franchise: Clothes Mentor

We all think of cleaning out our closets in the spring to make room for spring and summer pieces, but it’s also a time to take out clothing you don’t wear and purchase some newer items for spring. One of our franchisees,  Andrea Zabinski, is interviewed in this article about her store in Wexford, Pennsylvania.  Remember, with all of our Clothes Mentor stores you get high quality, “gently-used” designer pieces to spice up your wardrobe for the spring season.  Source: post-gazette.com Spring cleaning is a seasonal rite that often includes clearing out closets to get rid of clothes that are never, or seldom, worn. About 72 percent of households do the so-called “spring cleaning” every year, according to a 2013 American Cleaning Institute survey, which adds that 71 percent of those pay special attention to culling their closets. Several sources suggest that the origins of spring cleaning go back to the ancient Persians whose new year fell on the first day of spring, a time when they “shook the house” to clean it. Others trace it back to the ancient Jewish practice of cleansing the home in anticipation of Passover. Today, some are making this spring cleaning pay. In what they’re calling a “Resale Revolution,” the public relations gurus at Clothes Mentor, a women’s resale clothing store, are urging spring cleaners to “turn closet clutter into cash.” Clothes Mentor, which specializes in upscale fashions for women, has franchised resale stores all over the country, including Chartiers Valley Shopping Center (Route 50) in Collier and Perry Highway (Route 19) in Pine. Their press material tells women to “trade in unwanted designer clothes and accessories for quick cash or a different wardrobe.” Just Between Friends is using a similar spring cleaning pitch. It’s a national company with two local franchises that don’t have bricks-and-mortar stores but offer four big sales events each year at large venues. Just Between Friends specializes in items for infants and children, selling deeply discounted clothes, toys and kiddie gear, including high chairs and strollers. It accepts clothes and other items on consignment. People receive cash when their items are resold. At resale stores, including Clothes Mentor, sellers are paid on the spot when the store accepts the castoffs. Resale is a $12 billion a year industry, reports the National Association of Resale and Thrift Shops. And, the number of resale stores has increased approximately 7 percent each of the past two years. There are more than 25,000 resale, consignment and not-for-profit resale shops in the United States, says the NARTS website. Goodwill Industries, with more than 2,900 resale stores, generated $3.79 billion in 2013. Deborah Monaco of South Fayette has been buying and selling at the Collier Clothes Mentor store since it opened in October 2012. “I come in probably once or twice a month and I usually get about $40 each trip,” said Ms. Monaco, a retired Mt. Lebanon elementary school teacher. Then she often spends the money while she is at Clothes Mentor. She said that almost everything she wore or carried that day, including her duck-decorated Dooney and Bourke purse, was purchased there. Lauren Darbouze of Carnegie was shopping after work in the black-and-white Cachet dress she had worn to work at her Downtown office. An attorney with her own family law practice, she said, “I look for all of my professional wear here. I am amazed by what I find. Mostly I buy here, but when my closet gets too full, I sell.” On that day, the front of Clothes Mentor displayed top designer labels, including Michael Kors, Ann Taylor Loft, White House, Black Market, Chicos and Banana Republic. An Ann Taylor suit jacket had a $20 price tag. A pink-flowered Michael Kors dress — never worn and sporting a Macy’s tag — was selling for $25. A long rack held 57 Vera Bradley purses and bags. All sizes and all colors were selling for between $9 and $20. More than half of the purses and bags in the store are Coach, said store owner Jamie Martin of South Park, including a medium-sized black leather bag for $54. Everything’s selling for 50 to 70 percent off full-priced retail, Mr. Martin said. “We’re fairly strict. We will not buy anything that is more than 2 years old. We want you to know you are buying current styles.” Clothes and accessories are rejected if there are any stains, rips or other damage. The store includes sections for maternity and athletic clothes. How much money can women make selling the clothes clogging their closets? “The first woman in the door yesterday, I paid her $500,” Mr. Martin said. One of his regulars said she makes “several thousand dollars” a year selling to Clothes Mentor and other shops. Mr. Martin has worked in retail since he graduated from Duquesne University. In the same shopping center, he owns a Plato’s Closet resale store, which targets teens and 20-something “guys and gals,” according to the website. It’s not as upscale as Clothes Mentor, Mr. Martin said. As to why he doesn’t have a resale shop for men, he quipped, “Guys wear things until they fall apart” and many men don’t like to shop. “I got married 25 years ago, and I haven’t shopped since,’’ he said. Andrea Zabinski opened a Clothes Mentor on March 26 at Pine Center, 11279 Perry Highway, and “the community really embraced us,” she said. “We have many affluent neighborhoods around here, and residents are buyers as well as sellers,” Ms. Zabinski said. “Some women wear things for six weeks and then bring them here for resale.” Designer items brought in for resale include Jimmy Choo shoes. “Some of these women are making $300 to $400 per trip,” Ms. Zabinski said. “I paid one woman more than $3,000. I think the average is about $50 per trip. Then they often buy something.” With two babies, Karlie Young and her sister, Jamie Allen, cheerfully made the 90-minute drive from Youngstown for the Just Between Friends of Pittsburgh East sales event April 24 in the Monroeville Convention Center. Discounted dresses for their daughters, Avery, 7 months, and Bianca, 1, hung from their stroller handles. The two Ohio women eyed long tables of toys and games and baby and toddler gear, including a $20 Graco stroller and a two-seater Maclaren stroller for $40. In the opening minutes of their first JBT shopping spree, they declared it well worth the drive. Kelly Robie of Pine has owned and operated the JBF East franchise for one year and the North franchise for three years. Each franchise has a spring sale and a fall sale. JBF sales offer a variety of previously owned children’s items at discounted prices. Mrs. Robie has a good idea about what kids like and what moms and dads need because she has four children: Ella, 6½; Luke, 4½; Evan, 23 months; and Adam, 10 weeks old. Sales items “were flying off the floor” April 24-26 in Monroeville, she said, with 240 consignors selling items and 2,200 people shopping and buying. Her businesses continue to grow, she noted, up from 200 consignors and 2,000 buyers at the fall sale in Monroeville. The fall sale at Neville Island had 650 consignors and 4,000 shoppers. Eight long tables in Monroeville held a wide array of toys such as hula hoops, inline skates, scooters, puzzles, plastic doll houses, pull toys and costumes. There were 11 rocking horses, ranging in price from $15 for a plastic horse to $50 for a big, lifelike plush pony. “My own children love coming here to play with the toys,” Mrs. Robie said. Everything is inspected, and items that are stained or damaged are rejected. Mrs. Robie’s franchise is piloting the new JBF On Demand program that enables buying and selling year-round. People can set up an at-home appointment with Mrs. Robie to evaluate items. She can offer cash on the spot. Items bought On Demand are stored in the franchise’s warehouse until the sales. Go to pittsburghnorth.jbfsale.com or pittsburgheast.jbfsale.com for further information. Send email to [email protected] to set up an On Demand appointment. The JBF of Pittsburgh North sale is from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. today and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday in the RMU Island Sports Center, 7600 Grand Ave., Neville Island. Admission is $3 today. Admission is free Saturday and Sunday. The next JBF sales are Aug. 21-23 in Monroeville and Sept. 18-20 at Neville Island. Enter your ZIP code on the www.narts.org website to get a list of resale and thrift stores near you.  

