How did we manage through competition, pandemic, fire and expensive times with low purchasing power? The store that my wife Guro and I founded in 2015 has had its trials, but we have sharpened the concept along the way.
We started as a shop collective that sold some second hand, some really old vintage, some homemade, some redesign jewelry, some cheaply imported socks, some lobster and some canaries.
We called the concept Ny York Design & 2nd hand because it was located in the old district of Grünerløkka, which was called Ny York in the old days. The advantage of being a shop collective was that we didn't need employees because each participant took one day a week to sell their things. The disadvantage was that the concept spread in all directions and we only made money on a small fraction of the goods in an already small shop.
What did we do? Well, we sharpened the concept 👇
We changed our name to Ny York vintage & 2nd hand and focused on partners who sold vintage like us. We got bigger volumes, but didn't have to hire - so the risk was still low. But we still couldn't make enough money, and we were constantly discussing pricing strategy with the other participants in the store collective. We thought they priced their goods too low. For them, this was first and foremost a hobby and a nice side income. Our ambitions were bigger - much bigger.
What did we do? Well, we sharpened the concept 👇
We ended all collaborations and became our own independent shop without a collective. We had high enough turnover to hire a weekend worker, so we had the weekends off. On weekdays we worked for free to achieve our dream. That is, my wife worked quite a bit at her regular job as well to feed the budding entrepreneur me.
The weekend worker was young, had young cool friends and was cool on Instagram. By mistake, I had ordered 100 kg of shiny polyester barbecue suits that she had to sell. It turned out to be a trend 😱 and they sold like hotcakes. So did the 80s ski suits and suddenly we could start taking out a tiny salary 💰
We realized that the money in the vintage market wasn't with people our age. The few people our age who were interested in second-hand clothes were primarily interested in going treasure hunting at flea markets and getting bargains - our prices were far too steep for them.
Kidsa, on the other hand, was completely saved by the sustainability wave and bought shiny polyester for the big gold medal. I realized that we could make even more money if we ditched the hand-sewn 60s dresses from Mollestad and focused on 90s street wear.
What did we do? Well, we sharpened the concept 👇
We had low rent, cheap labor, and were practically the first to introduce vintage trends in Norway. We wanted to grow more. I had calculated that we could earn more if we increased the volume of jeans. First, I made a shelf with some cheap materials to maximize the number of jeans in the store. Then I developed a way to measure the jeans by size and shape. Then we had a custom-made piece of furniture with room for even more jeans. The volume increased and increased, and I had access to A-grade Levi's 501 from the 80s and 90s. I got greedy and wanted more.
What did I do? Well, I expanded the concept 👇
I really love jeans, and had access to really good jeans at a reasonable price from my supplier. I opened my own jeans shop, "Vintage Jeans by Ny York" on a side street in Grünerløkka that was developing. You may have heard of Sørpa? I got an office in the back room where I could sit and do other things while I waited for customers. I had hired people to work in the other shop. It did well enough that the employees got paid and I got a tiny salary too.
Then we experienced a fire in the yard where we had Ny York vintage & 2nd hand. We were not directly affected by the fire, which fortunately was extinguished in time, but there was water damage throughout the building and a large scaffold was set up to repair the roof and facade. Scaffolding that covers the facade can be deadly for small shops in side streets, and the scaffolding was left standing for a long time because the scaffolding company went bankrupt. But we worked on it, and were able to hang clothes on the scaffolding, so that we actually increased the store's floor space by 30%.
The jeans shop was doing great for 6 months, then suddenly the good jeans I was used to from the supplier were gone. They had changed operations, and had someone go through the jeans before they sent them out to customers. What I was now getting delivered was vacuumed for real vintage treasures. And on top of that, a new competitor came along on Løkka who had an agreement with a supplier who only delivered jeans of the type that was now vacuumed away from what we got. We didn't have the financial muscle to stand up to that.
