Category Archives: Articles

By Tauni Hopkins
thopkins@smu.edu

The new funky hit single Thrift Shop by rapper Macklemore has done more than just provide a hot beat for everyone to sing along to. It has celebrated a now common pastime, hobby and means of dressing for many Americans: thrift shopping. Twenty dollars won’t take you far today at the local mall, but it can do damage at your local thrift store.

Ditching expensive labels for thrift shop clothing hasn’t always been as socially acceptable as it is today. Recently, however, the idea of buying used has taken on a new identity. No longer done under the radar, thrift shopping is now blogged, celebrated and even sung about.

Photo courtesy of Greenupgrader.com

Buying used is nothing new to me. Growing up I can remember making Saturday visits to both the mall and local thrift shops to find new threads. I can even recall a few of my favorite pieces, such as my first silk black blouse and a pair of designer boot-cut jeans, being second-hand.

Since the early 2000s, the game of finding the best deals has evolved with the emergence of new-era consignment shops such as Plato’s Closet and Clothes Mentor. The Plato’s Closet website claims to offer “a huge selection of trendy, designer styles as well as those everyday basics you can’t live without—all at up to 70 percent off retail price.”

I have sold my clothing to Plato’s Closet in the past, but I had never paid much attention to the clothes that grace the racks. When I brought in a bag of threads, the buyers quickly laid hands on items that were popular teen and ‘tween brands, such as American Eagle, Hollister and Forever 21, but I never knew the prices placed on the tags after they left my possession.

For this reason, I decided to make a trip to see if prices at the consignment shops could match up to those of thrift stores. My visit to a local Plato’s Closet screamed the answer loud and clear— not hardly!

Avid thrift-shopper Chandra McCleskey says that although she has shopped at the two consignment shops before, she prefers to visit thrift shops as she gets more bang for her buck.

Photo courtesy of hercampus.com

A goldenrod satin blouse at Thrift City comes in at only $2.50 while a similar blouse by Forever 21 rings in at $7 at Plato’s Closet. Items that are already fairly cheap brand-new are sold at Plato’s Closet for close to new prices and the lack of “designer styles” leaves much to be desired.

“Honestly, $20 at the Goodwill can get me pretty far. I can buy multiple items instead of just one or two. I just don’t consider the other shops to be “thrifty”,” says McCleskey.

Playing devil’s advocate—I will admit that Plato’s Closet and Clothes Mentor do not claim to be thrift shops, but this does not take away from the notion that the stores are selling used clothing at close to original prices. There isn’t as much variety in terms of style and the men’s selection is also pretty scarce.

There were a few good finds in the midst of the racks at Clothes Mentor as the clothing seemed to be targeted toward a slightly older consumer, but the prices also left me disappointed. Just like Plato’s Closet, prices paled in comparison to those found in thrift stores.

“Plato’s closet and Clothes Mentor just don’t offer the variety I’m looking for when shopping. I haven’t seen anything worth buying in the men’s section,” says thrift shopper Lee Butts. “I don’t only go for the clothes, but also the random items like old VHS’s. Plus, I get better clothes for better prices at thrift stores,” Butts continues.

If you’re looking for trendier pieces for teens or young adults and don’t mind spending a little more than standard fare for used clothing, Plato’s Closet or Clothes Mentor might be the store for you. If you’re searching for a larger variety of styles and brands within a tighter budget, visiting your local thrift store is probably your best bet.

I, however, prefer the variety of styles, bargains and excitement that thrift store have to offer. I can buy vintage and newer styles, while also seeking out gems. Therefore, I will be sticking to my regular regimen in hopes of “popping tags with $20 in my pocket.”

By Maggie Srygley
msrygley@smu.edu

Photo courtesy of www.reddressboutique.com

The Red Dress Boutique started out in 2005 as a small business in Athens, Ga., owned and operated by a young woman whose dreams couldn’t be confined by the slow pace of 9 to 5 cubicle work.

Fast-forward seven years and the Red Dress Boutique has acquired a new location, nationwide recognition and revenue that has increased by 800 percent.

The Red Dress has gained rapid attention through social media sites like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  With nearly 130,000 “likes” online, the boutique is able to keep shoppers up-to-date on new inventory, up-coming items and re-stocks.

Originally, the store’s primary form of marketing was word of mouth. University of Georgia students were frequent shoppers – and began to spread the word to friends at other universities. That’s how business first began growing.

Owner Diana Best Harbour, says that she has always wanted the store to offer clothing that is both affordable and chic – perfectly suited for her “target” college girl customer.

