It's not only designers and hardcore trend sharks who are snooping into arty neighborhoods hunting cool. Forbes writes:
Truly dedicated followers of fashion are abandoning trends entirely and going to the source for vintage couture. In the process, they're turning vintage rags into a very hot commodity. (...) In the past few years, vintage fashion has gone from the province of artists and alternative musicians to the preferred mode of society ladies and young professionals.
The move of vintage from the margin to the mainstream is part of the broad shift that is going on in the fashion industry. Today, brands sell newly manufactured clothes designed by professionals. In the future, an increasing number of garments will be made by amateurs who remix vintage. The industry leaders will have to adapt, or they will be disrupted by new entrants. For example, Urban Outfitters sells real vintage. It also mass-produces vintage-looking clothes. But savvy consumers are not settling for ready-made solutions.
I hope second hand shopping is not just a passing trend because in the long term, the shift to authentic vintage could help sustainable development. The cotton industry is one of the biggest users of global water resources. When a larger part of clothes are obtained second-hand, there is less need to produce new fabric.
My favorite vintage shops
-In Helsinki:
Play It Again Sam, Rauhankatu 2
Ruuturouva, Fredrikinkatu 16
Nasta, Liisankatu 15
UFF Second Hand, Iso Roobertinkatu 4-6
-and Stockholm:
Chanesse, Grev Turegatan 1 (vintage and new)
Emmaus, Götgatan 14 (Södermalm), Gjutarplan 18 (Kallhäll)
Jenny Stil, Södermannagatan 18 (vintage and new)
Judits Secondhand, Hornsgatan 75
Lisa Larsson Secondhand, Bondegatan 48
Myrorna, Adolf Fredriks Kyrkogatan 5-7
Flea market, Wollmar Yxkullsgatan 3
Påkläderiet, Södermannagatan 21
Repris, Bondegatan 46
Ruby Vintage Clothing, Wollmar Yxkullsgatan 10
118 Second Läder, Sigtunagatan 5
Stadsmission, Hornsgatan 58 and Hantverkargatan 78
Tant Gerdelins Garderob, Karlavägen 72
59 Vintage Store, Hantverkargatan 59