Star Article Naphisa - New Image Communications

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Savvy fashionistas
clothes
'pre-loved'
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WhUe some ladies are resorting to
rallS
high street stores, the more discerning
fashionistas are hitting swap shops and
pre-loved boutiques
They offer a range of never worn,
worn once and second-hand designer
clobber at a fraction of the price.
Several are based in Dublin but there
are also outlets sprouting up all over
toe country in Cork, Clare, Wicklow,
Kf^^t*" "^
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Gateay andteyond
trash is
treasure and
there are real treats to
-'\ be found at hugely
discounted prices
One woman's
WL another's
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Thmk designers
like Christian
Louboutin,
X.l
Hj Armani, Dolce &
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the chance
to ofWoad your own pre -loved items.
At s
sh
ou simply bring your
unwanted garments and receive tokens
which
can then exchange for other
garme nts in the shop.
At re _ sa j c bouti q Ues Jyou can ßget a
return on items s J d
usuallyJ ab out
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50
cent f the
p ice
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tt s c
money
you a ve a
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Gabbana, Gucci,
Prada and Escada
*<3£7 to name but a few.
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Aw
Some stores also
offer mid to high•fjjmf range high street
items from stores such
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as Coast, Principles
and
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a
full of beautiful
you've only worn once and will never
wear again
(TyST*
and
a
wardrobe
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ouTattenS
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boutiques
Karen Millen.
b
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flock to
p
An if Kalllf
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OUR budgets shrink and
are tightened,
ASpurse 3lstrings
" 6 ' 3Bl " o " ' StheOrder
clothes
MORE than 1,000 used but
Wmuch-loved high street and
designer dresses donated by Irish
women of all ages, sizes and
shapes will be sold at the Buy My
Dress event in aid of the Down
Syndrome Centre.
Everything must sell with most
frocks priced at €50 or less.
largest one-day charWlty dress sate takes place at
the Royal College of Physicians,
Klldare Street, Dublin 2, on
Thursday, June 11, from 10am to
9pm.
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to
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tta^ASeTSl,
*"*" "
"* SeCTet
has been running
Boutique in Cork's Cook
t (0 21-427 3787) for the past
Naphisa
st
25
years
she loved
As a tall, thin 20-something
designer clothes but couldn't afford the
ic J t
so she decided t0 set up a re .
sale store
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TereJa recalls. "The flfst premises I got
was just a three-month lease because I
.
AHair dressing chain Peter
WMark are supporting the inltiatlve by allowing members of the
public to drop off their dress
donations to their salons in Bray,
Newbridge, Naas, Navan and any
Peter Mark outlet in Dublin city
and county.
you can contact
wthe Down Syndrome Centre by
calling (01) 661 8000 or e-malllng
to arrange
[email protected]
collection. See www.buymydress.
le for more Information on the
event.
——
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TACTICS:
Sharon
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Wear It Again
(left) when
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premises."
Teresa says she never even noticed
there was a recession at that time.
"During a recession people still want,
and still need, clothes — businesswomen need clothes, women need clothes for
special occasions and functions.
"A lot of women believe in buying
better quality during a recession
because cheap clothes don't last —
they're a waste of money.''
Many of Teresa's loyal customers are
very wealthy women but even during
the Celtic Tiger days they wouldn't
dream of spending €1,000 on an outfit
when they could get it for €300.
There are serious savings on offer.
;
-
There's an Armani skirt and Paddy
Campbell jacket going for €238. down
from an approximate €1,000.
You can also nab a once-worn Coast
satin bubble dress for €88, which is
in-store now for €180.
Recently she has noticed an influx of
new customers, women who are used to
wearing designer labels but have had to
tighten their Gucci belts.
Teresa gets her stock from regular
customers from whom she collects
cast-offs once, twice or several times a
Again, formerly Estelle boutique,
Baggot Street (01-661 0060).
flfllharon
Smurflt
decided
on
to switch
J^from running her new clothes
••boutique to dealing In ladies'
pre-loved
clothes,
bags, Shoes and
accessories when the recession hit and
threatened the future of her business.
"When the VAT rate went up that was
going to be a large
rents that you have
my location, it just
going to be a viable
she says.
cost and also the
to pay, certainly in
looked like it wasn't
business anymore,"
"I had thought of the idea [for a resale boutique] a couple of years ago but
it just seemed it was the right climate
Chacok cerise
linen suit down
from €500 10
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year. She also sells leftover designer
stock from high end boutiques.
"Some women bring clothes into the
shop and they agree a price with the
staff, get a receipt and we pay them 50
per cent of the re-sale price if it's sold
within six weeks."
She adds: "When we started it was
appropriate to be upstairs in a premises
but now people see this way of shopping
as the done thing.
"It's considered smart, intelligent, the
best way to shop. It's totally acceptable,
especially now during a recession."
One of the latest re-sale designer
stores to open in Dublin is Wear it
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didn't know if nearly new or secondhand would take off, but it did.
"So I moved to a larger place and
then I moved again so this is our third
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selection of
the amazing
designer
bargains on offer
at Naphlsa
Boutique in Cork
(pictured below)
though they may
not sti " be u p ' or
9 rabs by the time
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now.
I definitely think the boutiques
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apple green and
grey dress down
from €500 brand
new to €178
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Campbell jacket
down from
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green Satin dress
down from €18(T
this season to
which is nice!"
are
She adds: "Any designer bags we get
go straight out the door and they
would have been priced around the
€250/€3OO mark.
"There was a beautiful Chloe bag the
owner paid €950 for and that went for
€400 the other day.
"We've also had a beautiful Roberto
Cavalli dress that was originally bought
for €700 and that sold for €250 so the
client got €125 back on that.
struggling.
coming up to the summer
people are holding on to their money."
Like Teresa, Sharon reckons that Irish
women now have no qualms about
shopping for second-hand bargains.
"I think people are more inclined not
to be embarrassed about buying
second-hand clothes now whereas
before they might have been hidden in a
room upstairs, terrified they might
meet their best friend," she says.
"I don't think there's any shame about
buying other people's clothes, especially
if they're in good condition, and I think
a lot of people feel they're helping other
people back and in a way it's recycling
clotnes for other people's benefit."
Sharon has been inundated with
clothes from women hoping to make
some cash from their cast-offs and is
not accepting anymore at the moment.
The items are kept for 60 days with
the price reduced by 10 to 20 per cent
after 30 days and the original owner
receives 50 per cent of the final price.
"People have to be realistic about
prices as well when they do sell them
second-hand,
says Sharon,
"Realistically they're not going to get
half of what they paid for. The tnck is
if you have a bundle of items to sell —
in a month you get a substantial cheque,
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"And
I
Christian
Louboutin
shoes
which were €450 in the shops, the client
aa
got €100 back on them after they were
sold for €200.
5) Paddy
"There's a nice array of Chloe jackets,
Campbell DOWdW
all priced from €100 to €200 and a few
blue lace dress
more expensive items.
J?eon
OOWn ,irom €oou
"There's an Amanda Wakeley dress
at
€600.
The
client
wasn't
listento
€158
priced
ing to
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me so
can only
try to
sell it for
her!
It
that
s
the price
they
want I
can only
do my
best and
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