Lexington, KY - Austerity is quite an acceptable way of life for many Americans now. The consignment industry appeals to shoppers' desires to save money and recycle at the same time. While some concentrate on children's clothing, there are also a few consignees in Lexington that focus on women's apparel.
Boomerang Consignors, www.boomerang consignors.com, is a new venture for childhood friends Laurel Johnston Cassidy and Melanie Smith Leach. Each left the corporate world to go into business together after Leach saw a consignment event in Knoxville. These events typically happen several times a year at a large venue, as opposed to a daily retail store.
"The hardest part was finding a place to rent," said Cassidy. They found 20,000 square feet on New Circle Road in the former Hoover's Furniture space and held their first event in August. Two more followed, in September and November. The first in 2011 will be March 24-27. Boomerang events are open to the public Thursday through Sunday, with the last day featuring items at half price.
"There's so much waste in the world," said Leach. "With the economic downturn, it struck home with me to get rid of stuff and get a little money back."
With Boomerang's bellman service, Cassidy and Leach tag and price items for consignors, who make 40 percent of sales. When consignors price their own items, they earn 65 percent. A bar code is associated with each consignor's number. Most of the merchandise is designer clothing for women, along with some higher-end kids' clothes and kitchen and home dÈcor items.
With no need to purchase inventory and not many startup costs, the consignment event business was relatively low risk for Cassidy and Leach.
"Nobody's going to want to pay full price again," said Cassidy. "We are all conditioned to look for sales and bargains."
Sassy Fox Upscale Consignment, www.SassyFoxConsignment.com, is owned by Brenda Moreland. She opened the Lexington store 20 years ago on Richmond Road and followed with a Louisville location in 2005 on Chenoweth Lane in the St. Matthews area, which is managed by her daughter, Jessica Moreland.
"I'd always been in retail," said Brenda Moreland. "I just decided back then (1990) that I was ready to open a consignment store. I had always shopped them."
She has expanded the Lexington store twice, adding 1,000 square feet after two years in operation and another 1,000 square feet in July of this year. Moreland's buyers and sellers range in age from 20 to 80. The majority of merchandise is in-season upscale business and designer clothing for women, along with jewelry and accessories. There's also a bridal department in the Lexington store. Consignors make 40 percent of the selling price, unless an item is $100 or more, in which case it's a 50/50 split.
"We keep it on the floor for 10 weeks," said Moreland. "If we haven't sold an item, we donate it to local charities, and the consignor gets a tax write-off."
Wedding dresses are kept up to a year.
"This is one of the few businesses that profits in this economy," said Moreland. "Within the last couple of years, people are being thriftier and are thinking more about recycling and reusing things."
Stephen Lawrence Ltd., www.SLLUpscaleResale.com, is owned by Connie Broomhall, who has three stores in Lexington. In 2006, she purchased her first shop on Broadway (already named after the husbands of the original owners). A year later, Broomhall opened Stephen Lawrence at Apres Vous on Moore Drive, and in April 2010, she started another Stephen Lawrence store in Idle Hour Shopping Center. The Moore Drive location has tripled in size in three years.
With a 20-year background as a software consultant, Broomhall wanted a business of her own and liked the idea of retail. Consignment also appealed to her sense of recycling.
"I like that," she said. "It's economical and good for everybody."
She has used her technology skills to create an online account system for consignors. Sales are credited to each consignor's account immediately.
"They love the online function," said Broomhall. "They can see what's sold and what their account balance is. People used to call all the time for their balance."
Consignors make 45 percent of sales, and 50 percent on the sale of furs at the Moore Drive store.
"Overall sales have grown every year," said Broomhall. She has seen a shift in buying trends: During the last couple of years, her stores haven't sold as many formalwear pieces as before.
"We have gained more business in lower-priced items, more practical things," she said, "but we're still growing overall in sales."
Kathie Stamps posts grammar tips at www.facebook.stampscommunications.com.