Let’s get into it then - teach us how you shop secondhand; do you start by brand, by season or by looking for a certain piece? Spill your secrets!
Not sure I have any secrets - I just like to browse and see if there is anything that would suit my kids, and at what's available. Filtering by age helps.
Can you give us three reasons why you shop secondhand?
It's better for the environment, like giving clothes another lease of life, makes sense financially.
Let’s focus on the kids: what brands are you most often looking for when buying second hand?
I really love Grey Label and Mabo.
Do you have key pieces that you would recommend buying used rather than new, whether it’s for price point reasons, number of uses, quality, etc (ie a MR winter coat for price point or lightness of wear, uggs or Saltwaters for quality, summer dresses for number of uses).
Hmm I have had great use from our Saltwater sandals and winter coats (I always buy Muddy Puddles for coats). I have passed them down through all of my children and there is still wear in them after all three!
You’ve used our Buy Back system Bon Voyage to sell and/or buy from; why do you like working with us?
Yes! Love it! It’s great getting something back from clothes that still have life and also love buying back second hand - it’s a win win really.
The big one - do you let your kids pick out their own looks or are the fits all you?!
Hmm, I usually buy their clothes but they dress themselves. When they were little (under 3) - I dressed them but as they get older they choose their own looks.
And how would you describe your style?
I'm not sure I have a style - I've never really thought about it. Pretty dresses and comfy shoes are good with me!
We’re so excited that you took five away from real life to chat with us. Let’s get into it - teach us how you shop secondhand; do you start by brand or by season or looking for a certain piece? Spill your secrets!
Typically I search brand by brand on shops like Vinted, I save my searches in my kids sizes in the brands I like for them then can see when new items have been shared.
On preloved shops like Bon Voyage I check in most days to the NEW IN just to see if anything’s been added and move fast on items I love.
For myself I’m usually looking for a specific item so I just search that! I don’t care about seasons etc - all I really care about is condition and price! I’ve noticed lately a lot of preloved shops selling at almost new prices for high street stuff. I know it needs to be sustainable as a small business but feel it counter intuitive to the preloved morals.
Can you give us three reasons why you shop secondhand?
- It’s satisfying and feels more of an energetic exchange - someone loved that dress on their baby now I’m loving it on mine. Beautiful.
- It’s often more cost effective - I bought an Elvi pump for €100 barely used! Can’t beat that.
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I like finding golden old pieces from brands or retired prints. Makes me feel like our wardrobes are more unique.
Let’s focus on the kids: what brands are you most often looking for when buying second hand?
Simple Folk, Mini Rodini, Konges Slojd, Meme, Korean brands like Mon Bebe and Anggo, Zara, Arq, Bonds Wondersuits, The Animal Observatory, Vans, DM’s, Converse.
Do you have key pieces that you would recommend buying used rather than new, whether it’s for price point reasons, number of uses, quality, etc (ie a Mini Rodini winter coat for price point or lightness of wear, UGGs or Saltwaters for quality, summer dresses for number of uses).
Coats. Always. And shoes - I can count on one hand the amount of new shoes I’ve bought my kids. They don’t wear them long enough plus they’re more comfortable when bought worn.
You’ve used our Buy Back system Bon Voyage to sell and/or buy from; why do you like working with us?
I love the prices, types of items you get in and frequency of uploading!
The big one - do you let your kids pick out their own looks or are the fits all you?!
Oh totally - my son loves to help me pick. I rarely buy anything without his opinion now because he’s *so* incredibly opinionated about what he wears.
And how would you describe your style?
Minimal, neutral and textured with a side of grunge
What are your favourite secondhand finds?
My favourite two preloved finds ever from any preloved store were Bon Voyage - an Arq leopard baby vest and a Bandy Button pink racer romper. So. Good.
All images from @ninagoksphotography
Bon Voyage is the UK’s best circular fashion programme for baby and kidswear. Established in 2019, we buy and source the best preloved, unworn, surplus and vintage goods, then resell them in our marketplace. We make it easy for you to sell on your kids’ wardrobe as they grow, then find the best pieces for them as they size up.
- Show us your items - you can send them to us by post, drop them off if you’re local or send us photos and info. It’s easy!
- Receive a quote - we’ll sort, approve and value them.
- Get paid. You can choose to accept cash or store credit.
- Feel good about the loop!
Please get in touch on email or DM if you have any questions about brands you’d like to sell to us. We are always open to a chat!
VISA - National #whereyoushopmatters campaign winners!
Yep. It's true! We won!
Ware delighted to announce that our entry in to the VISA competition to create an advert that celebrates independent shopping has been chosen as the winner! As if that's not exciting enough in itself, the ad will be shown ON PRIMETIME TV, on Sunday 22nd December during ITV's Dancing on Ice special. It will be seen by approximately 5 million people!
You can watch the full VISA ad below.. and you can read about how we did it, and what being independent means to us too! Thank you so much to everyone that commented on our Instagram post originally; for all the love and support, and to our awesome shop neighbours on St Stephen Street!
HOW COOL IS THAT!!
If you've followed our journey over the last 5 years, you'll know we love to have fun, and we love a creative challenge, so when we found out about the competition, we knew we had to enter. The problem was, we found out with only a few days left of the competition. So.... we sent messages to a few customers and friends, and some of our amazing shop neighbours on St Stephen Street, and within 48 hours we were filming it on a rainy Saturday afternoon, and we finished it a couple days later.
We wanted to tell our story of Independent Business... which is all about family....
Most independents are run by families - whether that's partner, spouse or multigenerational, and many of those partnerships have kids. Every pound spent in these businesses makes a massive difference; to the families and to the local streets and communities they sit within. We definitely see acgfamilyoffices as being about community.
We've made so many connections through our business; connecting with other people doing amazingly cool things, customers and brands becoming close friends and collaborators, shop neighbours supporting each other through quiet and busy times. We wanted our video to be about those connections, so each of the kids in the video is from a customer who is now a close pal. Each of them acts as a mini shopkeeper in one of our awesome neighbour's businesses... they hear Clemence singing and they all come along to sing with her. The very definition of community spirit!
When we found out we had won the competition, it was a proper whirlwind few days, letting people know and it was amazing letting our little mini shopkeepers know and getting organised for today's big launch!
A HUGE thank you to VISA for selecting our entry from the many, many amazing ones that were put out there by small businesses around the UK, just like ours.
The competition invited the UK’s independent retailers to create a copycat version of the 2019 Christmas advert. The VISA campaign is encouraging people to switch their focus from what they are buying to where they are buying and urging shoppers to show their local high streets some love this Christmas and beyond.
You can see our original advert on Instagram here and a broader selection of competition entries can be found on the Visa website.
AND FINALLY! A massive thank you to our good friend (another acgfamilyoffices connection) and collaborator, Kate Reeves, who helped us pull this together. Click to see what she's now up to over at We Don't Have Time For This podcast!