“The Red Dress girl is playful, she is fun, she doesn’t take herself too seriously and she also doesn’t take her wardrobe too seriously,” Harbour says. “We are known for selling a ton of color, and when people come shop with us, they know to expect playful fashion that will make you smile walking out the door.”

Harbour’s life-long dream was to own a clothing store.  When she decided to make it happen, she and husband Josh sold their home in Columbus, Ga., and set out for Athens. Once there, they couldn’t afford to buy a new place: “We slept on an air mattress in four different friend’s apartments for a whole year! We literally lived out of a suitcase.”

As clientele grew, so did the store. Then, social media happened. Facebook became an epidemic and allowed small stores like The Red Dress Boutique to go nationwide. The couple found their target market to be in the heart of Athens, near the university. So they packed up shop and moved the store yet again from their original location to a spot right across the street from the arches of campus.

Photo courtesy of www.reddressboutique.com

The Red Dress Boutique is one of very few stores of its kind that has had such success with social media because they have been there since the beginning.  In the early days of Facebook, the Harbours kept pushing forward when the company would shut down the store’s site because it was being used for business.  Finally, Facebook caught up with the Harbours:  Company “pages” were created and businesses were allowed to operate via Facebook.

Since then, other small boutiques have taken a page from the The Red Dress’ social media playbook, marketing themselves in the same way with the same looks.  To date, few – if any — have experienced the same sort of success.

Harbour notes that customer service has also played a key role in the boutique’s growth.  “Social media can work in your favor or against it,” she says. “If you have great customer service, you tell 5,000 friends. But it can also work against you. If you have bad customer service — same thing, they tell 5,000 friends. We stay on top of it making sure our customers are taken care of.”

With the expansion of the business, The Red Dress has opened a 20,000- square-foot warehouse to store back stock and online merchandise.  The same space  houses their corporate offices which take care of all online orders.  This allows orders to be processed and shipped right away — and leads customers like Jamie Rogers to leave posts like this one on the company website: “I received my purse today!!! LOVE IT!!! You ladies have the best of the best when it comes to customer service! Thanks again!!”  Customer Elizabeth Hortman posted: “Got my maxi dress that I ordered today and I absolutely love it!! Thanks so much! That was extremely fast!”

It isn’t just online satisfaction that customers rave about. Even with so much online growth, The Red Dress has maintained the local store and stayed true to their original clients. Customers still come in to try on clothes and get the full shopping experience. Window displays are eye-catching to draw in almost every girl who passes by.  The employees are helpful and friendly and excited to help customers find the perfect outfit.

Store manager Emily Srygley says, “I think people come to the store because they know that they want something fun and colorful like the perfect birthday dress or date night outfit and they won’t break the bank while doing it. I get excited to know that I am selling a piece to someone that they will take photos in and remember for a long time.”

So what’s next? The Red Dress is researching international shipping options while still expanding across the U.S. Harbour says, “With the beauty of the internet there really is no limit to how high you can go.”

For information about The Red Dress Boutique, visit www.reddressboutique.com or www.facebook.com/TheRedDressBoutique

By Tashika Varma
tvarma@smu.edu

Around this time last year, Pinterest took the social media world by a storm. People now had the opportunity to surf this photo sharing website, “re-pin” images on personal pinboards or “like” photos.

Although Pinterest has a significantly lower amount of users than Facebook, it has practically caught up with Twitter, with Pinterest at 15 percent and Twitter at 16 percent of adult U.S. Internet users on each network, according to Pew Research Center.

(Courtesy of Pinterest) Users can browse through Pinterest wedding pins and choose what they would like for their own wedding.

Pinterest’s logo is “no matter what you’re interested in, there’s a place for it here” and that became apparent when women, and some men, began to constantly use the site to find recipes, new arts and craft ideas, workout exercises and most popularly wedding ideas. Pinterest hasn’t just been used to get ideas for people’s big day; it has changed the nature of the wedding planning industry — especially the bride and wedding planner relationship.

SMU graduate Ashley Withers uses Pinterest for her hobbies and interest, but mostly for wedding planning. With her wedding coming up in August, she looked to this social media site to help plan the biggest day of her life.

“It helped define the direction I wanted the decorations, stationery, etc. to go,” Withers says.

Withers also uses one of Pinterest’s less known features — group boards. Group boards are like a regular Pinterest board but multiple people can post to it.

(Courtesy of Ashley Withers) Ashley Withers, pictured with her finance Cameron Dobson, is planning an August wedding using Pinterest and a wedding planner.

