Each month Tiffany Young flips through catalogs and shops for her favorite styles.
“I get upset when the pants that I ordered are too big around the waist or the shirt that I’ve waited on for a week looks nothing like it did in the magazine”, said Young, 21, a senior business marketing student from Jacksonville.
Young said she usually ends up taking another trip to the post office and the clothes end up back in the factory, or so she thinks.
Urban Thread, a new clothing store located on W. Tennessee Street behind Firehouse Subs, buys back catalog returns and sells them at discounted prices.
The clothing options vary from basic black pants, wool jackets, to sheer blouses and khakis. The store sells mostly J-Crew apparel, but looks forward to merchandising Express clothing as well.
“I’m also an agent for J-Crew, and I would promote and arrange the warehouse sales, housed by the Leon County Civic Center usually twice a year,” said Lily Kline, storeowner. “We would sell big during those times. We’d come in with about 14,000 pieces and be left with nothing.”
Kline, said that business is doing well.
“We’re in a really great location. We attract many students from FAMU and FSU. They (students) need stores like this in college,” Kline said.
Kline admits that she decided to open a store in Tallahassee mainly because it’s a college town. Her first store is in Gainesville, near the University of Florida. In her opinion, Tallahassee was hungry for a store like hers.
“College kids like brand names, but they need clothes they can afford,” Kline said.
A pair of pants that would normally cost $48 is sold for $15.50 in the store.
“The work here is great,” said Elizabeth Whitney, an employee. “The store has styles that I like and has them at prices that I can afford.”
Kline said the store has six employees, but they all make a great team.
“I love my job,” said Grace Brown, store manager. “It’s wonderful being able to be around the students.”
The store’s sophisticated styles and bargained prices are what Kline hopes will attract more students from FAMU. She said that so far she’s seen a lot of the students coming in the store and looks forward to seeing many more.
Tiffany Pitts can be reached at lil_tonja @hotmail.com.