The Buffalo Exchange

(Written by Melody)
I wanted to wear pretty new shoes because I was going to meet my boyfriend’s parents. I had to make a good impression.

But there was one problem: low on cash.

My friend suggested that I go to a thrift store because she always found the cutest things there, but the Berkeley thrift stores are all ridiculously expensive for the merchandise they try to pass off. I walked down Telegraph completely down-trodden when I found myself standing in front of a Buffalo Exchange store. I remember once hearing my friend ranta bout new glasses she picked up from there for cheap so I mosied on in.

It was full of the cutest and coolest little knick knacks in the world. Really vintage clothing that people had traded away and new clothes that probably didn’t fit or had a tear in them. I walked to the show racks and there it was. The cutest gold-ladden shoes I had ever seen, and for how much? $7.00.

I was hooked.

The first Buffalo Exchange opened in 1974 in Tucson, Arizona by Kerstin and Spencer Block. They were a Swedish couple trying to create the first store that bought, sold, traded, and took clothing items and accessories on consignment. The company now has 24 stores and 6 franchises in 11 states.

Here’s how it works, you don’t want certain articles in your closet anymore due to whatever reason (not your style, doens’t fit, etc), you take it to the store and they buy it off of you or they trade it off of you for something they already have.

It also helps the enviornment by reusing and recycling clothing. The E.P.A. estimates that textiles make up close to 6% of the U.S. waste stream, so trading used clothing makes a positive environmental impact. Buffalo Exchange donates to local nonprofit agencies in the community through the Tokens for Bags program, which has generated over $190,000 in donations to hundreds of nonprofit groups since 1994.

Fun Fact: The reason why it’s called “The Buffalo Exchange” is because the owners though that somehting typically American is a “Buffalo” and their store was in the “Exchange” business. hence the name was born

Basically, if I haven’t yet convinced you of how great Buffalo Exchange is, take a look at my $7.00 shoes.

They are seriously adorable, and a steal at $7.00.