Finding a classic pair of mom jeans or the perfect vintage Binghamton University sweatshirt can be difficult, but Ryan Crawford, co-owner of Triple Cities Vintage, wants to make it easier.
The store’s collection of vintage pieces from the 1890s to the 1990s will be available at Triple Cities Vintage’s second monthly Warehouse Sale this Saturday. The sale will be held at the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator on Hawley Street in Downtown Binghamton from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The majority of items will be under $20.
Crawford and his wife Amber opened Triple Cities Vintage in 2014. Their business offers vintage items on wholesale to larger retailers as well as individuals. Ryan curates their collection from garage sales, estate sales and thrift stores.
“We’ve got everything from ‘90s streetwear to Victorian womenswear to ‘50s menswear,” Ryan said. “We’ve got long and short dresses, heavy coats, light coats, blazers, skirts, jeans — I’ve got a whole pile of vintage Levi’s in the ‘mom jean’ style.”
The company has been housed in the incubator since summer 2017, but Triple Cities Vintage is primarily an online retailer. They have an Etsy shop, an eBay shop and post most of their items on Instagram. Their warehouse space is open to the public once a month during the sales.
Ryan said he has been a vintage enthusiast since college. Initially drawn to the buy low and sell high method of selling items on eBay in order to sustain himself during his undergraduate days, he said he gradually became interested in learning about and collecting the styles of the past century.
“I had always been into clothing and fashion,” he said. “For some reason, vintage stuck with me. It was the thicker fabrics, the nicer construction of everything — stuff was made to last.”
Both Ryan and Amber grew up in nearby Chenango Bridge. Ryan said he tries to emphasize their company’s Southern Tier roots by including vintage clothing either made in or representing the Triple Cities in their collection.
“Everything is handpicked,” Ryan said. “There’s nothing here that I don’t like, and I like to think I have decent taste.”
Triple Cities Vintage is one of many new small businesses in Broome County housed or previously housed in the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator, a space for small businesses and startups to grow through training and consulting.
“[The Incubator] has been a really nice place to start and grow something like this and eventually go out into the community,” Ryan said.
He added that Triple Cities Vintage is excited to welcome community members and students alike to shop at Saturday’s Warehouse Sale. They will accept credit cards as well as cash, and there will be free snacks and coffee available to shoppers.
Building community through these sales is part of the larger way Triple Cities Vintage fits into the area, according to Ryan.
“I really like the direction Binghamton is going in, as far as the revival of Downtown and the pride the people have in the city,” Ryan said. “That’s really cool to me.”