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Second Glance Consignment Boutique Gently used women's & children's clothing, on consignment

How Consignment Works  •  What We Accept  •  Drop-Off Days  •  Fall Intake  •  New This Week  •  Hours

Welcome to Second Glance! We're a little consignment shop on the square, run by the two of us, Cheryl and Ann, since the spring of 1996. We sell good-quality, gently used clothing for women and children at about a third of what it cost new, and we sell it for our neighbors, who get a check when their things sell. Everybody wins: your closet gets emptier, your wallet gets fuller, and somebody else gets a lovely wool coat for $30. If you've never consigned before, don't be shy; it's simpler than it sounds, and we've explained the whole thing below. If you've never shopped consignment before, come give us a second glance. Everything is clean, pressed, sorted by size, and in style. We're picky so you don't have to be.

How Consignment Works

You bring us your things. On a drop-off morning (see below), bring in your clean, pressed, in-season clothes on hangers. We go through them with you right there and pick what we think will sell in our shop. Anything we can't take goes home with you the same day; we don't keep a pile. We price them. We set the price, based on the brand, the condition, and what similar things have sold for here. As a rule of thumb, we price at about one-third of the original retail price, sometimes more for a brand that holds its value, sometimes less for something that's been on the rack a while. You get a written list of everything we took and what we priced it at. We put them out. Your items go on the floor within a few days, tagged with a code so we can track them back to you. You never have to come in and check on them, but you're welcome to. The split is 60/40. When something sells, the shop keeps 60 percent and you get 40 percent of the selling price. That's the standard split for consignment shops in this area, and it covers our rent, the lights, the tags, and the two of us standing here. Markdowns. After 30 days on the floor, an item is marked down 25 percent. After 45 days, 50 percent. Most things sell in the first two weeks, but the markdown gets the rest moving, and your share is based on whatever it actually sells for. Sixty days. Your consignment period is 60 days from the day we take your things. Anything that hasn't sold by then is yours to pick up during the following week, if you'd like it back. Anything not picked up by then is donated to the clothing closet at the community center, and we give you a receipt for your taxes if you ask. (Most of our consignors just let it go to the closet; it's a good cause and it saves a trip.) Getting paid. Come in any time after the first of the month and we'll look up your account and write you a check for whatever sold the previous month. Or, and this is what a lot of our regulars do, use it as store credit and shop with it. We'll keep track. No appointment, no fee, no minimum. Bring in one great dress or three bags of children's clothes; it works the same.

What We Accept (and What We Don't)

Yes, please! Women's clothing, sizes 2 to 24 and petites, that's clean, pressed and on a hanger Children's clothing, infant through size 14, clean and folded (no hangers needed for the little ones) In season. We take fall and winter from late August through December, spring and summer from February through June. Current styles, meaning purchased in about the last two or three years. Classic pieces (a good blazer, a trench coat, a black dress) can be older if they're timeless. Better brands: department store and boutique labels, good mail-order labels, and nice mid-price brands in excellent shape Coats and jackets, sweaters, dresses, suits, skirts, slacks, blouses, jeans in good shape Maternity clothes (they go fast) Shoes and boots that look barely worn, and handbags and belts in like-new condition Formals, bridesmaid dresses, and children's dress clothes, especially in the fall for the holidays Scarves, costume jewelry and hats, if they're nice Sorry, we can't take: Anything with a stain, a tear, a broken zipper, missing buttons, pilling, or a smell (smoke, mothballs, basement). We check every piece, and so do our customers. Anything that isn't clean and pressed. We don't have a laundry in the back, and wrinkled clothes don't sell. Out-of-season clothes. We just don't have the storage. Bring your spring things in February. Styles more than a few years old, unless they're truly classic. Shoulder pads from 1987, no; a 1987 camel coat, yes. Discount-store and bargain brands. Nothing against them; they just don't bring enough to be worth the tag. Underthings, swimsuits, socks, hosiery, or sleepwear (except robes) Men's clothing (we get asked a lot; we simply don't have the room) Furs, wedding gowns, or anything that needs to be appraised Toys, furniture, housewares, or baby equipment. Clothing only. When in doubt, bring it and ask. We'll tell you kindly.

