Fashion forward on a dime: Showcasing thrift shops - The Prospector

Men’s fashion apparel and outfit inspirations are displayed inside of Uptown Cheapskate, at 1225 Wedgewood Drive.

Local thrift stores’ main goal is to make fashion easily accessible and affordable, which is perfect for college students on a budget.

“There are a billion reasons to thrift. If you are looking for big brand names like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, American Eagle, and Hollister you can find them in good condition and sometimes brand new with tags at a fraction of the price. You can also find unique funky pieces that you can’t find anywhere else,” said Sara Kitchen the assistant manager at Eureka Thrift Store.

Thrifting has become quite popular in the borderland community. In recent years there has been an increase in new local thrift stores like Plato’s Closet, THRFT Store Vintage, Uptown Cheapskate, and Eureka Thrift.

“Save your money, things are getting expensive, gas prices are going up,” said Maria Casas, a retail associate at the east side Uptown Cheapskate. “Thrifting, in general, gives you a more unique look. You don’t have to buy super expensive stuff to make yourself known. You can thrift something and make it your own. You never know what you’re going to find when thrifting. Everything that you find at a thrift store has a story to it.”

Plato’s Closet, 9507 Viscount Blvd., is open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. all week long. Although it is a chain retailer, it does sell trendy secondhand clothing for teens and young adults. Customers are also encouraged to bring in their gently used brand-named clothing and accessories. An employee will then review the items and pay cash for the items they are interested in. Plato’s Closet also has a website customers can use, platoscloset.com.

New thrift stores have been popping up in downtown El Paso. THRFT Store Vintage opened a couple of years ago at 321 E. San Antonio Ave. It is open from 1-8 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The store sells lots of different vintage brands like Guess, Nike, Levis, and so much more. There are lots of different styles of clothes for one to mix and match their style. There is a vintage drop every Tuesday at noon. Customers can buy in person or on their website thrftstore.shop.

Over on 315 S. El Paso St. is Eureka Thrift Store. Eureka is one of the newest El Paso local thrift stores, ingurated July 29, 2021. Cleverly named after the Greek word that means ‘I have found,’ there is something for everybody here. The store sells both men’s and women’s clothing in different styles. Their hours of operation are from Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and they are open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday.

“We sell a little bit of everything in men’s and women’s clothes,” said Kitchen. “It’s young adult to adult clothing. We have everything from casual wear to formal wear, jeans, shirts, dresses and just about anything that you could need.”

It’s an affordable alternative to the mall, and the store constantly announces sales with certain tags being 99 cents. You can find different vintage pieces and make your own style. The store also hosts sales events that can be learned about on their website thrifteureka.com. Customers can also donate clothes if they choose to. Clothes that the store does not take are then donated to Candlelighters.

“Our price point is what makes us unique, we try to keep it affordable for everyday wear. We are also more selective on what we choose to put out, we check the condition of each article of clothing,” Kitchen said.

Look cooler with a new grungy aesthetic street style or any style you want at one of Uptown Cheapskate’s locations. Their stores are located at 2900 N. Mesa St., Ste B and 1225 Wedgewood Drive They are both open10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday. On Sundays, they are open from noon to 6 p.m.

Uptown believes in the upcycling impact, which is consume less, reuse more and choose used. Their mantra is to make the world better, cleaner and more sustainable. They encourage customers to reduce their carbon footprint by donating old unused clothes and buying secondhand clothes. At Uptown you can bring your unused clothes and get compensated if they choose your clothes.

“We check clothes and see what has been trending in the past couple of years,” said Kevin Kellog, a sales representative at the east side Uptown Cheapskate location. “The main demographic that we reach toward is more of a younger trendy audience, but there’s something for everyone here. We check for style and condition when we choose from the clothes people want to sell to us. We take clothes that have been trending in the past two to three years and we also do fashion field trips with customers.”

For more information on these thrift stores follow them on Instagram @pcelpasoeast, @thrftstore, @thrifteureka, and @uptownelpaso.

Alyson Rodriguez is a contributor and may be reached at [email protected]; @alyson_rod1127 on Twitter.

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