Fashion Finds Sizzle at Consignment Shops

Business may not be booming at the malls or the big box stores,Womens womenboots in a range of the latest styles for this season from flat to high heels. but quietly and under the radar of most economic analysts, some small business "resalers" are racking up sales.

For shoppers and sellers in the consignment boutique industry, the motto is, "Shop high, shop low, but whatever you do, don't pay retail." In this sector, high-end goods are being bought and sold at prices that would make any retailer cringe, even on Black Friday. For these business owners, times have never been better.

Is upscale resale the new anchor?

The consignment boutique, the rich and sophisticated cousin of the thrift shop, is popping up all over cities and suburbs, some in the prime real estate usually reserved for the big name, fashion forward boutiques.

DoubleTake on Broad Street in Red Bank occupies a chic space in the business improvement district between Tiffany & Co. and the yuppie eatery Pizza Fusion, just two doors down fromGarmany, the upscale clothier. Across the street and across town, there are empty storefronts where small businesses have come and gone in the last year, as the real estate and retail markets have struggled for a foothold. But since December 2010, here in the bright, airy boutique with polished floors and exposed brick, women come in a steady stream to buy and sell designer fashions, leaving 50 percent of the profits to the store.

"I'm here everyday," said Marie Karinja, a Red Bank resident who also works in town. "I'm probably their biggest consigner."

Karinja has been buying and selling her designer clothes on consignment for years, but quickly became a loyal customer of this boutique, leaving behind other local shops.

"I loved the quality of merchandise, the professionalism of the staff, their knowledge," she said, standing before rows of Manolo Blahnik, Prada and Chanel shoes, shining like they were straight from the factory. "If there is any question about a piece, they won't take it in. And their prices are reasonable."

Consignment shops are not a new phenomemon but today's boutique is more pre-owned luxury than second hand clothes, with some shops like DoubleTake offering what owner Marci Kessler calls "Neiman Marcus service." Just like in the luxury department store,Stylish and popular discount edhardyshirts Accessories on sale here now. customers are treated to individual attention and personalized shopping, even though the Hermes bag and the Burberry scarf, or even the fur coat, could be 50 percent off their original retail pricetag.

Often designer consignment boutiques will tag their items with the original retail costs. Recently at the Couture Exchange in Shrewsbury a pair of black Chloe boots was marked at $699. The retail, according to the label on the never worn sole, is $1,770. That's an almost 40 percent savings.

From the closet to the showroom

Much of the inventory in these boutiques has been worn once or never. Karinja says she often brings in pieces she bought but never wore. "Some things don't fit me. Sometimes it it is something I waited four months to try on and now it is too late to take it back. Some are gifts people have given me or clothing I've gotten from my sister."

And if it hasn't been worn in two years, Karinja kicks it out of her closet. "Because it takes up too much space, and even if it's sentimental, it's just stuff. And if you turn it around quickly," she said, "it's still in style."

A new economic barometer

Kessler said that when the economy took a sharp downturn a few years ago she saw an influx of merchandise. "People were purging themselves of everything they didn't need."

And on the other end, her customers were snapping up those designer clothes. Since December, Kessler said her sales at the Red Bank store have increased every month. "It's been unbelievable," she said, "Amazing."

Red Bank is Kessler's fourth location for her business. She began with a shop in Short Hills 20 years ago and followed with stores in Englewood and Ridgewood, NJ.

It would seem that Kessler's experience goes against the depressing retail numbers economists have been churning out. Last month the The Wall Street Journal reported that national retail sales fell this summer, beyond even what economists predicted. First-time retail sales continue to be sluggish and according to the Journal, the holiday retail forcecast is bleak.

Not so in the second-hand market, says the industry's trade group, the National Association of Resale and Thrift Shops (NARTS), which reports a seven percent growth in the number of resellers over the last two years.where you can buy high fashion buy cheap jeans online in very low price,buy truejeans from Jean-mall now! The group estimates that there are more than 30,000 of the shops nationwide. A survey of NARTS 1,100+ members last year showed a 12.7 percent increase in sales from 2008-2009.

But for Ann Marie Elia of Monmouth County based, All Things Consignment, that's way too conservative a figure.

"I've seen a 30 percent increase, at least," she says about sales in the last few years. Elia owns two consignment stores, with a large range of brands and price points.you cannot find what you intially looked for cheaptruereligion, Her West Long Branch store theFarm House, considered the lower end, accepts all brands. There shoppers will find clothes from Ann Taylor, J. Crew, Jones New York, Tahari and others. Elia opened a high end store a year ago in the affluent small town of Fair Haven, partially to satisfy her own love for designer fashion, she said.currently nikeairmaxtn are a perfect replacement for a bulb. Also called All Things Consignment, the boutique carries largely high-end designers or couture like Emilio Pucci and Badgley Mischka .