My favourite vintage shops in Victoria
I love fashion, but I am also aware of the huge environmental impact that fast fashion can have on the environment. Luckily, when it comes to sustainable fashion, Victoria is abundant with ethical and affordable options!
Below I have highlighted some of my favourite stores to find fun vintage pieces, and they are all located in the downtown area within short walking distance of one another.
WIN Resale Shop
This is a small non-profit consignment store that gives back to women in need in the community. They have a variety of initiatives that help provide support and resources to women, as well as trans, non-binary, and two spirit individuals.
There are four store locations in Victoria: one on Pandora Avenue, one on Quadra St, one on Cook St and the final location is on Wilson St. They also have a home and furniture store at their Cook St location and they have an online shop as well as Instagram and Facebook @winresaleshops.
They offer a mix of vintage and retro pieces as well as more modern styles that are divided into feminine and masculine sections. One downside of WIN Resale is that there are no change rooms available to try on clothing, but they do have a return and exchange policy, so if an item does not fit you can always bring it back.
Their prices are very affordable with consignment ranging from $5 to $20, and their vintage pieces starting at $10. It can often get pretty pricey when searching for good vintage clothing in Victoria, so I would highly recommend checking out WIN Resale Shop if you are looking for an affordable option. The best time to go is on Saturday since they offer a 20% off discount for students, all you have to do is show them your OneCard.
Flavour Upstairs; Vintage and Secondhand
Flavour Upstairs is located downtown on Johnson Street across from Market Square.
It is a lovely location surrounded by coffee shops, small businesses, and boutiques. One of the highlights of this place is the entryway to the shop.
When you arrive at the door there is a rainbow staircase leading up to the entrance, inviting you to come inside. Once you get inside there is a wide variety of clothes to look at that are decided into feminine and masculine sections.
Most of the items here are vintage pieces, and the prices reflect that. But I will say that in terms of vintage in Victoria, the prices are fairly budget friendly with the cost of items ranging from $20-$60.
What I love about this place is the wide selection of denim pieces that are available in lots of sizes. If you are on the hunt for that perfect pair of jeans, you will probably find them here!
Another thing to note is that this location does have fitting rooms available for customers to try things on. Flavour Upstairs can be found on Instagram @flavourupstairs, and they also have an online shop.
Brica-Brac Salvage
Brica-Brac Salvage is a small yet homey shop located downtown on Yates Street. Because of the small space they only have a couple of racks of clothing available at a time, but all the pieces are highly curated and fairly diverse.
They are also not segregated into masculine or feminine styles. There is a mix of vintage items and modern styles with the consignment clothing ranging from $10-$30 and the vintage items typically starting at around $25.
There are change rooms available and it is important to note that all sales are final. Something that sets this place apart from the other shops I have mentioned is that they have an extensive knick knack section in addition to clothes.
All of the knick knacks are donated or scavenged from local landfills, and most of them are vintage. There are decorative tea tins, old photographs, pictures and letters, and an assortment of other peculiar treasures to rummage through. You can find them on Instagram and Facebook @bricabracsalvage
Cheers Vintage Collective
Cheers Vintage is downtown on Yates near Quadra Street. It is owned and operated by five women who came together to display their curated pieces all in one space.
Out of all the stores I have mentioned, Cheers Vintage has the most inventory and variety, but the prices are not as budget friendly.
They start at around $40 and can range all the way up to $100. But if that is out of your budget then there are sale bins throughout the store that have discounted clothing.
The shop is not separated into feminine or masculine styles; everything is mixed. Inside the shop there is a change room available to use to try on clothing.
I love this place because it has so many unique clothing items that you would likely not see anywhere else. If you are looking to buy a statement piece I would highly recommend checking this place out! They can be found on Instagram and Facebook @cheersvintagecollective
