The first thing I felt when I entered GWU’s first student-run pop up thrift shop was underdressed. Wearing a baggy crewneck from a boardwalk at the Jersey Shore, leggings from Marshalls, and my ugg slippers; I was perfectly suited for my 8 a.m. biological anthropology lab. However, the look was hardly passable as I stood surrounded by some of GW’s most fashionable students.
The second thing I felt upon entering the shop was overwhelmed. I knew a lot of people would attend because of how trendy thrifting became over the past few years, but nothing could have prepared me for the massive crowd at the pop up shop. I got there at 11 on the dot, arriving perfectly on time, and I still had to stand in a line out the door.
POP!, the student organization behind the event, also did not expect such a large crowd. Cofounder Rachel Cohen said, “None of us had any idea what would happen. We hoped people would show up but we didn’t expect the amount. Throughout the day, we had about 1,000 students visit.”
Throughout the day, we had about 1,000 students visit.
POP! Cofounder, Rachel Cohen
The overwhelming number of students concerned me as I waited in line, for I could not help but fear that the clothes, or at least all of the cute ones, would sell out before I had even entered. However, that was not the case. There were still plenty of articles for sale when I entered, and the shelves were consistently being restocked throughout the nearly two hours I spent at the pop up shop. Although a crowd of nearly 1,000 people is hard to prepare for, the POP! team did a pretty good job in my book.
Cohen said that she and the other founders were inspired to start POP! because they “recognized there was not only a lack of thrift stores in D.C. but that existing thrift shops were also inaccessible to many. With noticing this problem and learning from our research, we decided that a thrift store on campus would be a great solution.”
And a great solution it was, for there is little not to love about thrifting. It’s sustainable, affordable, and it enables you to find really unique and interesting pieces that you simply can’t find in the mall.
However, the one major catch when it comes to thrifting is that you have to sift through a lot of out of style clothing before you find any cute pieces. It’s treasure-hunt-esque nature can make thrifting both a tedious and competitive process. After all, anyone who has thrifted before knows the fear that overcomes you when another person your age is in the thrift store. As much as you want to be happy that the other person was able to find cute pieces, you can’t help but feel a bit envious of the clothing in their cart as they stand on the checkout line.
I feared that such a level of envy would be magnified to its greatest extent in an environment where the only other thrifters were my fellow college students. However, because the pop up thrift shop was curated by and for college students, I did not have to worry about fighting with my peers over a few cute pieces. Since articles were all hand selected by the POP! team, just about every piece for sale was on trend for college students. Additionally, a wide array of unique personal styles were represented by the clothes for sale.
Though at first a bit intimidating, shopping with POP! was overall one the best thrifting experiences I’ve had. I bought pieces that I already see becoming staples in my wardrobe (such as the jeans and necklace I styled in the photo above), and each staff member was super kind, positive, and helpful. Though a bit daunting and chaotic at times, shopping at GW’s first pop up thrift shop was a wonderful use of my Friday afternoon. I thoroughly look forward to the next one, where hopefully I will be dressed a bit more accordingly.