STORY BY VANESSA GILLIS
Tucked away in the side of a little plaza off Iroquois Shore Road, you’ll find an unassuming clothing store. But it’s nothing like others you have seen.
Plato’s Closet buys and sells second-hand brand-name clothes, with prices much lower than those found in retail stores.
“It’s great quality stuff. It’s not second-hand how people think of second-hand,” said Jill McChesney, one of the owners of Oakville’s Plato’s Closet. “Everything is a great price.”
The buying process at the store is very rigorous, McChesney explains.
People bringing in clothes are expected to have them laundered and cleaned, and only be a year to a year and a half old.
“We want to go through it with fine detail so that the customers who are shopping with us turn around and get this great item and they’re not finding someone’s crusted egg breakfast,” she said.
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To give the best prices, McChesney says they have guides and databases so they know the retail price of the items and can give their customers fair prices on the buying and selling side.
“It’s perfect for the college student. You can come in here and sell stuff you don’t want or doesn’t fit you anymore,” she said. “We have a little bit of everything for everyone, from Joe Fresh right up to Michael Kors and other brands like that.”
Unfortunately, McChesney says they have had issues in the past where someone brought in an item that was counterfeit or stolen, but she says they have methods of protection.
When selling something, customers are required to fill out a form with their contact information, and they are asked for a receipt for the item to show proof of purchase.
“Because [the clothes are] used, there has to be a line we have to be careful of,” she explained. “We don’t ever want to attract anything that could potentially be stolen or not even belong to that person.”
McChesney, a former health care worker, owns Plato’s Closet along with her sister, Melody Taylor, who used to be a social worker. They decided to open their own business because it was something they had always wanted to do.
They chose Plato’s Closet because they were familiar with the company, Winmark Corporation, which also owns Once Upon a Child and Play It Again Sports.
“I have four kids of my own, so I know the cost of clothes,” McChesney said. “Once we looked into the numbers, it made sense. It’s recession proof and it’s a great place of employment for my kids.
“We know for sure once the word gets out there, especially to the college students, people will see it’s not what they think of second-hand.”
Comments
One response to “Plato’s Closet offering cash for lightly used clothes”
What a great way for low income families to enjoy quality clothing for their Families and themselves. What’s one Man’s junk is another Man’s treasure. With the salaries not keeping up with inflation, people need to have alternative ways to purchase clothing. And another way for the sellers to shop for new clothes..It’s a Win, Win situation. What one person said to me a long time ago at the Salvation Army, “they might be poor but they still have pride”.
Keep up the good work. Thank you Vanessa Gillis for a great article.