THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 18, 1995 TAG: 9508160197
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY JENNIFER C. O'DONNELL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 143 lines
``I DON'T KNOW exactly what I'm looking for, but I'll know it when I find it,'' said Lakejoa Brown as she browsed through the merchandise at the Village Thrift Store in Chesapeake with her friends Diane and Katrina Owens.
The teenagers hoped to find some unusual fashion accessories among the store's second-hand clothing - perhaps some outfits to wear back to school next month.
The managers of local thrift stores say their clientele are no longer primarily people who are down on their luck. More and more often, they are young people looking to make a fashion statement.
``A good deal of our shoppers are teenagers,'' said Patsy Leary, assistant manager of the Village Thrift Store off Indian River Road. ``Now that school is starting up, we're seeing even more of them.''
Visits to area thrift stores shows that, indeed, a good many of the customers are between the ages of 13 and 20. And they all have the same goal in mind: to increase their wardrobes.
Whereas teenagers from past generations would have scowled at the thought of wearing second-hand clothing, many Chesapeake teens relish the thought of sifting through racks of used shirts, jeans, skirts, hats and accessories.
``It used to be that if you wore thrift store clothes it was because you were poor and the other kids would say something negative about it,'' said Samantha Jones, a rising junior at Oscar F. Smith High School. ``But now everyone shops at these stores.''
That's a thought that Christine Glover, a clerk with the Union Mission Thrift Store, has difficulty understanding.
``When I was in high school I would never dream of shopping at a second-hand store. We always wanted to go to the mall.''
What's the attraction of used clothing? There are several, but the main reason teens shop at thrift stores is to satisfy their desire for clothing that's unusual and distinctive.
In some cases, finding unusual clothing means sporting the fashions that Mom and Dad wore years ago.
``They want a little bit of history,'' said Brenda Council, owner and manager of Thriftiques. ``Some of them want bell-bottom jeans or old corduroy pants. The kind we wore 20 years ago.''
But when it comes to aged or vintage clothing, the teens don't appear to discriminate against any decade.
``I've had teens ask me for those skin-tight hats, the kind they wore in the '20s, or crinoline skirts from the '50s,'' said Council. ``Last week, a girl came into the my store looking for bell-bottom jeans. She was wearing hip huggers and platform shoes. She could of passed for Nancy Sinatra.''
And the girls aren't the only ones looking for hard-to-find items. Thrift store managers said the television show ``Seinfeld'' has inspired teenage boys to search for the baggy pants, bowling shirts and '50s-style leisure wear worn by the show's outrageous character, Cosmo Kramer. In fact, that style of clothing has become so trendy lately that one manager has a name for it - Kramerwear.
Teen passion for vintage clothing has area thrift store managers pleased with the business they're getting from a new generation of shoppers. But their popularity appears to be causing a problem with supply and demand.
``Anything from the '60s and '70s sells right away,'' said Leary. ``As soon as we get the merchandise in, it flies off the racks. And we don't see as much of that old clothing as we would like to.''
To better meet demand and please young customers, some stores have begun to maintain wish lists.
``We take name and numbers and keep a lookout for particular items people want,'' said Janet Audet, manager of Union Mission Thrift Store. ``Most of the names on our list are young adults or teens looking for something different.''
But wearing clothes from Mom and Dad's younger days isn't for every teen.
``Some of the kids go a little far with their clothes,'' said Elisabeth Smith, a rising junior at Oscar F. Smith High School. ``I wouldn't want to wear my Mom's clothes. If my Mom wanted to wear something, I would just put it back on the shelf.''
Even if Smith and others like her wouldn't be caught dead wearing hip huggers or crinoline skirts, they are often attracted to other one-of-a-kind items.
``I like work shirts with name tags,'' said Smith. ``Shirts from 7-Eleven or gas stations. I once bought a What-A-Burger work shirt with the name Crystal on the front. I wore the shirt a few times then tore the name tag off and put it on my book bag.''
The teens say it's all just a part of developing an individual style.
``We like clothes that are different,'' said Jones. ``That way you don't worry about someone else wearing the same thing.''
But for some young shoppers, it may not be what you buy that's important. But rather, where you buy it.
``I hate malls,'' said Sean Murphy, a recent graduate of Kempsville High School in Virginia Beach. ``It's too `Top 40.' You know, Daddy's little girl with the credit card.''
His friend, Brad Martin agrees. ``We're treated better in thrift stores. If you go to the mall, the salespeople act like you don't belong there. Instead of hearing, `How can I help you?' we get `Hey, what do you want?' ''
Financial factors, of course, keep young people going back to thrift stores, too. Teens are looking to stretch their money as far as they can.
``We don't have that much money to spend on clothes,'' said Smith. ``I can't afford to pay $30 for a T-shirt. And why should I when I can get one for 50 cents?''
If saving money is the goal, teens say thrift stores have it all over trendy stores or the mall. Recently, Smith and Jones hit the shops for bargains on back-to-school clothes. Although they didn't find as many items as they hoped, the two walked away with a lime green Adidas windbreaker, a pair of Navy-issue bell-bottomed sailor pants, a red-and-white striped shirt and two T-shirts.
The grand total? A mere $8.25.
The boys can be just as frugal as the girls.
``I need a jacket,'' said Brad Martin as he rummaged through a collection of coats at an area thrift store.
``This looks like it fits,'' he said of a knee-length, oversized London Fog raincoat. Pleased with the look, Martin was a bit put off by the jacket's $6 price tag, but he purchased the coat anyway. ``It's still cheaper than buying it brand new,'' he said.
According to Smith and Jones, low-cost clothes sometimes translates into disposable clothes.
``When you only pay 25 cents for a shirt, you don't feel bad if you only wear it just once,'' said Jones. ILLUSTRATION: [Cover]
[Color Photo]
FROM CASTOFFS TO FASHIONS
Staff photos by STEVE EARLEY
Jason Bazen looks over used shirts. Thrift store managers said
``Seinfeld'' has inspired boys to search for baggy pants, bowling
shirts and other '50s-style ``Kramerwear.''
At the Union Mission Thrift Store, some shirts go for $1.50.
Staff photos by STEVE EARLEY
The Village Thrift Store on Indian River Road is attracting teens
looking for bargains on unusual clothes.
Elisabeth Smith and Samantha Jones sort through the clothes racks at
a thrift store.
Sean Murphy and Eddie Whiteman shop at the Village Thrift Store.
KEYWORDS: THRIFT STORES by CNB