Recently, I had the privilege of interviewing Trey Orantes and Jasmin Kaur Walia, two young entrepreneurs who are heavily involved in the RDU and CLT vintage thrift scene. Trey and Jasmin are both students at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, using their fashion passions and social connections to inspire and fuel the vintage thrift community and culture on UNCC’s campus. Through pop-up markets, social media engagement, and collaborative events, they are proving that secondhand fashion is not just a choice but also a statement. 

Jasmin recounts where her interest in fashion and thrifting began, “I was always into fashion, but got into thrifting in high school when my friends took me to good spots in Durham [hometown].” Not only did Jasmin gain exposure to thrifting from friends, but also her boyfriend, Trey, who had helped her start gathering items for markets and encouraging her to build connections with other thrift interested groups. What had started as a hobby between friends quickly turned into a desire to officially start selling clothes. “My boyfriend was selling clothes I had given to him at a market while I was at my old job. As the sales came in through my Venmo I realized that I was getting more money than from my retail job, so I wanted to start selling full time.”

Since it was easier to be booked and busy at markets in RDU and other parts of North Carolina over the Summer, Jasmin thought it would be a good idea to start a themed market (Norm’s Vintage Market) on UNCC’s campus. Norm’s Vintage Market is a 30 vendor event in which students can participate in and attend to boost their brands. As Jasmin has been self-promoting and working alongside other vendors throughout cities for four years, she had some advice for other young women who may be interested in becoming vendors. “I see a lot of women dominating the thrift scene in Charlotte and it’s inspiring. My advice is to make female vendor friends, start an Instagram, and sort of partner with other new female vendors.” 

Trey, also of similar background to Jasmin, grew interested in thrifting in early high school. Trey saw the opportunity in selling at markets with his friends and starting a name for themselves. “Me and my friends all enjoyed the thrifting city environment and saw how we could make money selling clothes, so we just went for it.” Sadly, with the friend group going to different colleges, it was no longer as much of a group effort. As Trey was still driven with a business mindset, he decided to continue selling at markets in Uptown Charlotte. However, with being a full-time college student, Trey has had to take his foot off the gas a bit to make sure he can finish up his education. “I still love the brand I built, even if it has become more of a hobby while I juggle work and school.” Being an experienced and well versed seller, Trey's advice for anyone is to “Go for it. You’ll learn everything you need to through experience and talking to sellers. Get yourself a cheap rack and hangers, set up a little spot to sell, and go from there.”    

“…As the sales came in through my Venmo I realized that I was getting more money than from my retail job, so I wanted to start selling full time.”