Store Recycles Clothes, Furniture for Crib Set : Unlike a consignment operation, Once Upon a Child buys things outright and resells them very reasonably.
A few weeks ago I wrote about Play It Again Sports, a group of franchise stores throughout the nation that carry recycled sports and exercise equipment. Now the parent company, Growbiz, has opened a new chain of stores called Once Upon A Child, where just about everything a child wears or uses is recycled and sold at very low prices.
Once Upon A Child differs from consignment stores in that it buys its inventory outright--in cash--directly from the consumer. No waiting until it sells as you do with a consignment store arrangement.
James Shokouhi is the owner of one of the first Once Upon A Child franchises in the Los Angeles area. This 2,400-square-foot store certainly does not look like a thrift shop, but it most certainly is for the thrifty shopper.
Everything is arranged according to size and you’ll find many of the labels found only at upscale boutiques. Baby Gap, Gymboree, Baby G.U.E.S.S., Oshkosh B’Gosh, Carter and Dior all grace the racks for infants and range in price from $3 to $14. A pair of Oshkosh overalls was only $3.
The toddler crowd can also do very well. One little cotton/polyester dress with the Gymboree label for a 3-year-old was about $35 new, but here was $10. A Jonathan Strong dress-up suit for a little boy, consisting of pants, jacket and vest would have cost about $50 new but here was $15. As mothers know, dressy clothes tend to get outgrown after they are worn once or twice.
Big bucks can be saved on furniture and equipment. One Childcraft crib that retails for $350 was tagged $105. Shokouhi says that all equipment such as car seats and strollers is checked before he purchases it to make sure it is not on a recall list. If you sell a crib, car seat or stroller to Shokouhi, expect to receive 50% of the selling price.
All items brought into Once Upon A Child must be clean, show no wear or tear, have no stains and no odors.
I have always felt that resale is the smart shopper’s answer to children’s stuff. If there’s no one to hand it down to, take it to Once Upon A Child and you’ll have some money to buy whatever is the current necessity.
Once Upon A Child, 8945 Tampa Ave., Northridge. Hours: Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. All major credit cards. (818) 882-7777. Other location: 2607 Foothill Blvd., La Crescenta. (818) 248-9996).
WEEKEND SUPER SALE
Every day I am grateful for resale. How else could the working class afford to wear Chanel, Valentino, Armani or Brioni? And when a great resale store has a great sale, don’t procrastinate--be there when it starts. Such a sale is beginning Saturday at The Place & Company. Some of the best dressed women in town will be in line at 8 a.m. to buy $2,000 Armani jackets for $100 or $2,500 Escada suits for $150. Gentlemen will grab the Hugo Boss suits for $200 or Brionis for $175. There’s a large inventory of gorgeous, almost new couturier treasures. The Place & Company, 8820 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Westchester. (310) 645-1539. Saturday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