“I share one [a group board] with my mom and sister, one with my wedding planner and others with some of my bridesmaids,” she says.

One may think that the creation of this website has hurt the wedding planning industry, but actually, wedding planners have adapted to this new social media site.

Valerie Exnicios, an SMU student, opened her own wedding planning business with Valerie Jen in spring 2012. Jen had been working for a few big-name wedding planners in Dallas, and Exnicios had a lot of experience with floral design; thus, Valerie & Valerie Weddings and Events was born.

(Courtesy of Valerie & Valerie Wedding and Events) Valerie & Valerie Wedding and Events work with clients who use Pinterest and other social media tools to make their dreams a reality.

“We take our clients ideas, likes and thoughts and develop them into beautiful creations combined with careful planning,” Exnicios says about her wedding planning business.

Exnicios and Jen have always understood the importance of Pinterest to the wedding industry.

“Pinterest plays an immense role in how we interact with our clients. In fact, it has actually shaped the entire industry of wedding professionals,” Exnicios says.

Brides have a wide range of information to look at when making decisions. Although there is a debate over whether Pinterest has created too high of standards for some brides, there are those brides who use Pinterest well and with purpose. These brides are called “Millennial Brides.”

“These brides [Millennial Brides] use social media like Pinterest, blogs, wedding websites, Facebook, etc. to find and show off a little exactly what they want and what we have created,” Exnicios says.

Despite Pinterest and others websites that help brides, planners are still a necessity in the wedding business, Withers says.

“Each client is different; some come to us knowing each and every detail, color, venue and floral selection possible,” Exnicios says. “However, most need a little more direction and guidance…and that’s where we come into play.”

Withers agrees. Although she used Pinterest to help gather ideas together for her wedding, she still hired a wedding planner — Melody Agee with One Fine Day in San Antonio.

“The day I signed my contract with her she created a Pinterest board for us to share. I am planning my wedding from afar so Pinterest has given us an easy way to aggregate ideas,” Withers says. “She also takes her tablet to appointments with my vendors and gives them ideas from our shared Pinterest board.”

Although Pinterest has helped Withers, as a journalist she does see how Pinterest could affect the magazine industry negatively.

“In movies you see people cutting out gowns from magazines and gathering ideas from there, but now you don’t need it,” she says. “It’s all there for free on Pinterest.”

Connie Dufner, editor in chief of Modern Luxury Brides Dallas, thinks differently.

“Modern Luxury has a high-end luxury audience, meaning we appeal to high-end bride and serve the high-end bride,” Dufner says.

Dufner uses Pinterest for noticing certain wedding trends. Luckily for Modern Luxury Brides, its target audience still buys and flips through the magazine for ideas.

Dufner does agree that Pinterest is a good tool to have out there for brides and professionals, but she fears that it “might create unrealistic expectations for brides.”

Withers received a similar warning from friends who told her that Pinterest would give her expensive expectations. But despite the warnings, Pinterest has been a bigger help than hindrance in her wedding planning.

“When I met with the stationery designer for my ‘save the dates’ and wedding invites, my Pinterest board was crucial,” she says.

Withers was prepared and showed her pins of invites and cards she had seen around the web.

“I also showed her some of my decorating ideas so she designed the cards custom for me based on those things,” she says. “It was amazing how well she could capture my style from just a few pictures.”

Withers’ cake was also based off one she saw on Pinterest.

It is not just brides-to-be creating wedding boards. Girls of all ages are using Pinterest to plan their dream wedding in advance.

Amanda Hurley, an SMU law student, has been in a relationship for five years and uses Pinterest for a variety of things including planning her future wedding.

“The only things I’ve pinned that I’ve actually used in real life are recipes,” Hurley says. “However, I have a lot of engagement rings pinned to my ‘tying the knot’ board so my friends can show my boyfriend what I want.”

Hurley agrees with the sentiment that the allure of Pinterest should not carry brides-to-be away.

“I think you can use your wedding board realistically,” she says. “I pin possible ceremony locations around Dallas and various wedding favor possibilities. I’m not sure if I’ll use them, but it’s exciting, so why not?”

Pinterest has definitely transformed the wedding-planning industry, and in most cases, it has changed for the better. The social medium has made it easier for brides-to-be to communicate with wedding planners and get the wedding they’ve always dreamed of.

“While I know everything won’t be exactly the same as my board,” Withers says, “it will be cool to see my Pinterest board come to life on my wedding day,” Withers says.