What did I do? Well, I expanded the concept even more 👇
Since I couldn't get my hands on the really old jeans anymore, I started importing jeans that were made on vintage looms, had shapes that mimicked the 50s and 70s, and hoped I would be able to persuade some customers to buy these instead.
I had never heard of selvedge, raw denim or the brand Naked & Famous. I contacted them and lucked out - they loved the vintage jeans concept and we were allowed to become a retailer despite not having the financial muscle or any other cool brands in the store. It was just that I didn't sell that many jeans because our customers didn't know the brand and didn't know anything about raw denim and selvedge...
At the same time, the other store was doing really well, so I wasn't too worried. I could sit in my office and work on other things and had a small base salary for fixed expenses.
This is at the time when the entire Thorvald Meyers gate was dug up to lay new tram tracks for the new trams. The shops on Grünerløøkka were closed down one by one and suddenly I get the opportunity to take over a great shop premises on Olav Ryes plass. I say "yes" and we calculate as bankers that we will earn 30% more than in the side street of Markveien – yes, maybe up to double.
We are moving the store, changing the name to Vintage Wear by Ny York and investing everything we have in the new store. We imagined that I would finally get a proper salary from the store. Four months into the operation, it is stopped. Like everyone else in Norway, we have to close down due to the pandemic.
What did we do? Well, we felt we had to expand the concept even further and get an online store too 👇
We already had a website, now I felt that we had to have an online store. I had already been tried many times by online store sellers that I could grow online. Every time I said no because it takes a lot of time to create a digital product – especially when there are no measurements, sizes, images or other information about the product from a supplier. When there is only one copy of each product, it goes without saying that the price of each sale has to be very high to make any money from it.
We released Naked & Famous jeans, some sunglasses, and digital gift cards. The gift cards were primarily purchased by friends and acquaintances who felt sorry for us and wanted to support us during a difficult time. Otherwise, we sold two t-shirts, a sweater, 20-30 sunglasses, and a pair or two of jeans during the pandemic. I was right that vintage online is a lot of work and little reward.
I lost my cool, worked a little on other projects, and the employees were largely left to their own devices without enough training and follow-up.
What did the employees do? Well, they expanded the concept 👇
The employees weren't particularly interested in jeans. At least not the stiff and weird raw denim jeans from Naked & Famous. However, several of the employees really enjoyed sewing and convinced me to focus on redesign - it was very much in fashion at the time.
They sewed and sewed and probably lost focus on selling vintage. Eventually, sales dropped and we used up almost all the capital we had managed to build up at the end of the pandemic when purchasing power was strong.
I was very busy with other projects and had lost my zest and motivation. I was still very interested in jeans, but it was street wear-vintage that we made our money. I went back to the business for a few months
What did I do? Yes, I reverted the concept 👇
I regained my motivation to sell well in the main store. And then I tried to convince them that raw denim is really cool and that the jeans store has huge potential if you read up on the history and craftsmanship. It was a bit of a buzz for a couple of months where sales got a little boost, but then it went completely dead again. Most days there were no sales and many days there weren't even non-paying customers through the door.
Then came the war in Ukraine, unrest and expensive times. The main store that had borne the costs of the darling Vintage Jeans also began to struggle. Several of the small shops on Grünerløkka closed their doors and new 2nd hand pop-up concepts appeared in the empty premises. At the same time that purchasing power is becoming very low, competition in the 2nd hand market is increasing and the money is no longer rolling in.
We have to face reality and take it easy. I understand that we can't have more than one store. The employees expect the store they love - the one with the highest turnover - to survive. But I understand that I will also most likely have to lay off almost all of my employees and that I will have to stand behind the counter myself.
I couldn't stand the thought of standing around selling 10-15 year old Y2K-style tube tops and other poor quality garments made by children and slaves in Bangladesh and other low-cost countries in the early 2000s. What we made money on was clothes made under conditions that were perhaps worse than the factory workers along the Akerselva River had in the late 19th century. I considered closing down and giving up. But I didn't have any other big projects at the time, and I wanted to get some of the money I had invested back.
