlia (São José dos Campos, SP)
Image Source: Instagram
Brechó Forest of my Soul is very popular on southern Brazil, and many of their clients are from Paraná. Despite that, the curator, Ana Júlia, resides in São José dos Campos , and her thrift shop contains a huge diversity of pieces and colours, from styles that range from street to vintage-y clothes, which are my favourite. The prices are medium, mostly around 60 reais. According to herself, the mantra of her store is “it was mine, now it’s yours (us)” because she believes we are all part of a big family and everything belongs to every one of us.
Ana Julia’s ideia begun when her love for antique things sparkled – because she found herself changing her style and stopped wearing many of her clothes. The project started on her personal page, but, as her popularity increased, she created her own page to her thrift shop. She claims her biggest influence is her grandmother, although she is also inspired by the history of the clothes and by the owners of other thrift shops. ”Having a thrift shop is a way to live a time I didn’t, a time when people wore lacy dresses and wrote letters, a time where a necklace would pass from a generation to another, when everything had an unique value”.
Image Source: Instagram
This phrase may translate, as well, her love for vintage and victorian outfits, which is are the ones that the thrift shop is popular for, but she tries to mix styles and sell to different branches of people, buying mostly pieces she likes or that she would actually wear, because she wants the client to feel the same way she does thrifting when they acquire a new clothing.
Ana Julia also believes the essence of an online thrift shop is the fact that her clients can come to her and tell her whatever is going on. She thinks people should feel home on her platform.
5. @cupimb, by Karen Cristina (Joinville, SC)
Image Source: Instagram
Directly from southern Brazil, cupimb is wide known by vintage and medieval enthusiasts such as Vanda Books. Their are often acknowledged for their button-down shirt selling, which is very popular because they always contain a fresh detail that kick them out of the “basic” category. The owner often makes promotions and her prices are nice!