For those of us who love a trip to the charity shop, there’s nothing better than picking up a gem for just a couple of quid.
Some bargain hunters are so good at thrifting they make hundreds by reselling items they find on the rails – even going on to turn their side hustle into a fully fledged business.
That’s exactly what happened to Dexter Burgess-Hunt and Sophy Grattidge, who first began reselling second-hand pieces on Depop as a hobby.
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Dexter, 28, can recall the time he found a Louis Vuitton wallet for £2 in a charity shop and sold it for a whopping £220.
Their thrifting skills meant the Depop shop quickly became a huge success. So when the pandemic hit in 2020, the pair decided to quit their retail jobs and launch a vintage and designer clothing store – now selling high-end products from a studio in the heart of Manchester.
“We started on Depop so we were selling on there as a bit of a hobby alongside our full-time jobs,” 28-year-old Sophy, who lives in Ancoats, told the Manchester Evening News.
“We were doing that for quite a few years on and off when we were living in London. We moved back to Manchester and Covid hit at that time. We had always thought about [running the business] full time, but we never had that boost to take the plunge.”
While on furlough during lockdown, the two pals decided to take a leap of faith and launch their vintage and designer unisex clothing business, Sylk. The business quickly took off, going on to open on ASOS Market Place, an online platform for independent brands and vintage boutiques.
They then moved into a unit at Pollard Yard studios in Manchester city centre. As the business grew, they moved around bigger units before eventually settling in their current studio in Ardwick.
Clients can visit the studio for a personal shopping experience by booking appointments in advance. The duo have just hired their first member of staff and regularly hold pop-up shops around the city centre.
“We get a lot of compliments from people saying how curated our store is,” Sophy continued. “If you go to a lot of vintage stores in Manchester, it’s a lot of American sportswear. It’s very mixed, whereas ours is very curated; people know what they’re coming for. We think that’s something that is missing from Manchester vintage stores.”
Sustainable shopping has become very popular in recent years. While many choose to buy second-hand to save cash, other factors could include consumers becoming more eco-conscious.
It's estimated over two tonnes of clothing are bought each minute in the UK, more than any other country in Europe. That amount produces nearly 50 tonnes of carbon emissions – the same as driving 162,000 miles in a car.
According to research revealed by Depop last October, over half of shoppers say they have recently been buying second-hand as a way of saving money in 2022 as the cost of living continues to rise.
The data showed shoppers could save up to 25 per cent per item when shopping second-hand – an average of £185 in a year across all purchases.
Meanwhile, the data showed sellers aged between 18 and 35 make an average of £350 a year by selling unused clothing lurking in their wardrobes. The average lifespan of a garment is just 19 wears but on average, but UK Depop users estimate that they wear an item a total of 49 times, offering more value for money.
Dexter and Sophy now find their stock by bulk-buying from a wholesaler, as they no longer have time to thrift through charity shops for their items. “At the moment, we’ve just hired our first member of staff which is amazing,” Sophy added.
“Growing the team is something we’re interested in and we want to re-launch the website. We’ve just launched on two more platforms and we’ve potentially spoken about having a shop in the future, that’s something we would both like.”
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