Money made, saved as Modesto consignment shops open, expand, flourish

Consider consignment the ultimate form of reducing, reusing and recycling.

During this so-called Great Recession, discount stores of all sorts have thrived -- from thrift stores to dollar stores. But consignment shops have the unique advantage of making and saving money for the seller, buyer and shop owner.

Consignors bring in their used items, shops display them, buyers take them home at a discounted price, and the shop and consignor split the profits.

Secondhand and consignment stores grew at a rate of about 7 percent in 2009, according to the National Association of Resale Professionals, the world's largest resale trade association.

In Modesto, several consignment stores have popped up or expanded in the past year, including designer boutiques and a furniture shop.

Walk into Bib & Tucker, at 1031 McHenry Ave., and it's like stepping inside a hip boutique. Skinny jeans and strappy heels adorn the racks. Open less than a month, the shop sells a mix of new and gently used designer clothes, shoes, purses and accessories on consignment.

Mother-daughter co-owners Beverly Shuwoy and Carrie Sanford wanted to make a place where shoppers could find fashionable clothes at discount prices.

"The economy is an amazing factor in consignment shopping being so in demand," Shuwoy said. "While it used to be easy to just shop at Nordstrom, in consignment you can get Nordstrom clothes for a third of the price."

The store has copies of fashion magazine layouts on display featuring the items in its shop. A page from the latest issue of InStyle shows a pair of Stuart Weitzman shoes for $375. The store has a similar pair for $147.

Shuwoy said that in less than a month, the store has been able to cover its overhead through sales alone.

Fellow boutique consignment shop Threads, at 3507 Tully Road, opened in September. The shop sells women's clothes for all ages. Owner Michelle Hatter has more than 400 consignors. Of the items she takes, she said 70 percent to 80 percent sell.

Longtime consignment shopper and seller Janet Akard of Modesto said she likes the quality of offerings at places like Threads.

"It's designed just for women, and so you know when you walk in you will find designer things," she said. "The thrift shop has everything -- furniture, toys. You have to sort through so much there to find anything."

In the consignment world, sellers become buyers and buyers become sellers. Shoppers such as Modesto resident Norma Tidwell consign and buy. Since her first time consigning at Threads, when she got about $120 for 20 items, she has been bitten with the bug and now is a regular.

Fellow Threads shopper Pat Kilgore said she has turned friends on to consignment shopping, too.

"I've sent a lot of people there," she said. "They'll say 'I love what you have on.' I'll say 'I got it at Threads.' I think in this economy people are looking for ways to buy nice clothes and not have to spend top dollar on them."

But clothes aren't the only thing people are trying to save and make money on in consignment. The New & Again Consignment Furniture Gallery opened in December selling new, used, vintage and antique furniture and housewares. Owner Bruce Beck expanded from his store in Lodi. The Modesto shop, at 214 McHenry Ave., has done so well that Beck has expanded the showroom into his warehouse space and had to find an off-site warehouse for all the merchandise.

"This is not a recessionary business," Beck said. "For every person downsizing, one person is upsizing here."

As with clothing consignment, he said, furniture consignment is a middle ground between retail and thrift shopping.

Shoppers such as Jessica Davenport, who was browsing New & Again with her husband and their two children, said she has bought and sold through consignment.

"The bargains are great," she said. "And I like the idea of reusing something rather than buying something new that is manufactured."

Consignment shops such as Ritzy Ragz & Thingz have taken advantage of the economic picture and increase in traffic to expand. The shop moved in November to a larger store at 3440 McHenry Ave. Co- owner Jen Kubala said traffic has been up 40 percent and consignors have increased by 50 percent to 75 percent over two years.

Between its three shops in Modesto, Turlock and Carmel, Kubala and co-owner Sharon Stencil have more than 5,000 consignors they work with. Kubala said there often is an influx at the beginning of the month, with people looking for extra cash to pay mortgages, rent and other bills.

"Everyone has to do what they have to do to pay the bills," she said. "People who before would never buy anything used or secondhand are starting to find us. And we educate people on what secondhand is all about. It's great for their wallet, great for the landfills, great for recycling."

Bee staff writer Marijke Rowland can be reached at mrowland@modbee.com or 578-2284.