How thrifting’s influencer boom is reshaping the way we shop

One of the thrills of shopping is scoring a great deal. That prospect has always gotten bargain hunters in the store and online. But in recent years, that’s increasingly included discounters, thrift stores, resellers and online marketplaces. It’s also made experts and influencers like Virginia Chamlee and her advice on how to hunt for valuable vintage finds go viral. The People magazine writer, artist and author of “Big Thrift Energy” explains how affordability, sustainability and social media are changing the art of the deal.

Kate MacArthur: It feels like there’s new interest in thrifting. What's driving that?

Virginia Chamlee: Since the pandemic, thanks to TikTok, a lot of people are talking about thrifting. And people from all generations are seeing that you can find these really incredible things, new things, brand name things, vintage things. You can turn them for a profit if you want. You can buy things that you probably couldn't normally afford, and that has spurred it. And it's trendy. When you say something is vintage, that sounds cooler than just saying it's secondhand or retro. It's almost like thrifted merchandise has been rebranded, thanks to the TikTok generation.

MacArthur: You talked about the rebranding of thrifting. Are the motivations for thrifting changing?

Chamlee: Sustainability is huge among Gen Z and Millennials. Older Millennial consumers want a sustainable option, both for environmental reasons but also because they want something that's going to last. And for me, my niche is finding incredible high-end pieces. It's not just the cheapest thing, but it's finding an Adrian Pearsall chair that most people who are in their 20s or early 30s probably couldn't afford anyway. Most of us probably can't afford an interior decorator. But you can sort of be your own by shopping the thrift store.

MacArthur: Will this continue in the future?

Chamlee: The number of consumers turning to thrift stores, antique stores, estate sales and Facebook Marketplace as a first choice rather than a last resort, will only continue to grow because of social media, because of the increase in sustainability, and because people are just becoming savvier. That goes back to social media because there are people like me teaching people how to shop at the thrift store. Also, because design is so cyclical, so many of the trends that we see today are rooted in things that have been done before.

MacArthur: We're seeing more influencers flipping items. How could that shape conventional retail?

Chamlee: Anthropologie, for instance, has sold vintage at their stores probably since I started. The vintage prices are outrageously priced though. Athena Calderone has a line with Crate and Barrel, and it's one of their best-selling lines ever. It's all modeled after vintage pieces. Pretty much any high-end design store you go in now in New York or Los Angeles will have a line of vintage. I have seen firsthand that the prices at thrift stores are going up. Thrift stores themselves are becoming savvier. Urban Outfitters is another great example. They call it Urban Renewal. It is upcycled.

MacArthur: What will drive staying power for these patterns?

Chamlee: Knowledge. Consumers are getting savvier. I don't know that they're there yet, but they want to know where this item came from. Was it made in a sweatshop? Consumers see headlines like that, and they start to think of alternatives. And the more educated consumers get, they'll realize that just because your favorite influencer is partnered with a brand doesn't mean that that's a well-made item. With social media and videos on TikTok and Instagram and the more headlines we see about fast furniture, consumers will get more savvy and will start to educate themselves more.

“When you say something is vintage, that sounds cooler than just saying it’s secondhand or retro. It’s almost like thrifted merchandise has been rebranded, thanks to the TikTok generation.”

MacArthur: Lower-priced versions, or dupes, are popular now, alongside vintage. How do those two trends mesh with each other?

Chamlee: What's interesting to me is so much of dupe culture is like, here's the real item and here's the dupe. But the real item is often a dupe of a vintage piece. Certainly, that's the case with a lot of these big box stores. One thing I try to advocate for is people learning more about design, and then try to teach yourself how to find that out in the wild. Obviously not all items at the thrift store are nicer or not all vintage pieces are nicer. I hope that people will learn more about materiality and what separates a well-made item, an item of quality from a factory-made piece.

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