What did we do? Well, we sharpened the concept 👇
It was tough for the employees to be laid off, but there was no other solution – we were struggling to pay their salaries – and trust had been broken. When I said we were going to focus on the jeans store, they certainly didn't understand anything and one by one they quit.
I called my family to volunteer and over the course of a long weekend we had torn down the entire interior, painted it in new trendy colors, moved all the custom-made fixtures from the old jeans store up to Olav Ryes plass and changed the name from Vintage Wear & Jeans to Vintage Jeans on all surfaces.
We were very unsure if it would work, but we decided to take the plunge. I borrowed money to order 700 kg of vintage jeans for the selected, almost empty shelves. The day after the jeans were delivered, I get an email from the supplier saying that their warehouse has burned down and that they will not be able to deliver as normal for several months.
Fortunately, we were lucky this time and had enough jeans to keep the turnover of the new concept up. It turned out that there was also a market for raw denim from Naked & Famous. We just hadn't been able to reach the right target group before. I guess it helped to have a big Naked & Famous poster in the window that is clearly visible to the tram that runs past every 5 minutes.
Over the next six months we attracted the city's nerdiest denim heads and several of them are now employees. They love the shop and are doing a brilliant job of building an identity for the shop and a community for people who like to talk about fades, tears & repairs, color core, broken twill, selvedge, neppy slub and heavy 21oz jeans.
Then finally comes the news that there will be an exemption from keeping a scrap dealer's protocol for used clothing. At first I'm jubilant, and then I realize that it means that the Norwegian vintage market is opening up to larger international second-hand chains. I understand that the competition will become even tougher and that we will have to shift our focus from used jeans to new jeans if we are to have a chance of leading. I'm working on the website and increasing the selection of new jeans and bringing in a new brand - Edwin. Nevertheless, we can clearly see that times are expensive and that the competition for used clothing is getting stronger. Moreover, it's the warmest spring ever and people start the shorts season in April. Sales of jeans are not as planned in the budgets.
What did we do? Well, we sharpened the concept 👇
What tipped the scales was a new acquaintance who mentioned that he had seen an ad for my shop in his feed and commented, "I'm not exactly in the target audience for Vintage Jeans, am I?" He envisioned Y2K jeans with bling and a low waist – like his 17-year-old daughter wears. For me, the term "vintage jeans" has associations with classic 501s from the 60s, orange tabs and historical collectibles. He clearly didn't have the same mental image. He was actually right in the target audience for our concept. I immediately understood that we not only had to sharpen the concept - we also had to change the name.
In the course of a month, we have once again done what has always proven to be successful in the past – namely sharpening the concept. Anyone who is good at strategy and marketing knows that it is sharpened concepts that reach people.
But focusing on reaching fewer people feels illogical when you are stressed and standing there with poor sales reports. Then you intuitively want to reach more people. Unfortunately, I have seen it all too often that stores that are struggling start to take on new types of products, a little more interior design, a little more coffee and sweets, products for both adults and children, products for both women and men, etc. What they are actually doing is diluting their own brand, removing their identity and trying to sell a "one size fits all" concept that only works for discount chains that compete solely on price.
When you're standing there with a high stress level and have to make a decision, you have to force yourself not to make decisions based on your gut feeling. Even though every cell in your body screams that it's logical that you'll get more customers if you reach out to more people because the concept is broader, you have to resist. Because it's actually the exact opposite: To get more customers, you have to reach the right customers. You reach them with a clear concept with a clear target group.
Now we are called "Raw Denim". We have received very good feedback from our core target group and we have finally started to get sales online. I have experienced firsthand how adversity and difficult times draw me towards expanding the concept to reach even more customers. But if you are going to succeed with a small independent store in today's tough market, you have to dare to sharpen the concept.
Get nerdy or get out!
