Tuesday, March 3, 2009


Article | Area consignment shops are thriving in the down economy | www.washingtonian.com

The burnt orange-colored Birkin bag (center) sold for $6,000 at Inga Guen's shop over the weekend. The black Kelly bag (left) went for $3,000. 

Want to hear some good news about the economy for a change? At least one industry seems to be booming in the midst of economic apocalypse: consignment shops. “I’m recession-proof,” says Inga Guen, owner of Inga’s Once Is Not Enough.

Guen says in the past six to eight months, her consignment shop in DC’s Foxhall Village, which deals exclusively in high-end labels, has seen a dramatic increase in consignors—many of whom are first-timers—looking to sell their clothing, jewelry, accessories, and more for cash. The result? A store brimming with once-rare designer goods at a fraction of the price.

Birkin bags, the waiting-list-only handbags manufactured by Hermès, used to come into Guen’s shop about once a month. Now, she says, it’s once a week. Guen sells the bags for as little as $3,000—less than half of what they cost new.

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