A new store opening in Ohio may be just buying for the time being, but once they’re stocked – which won’t take too long – there will be some fantastic buys for women in designer apparel, shoes, and accessories in the area. Source: Thisweeknews

Ladies could make a few extra dollars by selling their gently used clothing and accessories to Clothes Mentor, an upscale resale store for women that opened April 18 at 5566 N. Hamilton Road in Gahanna’s New Albany Plaza, just south of state Route 161.

This marks the fourth Clothes Mentor location in central Ohio for the popular nationally franchised women’s-apparel chain. Other central Ohio locations are on South State Street in Westerville, on Frantz Road in Dublin and on Henderson Road in Upper Arlington.

“As with our first location on the east side of Columbus, we look forward to introducing Clothes Mentor’s fabulous style, value and customer service to the residents of Gahanna and New Albany,” said Susan Riley, Clothes Mentor vice president of operations.

Company marketing director Samantha Parrish said the Gahanna store is the farthest east the chain has gone.

“The Gahanna and New Albany area is growing, so it seemed like a good fit for us,” she said.

The Gahanna location is open to buy merchandise from customers to stock the new store, but it isn’t expected to sell items until late June or early July, depending on when the store has enough inventory.

“A lot of people make room for new stuff when the seasons change,” Parrish said. “If people are losing weight, have a new job or anything that would warrant a life change is where we get our new stuff.”

Clothes Mentor carries most sizes, from petite up to size 26, including maternity apparel.

“Everything on our racks is what people bring to us,” Parrish said. “We have the better brands. Sometimes we get brand-new items with tags.”

The Dublin-based Clothes Mentor is known more for its paying “cash-on-the spot” philosophy to customers who sell gently used, brand-name women’s clothing, shoes, handbags and accessories to the store.

Some of the brands are Banana Republic, Dockers, Dooney & Bourke, Christian Dior, Cj Banks, Clarks, Coach, Croft & Barrow and Keds.

“Generally, all our prices are up to 70 percent below retail prices,” Parrish said.

Clothes Mentor is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays.

This is a great interview with one of our franchisees, Kathy Bosley. She tells us what she has learned over the years going from a teenager who loved fashion to an owner of a Clothes Mentor store in Tyler, Texas. Source: Entrepreneur.com Franchise Players is Entrepreneur’s Q&A interview column that puts the spotlight on franchisees.  Kathy Bosley has always been attuned to what is in style. As a teenager, she would shop in off-season stores and discount retailers with money she saved working up to three jobs at a time. These thrifty practices followed Bosley into adulthood and helped her discover Clothes Mentor, an upscale resale franchise. Today she owns and operates one of the most successful Clothes Mentor locations in the country. Here’s what she has learned.

Name: Kathy Bosley

Franchise owned: Clothes Mentor in Tyler, Texas

How long have you owned a franchise? My husband, Lane and I started the process in October of 2012 and officially opened for business in January of 2014. We have been open for business for about two years. He helps with the payroll and business end of things and I take care of the front of the store.

