ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR – JORGE GUERRERO
ORIGINALLY PRINTED ON APRIL 6, 2023
Trends come and go, but a recent one that has not faded away is the reemergence of vintage clothing throughout the young adult demographic. This trend involves those in the second-hand vintage clothing markets, like the people at Garden Clothing Exchange, allowing them to capitalize and reap the benefits of the growth in second-hand clothing buyers. Though thrift shops like goodwill, buffalo exchange and other secondhand clothing stores are increasingly popular, they don’t always have the best selections or affordable prices.
In San Antonio, the variety of secondhand vintage shops is limited to take advantage of this untapped market. Owner of Garden Clothing exchange, James Rauschuber, decided to take matters into his own hands in the early 2010s and started selling vintage clothing through social media and sometimes straight out of his apartment.
After garnering popularity in the mid- 2010s, Rauschuber knew he could make this his main job instead of an occasional side gig. Eventually, he opened his first shop, The Vaulti, located in the Tobin Hill area, where he specialized in selling higher-end clothing and sneakers from brands like Supreme, Palace, and Nike Jordans, as well as a limited range of rare vintage clothing. Within a year, Rauschuber realized the demand was increasing and needed more space and employees. After bouncing around the locations in the Tobin Hill area, he found an ideal home for The Vaulti and realized he could change things up to boost his business. He had an idea to run a vendor market every Sunday morning in the parking lot of The Vauti and called it “Garden Market.” He would give local vintage clothing vendors a platform to sell their vintage clothing, which became a success. Like any successful entrepreneur, he felt there was room for improvement. Thankfully, the unit neighboring The Vaulti was empty, and it was calling his name. Rauschuber would purchase the unit and effectively run both units in the building. Rauschuber decided to dedicate The Vaulti purely to hype goods and higher- end vintage. Because it takes serious digging through rag houses and bales of clothing to find rare vintage pieces, he had accumulated massive amounts of vintage clothing that wasn’t good enough to sell at The Vaulti but wasn’t worth throwing out just yet.
Photo by Jorge Guerrero
Rauschuber decided that the neighboring unit to The Vaultiwould become Garden ClothingExchange and took inspirationfrom his Sunday vendor market.He stocked the store with all thevintage pieces that he and hisstaff felt they couldn’t sell at TheVaulti. To make things sweeter, he wanted the purpose of this store to be a shop where customers could purchase vintage clothing at a much more affordable price compared to other secondhand vintage shops. At Garden Clothing Exchange, employees keep the racks stocked daily with freshly picked vintage clothing ranging from $5- $25, depending on the brand and style. The shop racks feature a wide array of stylish vintage clothing, having designated racks for denim jackets, windbreakers, bottoms, sports shirts, band tees, and color- coded racks for their tees. They also have designated rounders for sweatshirts and cardigans in addition to polos. St. Mary’s finance and risk management senior and vintage clothing seller, Andrew Tague, said the following about the shop: “What I like the most about Garden Clothing Exchange is how they have [a] different variety for their diverse audience. They have hype goods, sneakers, high-end vintage and cheap vintage for affordable prices”.
Photo by Jorge Guerrero
Garden Clothing Exchange is a unique secondhand vintage shop where students can find a wide array of options to expand their wardrobe at an affordable price, and James Rauschuber has made sure of that. The employees at Garden Clothing Exchange are friendly and take pride in their daily restocking. They pull out vintage band tees, outerwear, unisex bottoms, denim jackets and much more for customers to purchase at low prices. The shop is located in the Tobin Hill area at 1927 N St Mary’s Street and on Instagram @Garden.clothingexchange, where they post daily pictures of items the employees put on the racks.