Drop-Off Days

We take in consignments on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, 10:00 to noon, by appointment. Call or e-mail to get a time; each appointment is about 20 minutes and we can usually fit you in the same week. We schedule them so we can give each consignor our full attention and so the shop isn't full of bags on a Saturday. A few things that make drop-off go smoothly: Bring things on hangers (wire is fine; we'll swap them to ours). Children's things can be folded in a bag or box. Bring no more than about 25 pieces per appointment. If you're cleaning out a whole closet, make two appointments and we'll be delighted. Have your name, address and phone number ready for the consignor card if it's your first time. (We keep that card in a drawer; it doesn't go anywhere.) Please don't leave bags at the door after hours. We can't take responsibility for them and we'd hate for your nice things to get rained on.

Fall & Winter Intake is Open Now! As of the last week of August we are taking fall and winter clothing: wool coats and jackets, sweaters, corduroys, wool slacks and skirts, boots, holiday dresses, and children's winter coats, snowsuits and school clothes. We are no longer taking summer things (shorts, sundresses, sandals); bring those back in February. What we're especially looking for this fall: good wool coats in all sizes, camel and gray anything (that's what the magazines say, and our customers read the magazines), boot-cut slacks and jeans, chunky-heel boots in good shape, cardigans and twinsets, and children's winter coats and boots, sizes 4 to 10, which we never have enough of. Also holiday dresses for girls and little suits for boys, which are coming into season. Drop-off appointments for October are filling up, so call soon.

New on the Floor This Week (week of September 20, 1999)

We put out new things every few days. Here's some of what went out this week; if something catches your eye, come in soon, because we can't hold items and the good ones don't last. Prices as tagged. Black leather jacket, women's size 10, hip length, zip front, lined, in beautiful condition. $48 Camel wool coat, size 12, three-quarter length, single-breasted, fully lined. $42 Gray wool blazer, size 8, department store label, worn maybe twice. $24 Two pairs of boot-cut wool slacks, size 6, one charcoal, one black. $16 each Black chunky-heel ankle boots, size 7-1/2, leather, hardly a scuff. $22 Navy cashmere cardigan, size medium. $28 A whole rack of cardigans and twinsets, sizes small to extra-large, $10 to $22. Denim jumper, size large, and a corduroy jumper, size medium. $14 each Maternity: a black knit dress (M), two pairs of jeans (8 and 10), and three tops. $8 to $18. Girls' holiday dresses, sizes 4, 5, 6 and 8: red velvet, green plaid taffeta, navy with a white collar. $12 to $18 Boys' navy blazer and gray slacks, size 7, for church or a wedding. $20 the set Children's winter coats: a red toggle coat (size 5), a purple ski jacket (size 8), a boys' navy parka (size 10). $14 to $20 Snowsuits, sizes 2T and 3T. $15 each Six pairs of children's snow boots, various sizes, $6 to $10. Formals: a floor-length black velvet gown (size 8) and a burgundy satin bridesmaid dress (size 12), both perfect for the holidays. $38 and $30 Sizes are what's on the label; please try things on. All sales are final on consignment items, so take your time in the dressing room.

Hours & Finding Us

Tuesday - Friday 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Sunday & Monday Closed (Monday is our sorting and pricing day) Consignment drop-off Tuesday & Thursday, 10:00 to noon, by appointment We're on the west side of the square, two doors down from the bakery, with the purple awning. Park on the square or in the lot behind the bank. The dressing rooms are in the back, and there's a basket of toys for the little ones while you shop. Phone: (555) 555-0157  •  E-mail: [email protected] We take cash, checks and the major credit cards.

Neighbors we like: Thrift Store Chic (a young lady in Chicago with very sensible ideas about wool and tailors)  •  Sew What? Beginner Sewing (for the hems)  •  The Working Mom's Notebook (a good deal of our children's rack comes from mothers like her)  •  More in Fashion Avenue

Questions about consigning? E-mail us and one of us will write back within a day or so. Visitors since April 1999: Last updated Tuesday, September 21, 1999. © 1999 Second Glance Consignment Boutique. "New This Week" is updated most Tuesdays after we price.