Why franchising? Growing up in the 80s I loved brands like Polo, Calvin Klein, Gloria Vanderbilt and Jordache, but it was challenging to afford them so I would try to find ways to get them at a lower cost. I would go to a warehouse that sold designer jeans for less and shop at stores like Marshall’s to get name brands for less. As an adult I continued to search for great deals on great brands by shopping upscale resale stores in Dallas. When my father died he left some money and I wanted to make a good investment with it. My husband and I decided we wanted to open a resale store like the ones I enjoyed in Dallas. I wanted to make sure the store had a lovely interior and wouldn’t look like a thrift store. I knew it needed great signage, matching hangers and racks, a lovely smell and a reliable computer program to price the items. Neither my husband nor I had taken any business classes so we knew we would need help.  A friend told me about Clothes Mentor in McKinney, Texas. My husband and I visited the store and knew right away, with their help, we would have the classy store we wanted! With their help we could have a successful business and fund our college for our three children and our future retirement.

What were you doing before you became a franchise owner? I originally went to the University of Houston planning to be a sportscaster and studied Spanish as my minor. While that was lots of fun, what I really wanted to do was teach elementary school. So, I went back to school to become certified and taught Spanish at the public school, private school and home school levels in Tyler, Texas. I opened the store and continued teaching the first two years, but realized I had too much on my plate. I now work in the store full time. I love helping women put together great outfits composed of great brands at an affordable price!

Why did you choose this particular franchise? I wanted a women’s upscale resale store and I knew I would need support. A friend told me about the Clothes Mentor in McKinney, Texas. I visited the store and knew it would be perfect. When I walked into the store I was very surprised by how new everything looked! I loved it because it was important to me that the store be clean and organized like a new-clothing store and never get the “thrift-store” feel.  With Clothes Mentor I knew we would accomplish that.

How much would you estimate you spent before you were officially open for business? To open the store we spent approximately $200,000. There was a $20,000 franchise fee and then we used the $180,000 to acquire all the store fixtures, finish the building of the location, purchase computers, $48,000 worth of clothing, as well as to pay staff and get the lease.

Where did you get most of your advice/do most of your research? At the very beginning I visited numerous resale stores. I asked lots of questions and decided what I wanted and didn’t want. Lane and I visited Clothes Mentor for a “Discovery Day” filled with lots of questions. After that we talked to Todd and Becky VanVuren at the McKinney, Texas store. Finally, we got wise counsel from some small business owners we knew in Tyler and from our church.

What were the most unexpected challenges of opening your franchise? Unexpected challenges included the building process and buying process taking much longer than anticipated, learning how to hire efficiently, and taming the budget after over spending on staffing and advertising the first year.

What advice do you have for individuals who want to own their own franchise? Do research that relates to your whole lifestyle, not just what will make money. The fact that I have a passion for getting great brands to ladies at an affordable price makes the challenges worth overcoming.  Also, rely on all that Clothes Mentor or your franchise provides to help you. They are in place to make you successful.

What’s next for you and your business? I am looking forward to a great year ahead with fantastic business. One of my favorite parts of owning the store is “mentoring” customers who want help putting together stylish outfits. We will be putting a larger emphasis on this in the coming year. This part of town near the store is developing greatly and I know we will benefit from this. I plan to have a much larger staff by the fall when a new middle school opens across the street from our store. I also plan to learn all I can at our Clothes Mentor conference this summer so I can strengthen areas I need to improve. Eventually, I hope to train a manager to take my place and spend more time with our three children.

Don’t we all want a new wardrobe? Your closet is full, but you can’t find anything to wear?  It might just be time to change it up a bit and bring some things into Clothes Mentor. Source: Fox19 Now

The best part is you can sell pieces that have been hanging in the back of your closet that just never seem to make it to the front – and either pocket the cash or use it to get some “gently-used,” like-new pieces for yourself to freshen up your wardrobe. We could all use some different, and maybe trendier, styles for spring!

In a new spot for one of our stores, Stephanie, a store trainer, does a great job of explaining how resale works at Clothes Mentor – and the great buys you can get on high-end, designer apparel, handbags, and accessories…at prices up to 70% off of retail.

Here’s another great article on a Clothes Mentor franchisee in Philadelphia. Source: Philly.com

Havertown insurance-company veteran and grandmother Terri Waters is opening a 4,000 square foot franchise store for Clothes Mentor at 61 E. Germantown Pike (near U.S. 202), East Norriton, on Thursday March 19. The Minneapolis-based chain is founded by Ron Olson, who was previously a cofounder and former partner in resale chains Play It Again Sports, Plato’s Closet and Once Upon A Child.

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It’s fun to follow fashion trends and incorporate them into your wardrobe where you see fit. It can help make your style a little more chic and modern. One of the trends for 2015 is the color Marsala, which is the Pantone color of the year. On their website, the Pantone Color Institute, the authority on color, describe the shade as “a naturally robust and earthy wine red.”  With its rich tones, Marsala is a shade that could work on a lot of women.

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