Giving life to pre-loved clothes

When the Coronavirus pandemic resulted in lockdown, quarantine and shutting down of schools, what would a 17-year-old girl have done? Sit back, enjoy the unexpected holidays and chill?

But, Trisha Reddy, a 11th grader girl then (currently in 12th grade) studying at Oakridge International School in the city conceptualized and founded ‘ThriftChicByTrish’, an online Thrift Store. Three months into it, she shares her success as one of the earliest entrants into online thrifting business.

With the increased conversation about repurposing pre-loved fashion and sustainability, thrift stores are growing in popularity particularly those with an online presence, says Trisha Reddy.

Thrifting is an age-old practice in India. In the days of my parents’ childhood, unused clothes were always given to the younger siblings in the family. It was a well-accepted practice and nobody minded it. But, somehow the present generation lost the practice. I wanted to revive that age-old practice very unique to our country but add a business element to it. Thus my online thrifting store “ThriftChicByTrish” was conceived on Instagram, she informs. So, she became a CoronaStudentPreneur . Her thrift store started just a few months ago in January, presently has almost 1000 followers.

I began with a sum of Rs 35,000/- loaned by my parents. The investment has gone basically into the packaging material for the store, she adds.

I have done a business of INR 70,000/-(Seventy Thousand), having sold 75 pieces of garments out of 87 on display. Most of those clothes are mine and a few of the people I know, Trisha adds.

Trisha is the proud founder of one of the earliest Thrift Stores in South India, She is a trendsetter and achieved fast success.

ThriftChicByTrish, uses Instagram as a platform and offers carefully curated pre-loved, trendy, affordable, pre-owned clothing pieces for sale on a particular day of the week and at a given time that are just a phone click away, and encourages thrifting to become more than just a passing trend, a trend here to stay.

The good thing about thrifting is giving life to clothes lying unused in wardrobes. It is an online sale of pre-used items at discounted prices. Thrifting is a new way of selling high-end clothing well below retail prices.

When asked about her inspiration for the idea she said “Since I’ve always had a passion to start something of my own in the field of fashion and have already gained an insight into it through blogging, I thought why not combine my love for fashion, contemporary and high street trends and turn it into a business that enables a sustainable life? So, I introduced- “ThriftChicByTrish.”

“When I had a little free time last November, on my search I found the ‘idea of thrifting’, ‘thrift shopping’, ‘thrift stores. ‘Thrifting culture’ was not very popular in this part of the country. I want to encourage the reuse and repurchase of pre-loved, pre-cared, unused and less used clothes. And, I wanted to give a fresh lease of life to them.

I explored, says Trisha, thrift shops which are widely prevalent in the west. They are also better known in Indian cities like Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai. But, the awareness is not much in South India and more so in Telugu states. So I researched sustainable shopping and why it matters and understood the importance of curation. And now a few months down the lane, I have my thrift store with reasonable success. So on this occasion, I wanted to reach out to people through the media to create more awareness for thrifting.

The new trend in the fashion industry today is ‘Sustainable Fashion”. Socially conscious and responsible fashion is more important today than ever before. Eco-friendly fashion, ethical clothing, affordable luxury, clothing rental, buying second-hand clothing are the trends the industry is witnessing, says entrepreneur Trisha.