A Second Chance
BY AIDAN ZOLA
One warm evening this past September, I decided to visit the consignment shop on the corner of Raymond Avenue. As I laced up my sneakers and slipped on my headphones, I could have never predicted that twenty minutes later I’d have a job at that very shop. When Donna Santini, the energetic woman behind the business, offered me a position, I couldn’t turn it down. The sparkling gowns, vintage jackets, and designer handbags were enough to convince me from the moment I walked in.
Donna’s business got its start five years ago in a small space on Main Street in downtown Poughkeepsie. Feeling discouraged after a battle with breast cancer, her family searched for ways to help her regain some sense of normalcy. Opening a consignment shop, they decided, was the perfect solution. After much thought and planning, Donna chose the name 2nd Chance Consignment Boutique to celebrate her own second chance at life. As word spread around town, more and more customers and consigners began to flood the shop. 2nd Chance eventually grew so popular that Donna moved the entire business to its current, much larger space on Raymond Avenue. Today, students, longtime residents, and tourists alike frequent the boutique, each seeking the thrill that comes along with finding a second-hand treasure.
When I asked Donna what she liked most about being the owner of a shop like this, she didn’t hesitate: “The customers. I’m a people person, and I love clothes. I just love the industry—dressing things, putting the windows together, I love it.” I didn’t doubt her. While working at the shop, I saw the creativity that went into curating the window displays and the way customers smiled when they were read their final totals. Now that I’m spending more time on the other end of second-hand shopping, I’m realizing how great it is all over again--from the thrill of discovery, to the environmental benefits, to the more affordable and accessible prices.
The popularity of second-hand shops has skyrocketed in the last decade, and it’s no wonder--consignment and thrift stores offer endless unique wardrobe possibilities. Each time I organize the racks at 2nd Chance, I manage to find a sweater or a belt that I’d somehow never seen before. It’s moments like these that bring customers back over and over again. For me, a piece has that much more meaning when I’ve taken the time to search through racks and racks of clothing, rather than scrolling through a website.
It’s no secret that the rise of fast-fashion has contributed enormously to pollution and social inequality; second-hand shopping provides a way for shoppers to cut down on their environmental impacts. Despite large brands like H&M attempting to “close the loop” on fashion waste, fast fashion still presents an enormous social and environmental cost. But. perhaps most importantly, second-hand shopping tends to be highly cost-effective; consignment shops like 2nd Chance are leveling the playing field of fashion. Though it takes more effort, Donna explained to me that at second-hand shops, “you can buy that outfit and be just like everybody else that goes out and spends thousands of dollars, but you’re only spending a couple of dollars.” Whether your goal is to be entirely unique or stay on trend, second-hand shopping can help you realize it.