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Fall 2024

By Lauren Hurwitz

In the age of reduce, reuse, and recycle, consignment shops offer great deals while giving a second life to things that otherwise would spend eternity in someone’s attic, or worse, a landfill. Marianna Albert, Owner of Home Again Consignments in Dobbs Ferry is very cognizant of the environment and happy to give things a new home. Running the business for the last six years, her hottest items are teapots, anything Salvador Dali, different types of mirrors, stained glass items – especially lamps, and anything bright and colorful.

“Everything here is in pristine condition even though it’s old,” Albert shares proudly. She also loves working with shoppers who are newer to consigning saying, “A lot of the younger generations that come in are thinking these things are old, and I have to explain to them that something old will really make your house pop with a bit of color.”

With over half of a decade under her belt working simultaneously as a teacher and behavioral therapist, Albert decided to stay home with her four kids when they were young. She eventually returned to work but wasn’t inspired. “I was scrolling mindlessly on Facebook and saw an ad that the owner (at the time) was looking for help at estate sales and thought it might be really fun,” she says. It started as a part-time job, which led to her getting a degree in antique appraisal and eventually owning the store when the previous owner moved to California.

“When I go to somebody’s house to evaluate their items, they’re surprised I’m young and that I’m a woman because it was a man’s business for such a long time, so it makes me feel good when people know that I’m knowledgeable and I do know what I’m talking about,” Albert says. She encourages shoppers to be realistic when shopping consignment stating, “You’re never going to get an even amount of anything, so don’t expect to come in and get six cups. It’s always an odd number for some reason but be open-minded. Be ready to know what you want to fill on that wall in your home and have measurements with you because you have to buy things on the spot. You never know if it will be there the next day.”

Since 2012, Amy Coleman has been running her high-end designer consignment boutique, Sweet Preserves, within the walls of Consign It On Main (CIOM) in New Rochelle. She sells women’s handbags, clothing, accessories, and some men’s items. CIOM’s main business, however, focuses on furniture, home furnishing, lighting, accessories, and artwork. Both businesses even sell a lot to film and TV production companies to help outfit their sets like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Feud: Capote vs. The Swans. “My customers come from all over . . . even one from Kentucky. I sold her four handbags and close to 50 Hermes scarves,” says Coleman.

After working in NYC for decades, Coleman moved to Rye, stayed home to raise her kids, and eventually decided she needed to do something else. When shopping to furnish her own home, she met the owners of CIOM who offered her the opportunity to open her own clothing and accessory business within the store . . . and Sweet Preserves was born. “No one is wearing high heels anymore, so those aren’t great to consign, nor are fur coats,” she warns . . . but she has consigned “plenty of Chanel jewelry, which does well,” she says. “If a consigner listens to me when pricing the item, it will sell. I keep my consigners coming back to me which is why I’ve been open so long – and that’s key to getting good inventory in my business,” Coleman adds.

Shopping for hidden gems has always been a passion for Ali Pearlman, Owner of Saved by Zero in Harrison. With her wild vintage boutique, which opened in June, Pearlman is giving new life to the downtown area and all of the offerings in her store. Hyperconscious of the world in which we live, Pearlman says everything in the store is “recycled, upcycled, repurposed, or pre-loved. Everything has a story and has come from someplace else. The only thing new is the paint on the walls.”

For over 20 years, Pearlman worked in the fashion industry doing everything from fashion shows in Bryant Park to writing and styling. “When I was a kid, we didn’t say ‘go thrifting’ because ‘thrifting’ wasn’t a verb the way it is today,” says Pearlman who prefers the term “vintage” and says “I can go to a yard sale and zero in on the Gucci. I have a sixth sense to find those diamonds in the rough.” Wanting to launch her “second act” own  business once her twins (now 16) were more independent and knowing there was no place in Harrison to buy clothing, her shop was born. “I don’t want to have to go to another town and put my tax dollars into another town because my town doesn’t offer what I need. A good vintage shop takes like 10 years to marinate to really feel like this thing is old, cool, and authentic,” Pearlman says – and that’s exactly what she’s creating. Offering things from $5 to $3,000, she wants the shop to be accessible to everyone but says it’s still a boutique and not a place to bargain since, as she jokes, “All of the prices have been pre-haggled for your convenience.”

Lastly, Pearlman stresses, “Recycling is more than bottles, newspaper, and cans. It’s your grandma’s wedding dress that has been sitting in a beautiful box in your mom’s attic for years collecting just – not doing good for anybody. Give it a second chance at life. Keep it circular. We don’t grow from nostalgia when it’s kept in a box in the basement!”

RESOURCES

https://www.consignitonmainllc.com

https://homeagaindf.com/ and @dfconsignments

@savedbyzero84