Meet the clothing companies as the heart of downtown LA’s flourishing vintage scene.
In October 2023 , vintage stager Brian Lee decided to open a store . The brains behind the “ livestock time of origin ” Instagram accountHarvester Internationalmoved his substantial collection of menswear out of the kitted - out front room of his Boyle Heights apartment — which was necessarily appointment - only since he also lives there — and into an expansive storefront atRow DTLA . And Lee is not alone — his Harvester International storefront is part of a rising cohort of companies that has helped turn Row DTLA into a new hub for vintage shopping in LA .
Lee , who uprise up in Pasadena , has been deep into the thrifting scene in Los Angeles since high school and even ran a retail menswear boutique on Abbot Kinney for several years , but during the pandemic , he create the Harvester marque on Instagram to deal off some of his own vintage ingathering . Then , the stigma started to take off .
“ Initially , I started selling vintage denim out of the back of my hand truck , and that ’s actually where I got the name Harvester — the truck is an International Harvester Scout , ” Lee said from his rod at his sunny , still - fresh salesroom in downtown LA . “ At that point , I was selling at various markets and fleas out of my motortruck , but there was still an element of the nerve - to - human face interaction that only a brick - and – mortar storefront really provide that was missing . ”
Photo courtesy of Harvester International
Lee was introduced to The Row last spring when he curated a couple of racks of swim and breakers - themed vintage tees for a pop - up at a surf shop in the sprawling mixed - utilization coordination compound . He decide to move in because the space next door had been vacant for a bit , and clothing buyers seemed to be at mitt .
Lee was n’t the only one easily confident to set up shop there . The Row , which was work up in the other 1920s and initially designed by renowned local architect John Parkinson as a wholesale and produce market at the terminal figure of the Southern Pacific Railroad , has become a seaport for vintage enthusiasts .
The 30 - acre campus is lay out in a warehouse - thick section of the Arts District , and it ’s specify by its loom 85 - foot concrete building , which are broken up by every bit massive , multi - paned windows . At one point , it was the human race ’s second - largest wholesale produce market place ; in the 2000s , it was the factory and headquarters of American Apparel . Now , with child footer - first streets stretch out over the blocks enclosed between nine master buildings , and the indoor / outdoor industrial Beaux - Arts style territory has slowly but surely evolve into one of the metropolis ’s most interesting shopping and dining experience . Smorgasburgpops up here every Sunday ; an raiment of cool restaurants like Kato , Pizzeria Bianco , Hayato , and Go Get ‘ Em Tiger has opened , and it ’s the emplacement of the bright new offices of Majordomo Media .
Photo courtesy of The General Store
The complex fight to find its personal identity after the pandemic promote so many retailers online and place remote , and for a long clock time , the wide streets and giant parking garage felt too quiet , almost post - apocalyptic . But the recent inflow of thrifting and menswear collectors like Lee has helped delineate an exciting , produce scene . With concrete walls , high roof , and a well - worn spirit ( the building were constructed in the 1920s ) , these rooms are the sodding canvas for a vintage fan to personalize and showcase their own aesthetic . The Row style itself as a originative city - within - a - city , and the big spartan space drew the aid of another heavy slugger in the vintage space — Richard Wainwright , beginner ofA Current Affair , Pickwick Vintage , and nowArcade(which also has a storefront in New York ) .
“ We ’ve always been downtown so that part was soft , ” Wainwright said about his move into the area . “ The quarrel offer a unparalleled space in that it ’s so conveniently located adjacent to both the fashion and artwork territory . We found an affinity with many of the other tenants so it just made sense . I ’ve always gravitated towards an industrial aesthetic and I think the originative reuse of these historical building is a nice full complement to our creative reuse in the fashion industry . ”
While both A Current Affair and Pickwick Vintage are sprawling fairs that play up the ware of other LA thrifting obsessive , Arcade is a tightly curated shopfront that showcases the best of Wainwright ’s discovery in what he moot the vintage working capital of the macrocosm . “ In term of time of origin shopping , no other city come nigh [ to LA ] , ” he say . “ We just have such a deep resourcefulness of good . I do n’t recognise if it ’s because of the amusement diligence or so many hoi polloi living out their ambition here , but I do n’t find the shopping in any other city as fruitful or as cheering . ”
Phot courtesy of Pickwick Vintage Show
At Arcade , vintage jewellery and couture pocketbook and shoes are on display alongside upcycled home goodness , ball gowns , vintage suits , and even a carefully styled menswear section defined by Wainwright ’s tendency to gravitate toward “ the previous seventies and early / mid-90s . ” It ’s about as dissimilar from Lee ’s workings - course overclothes and “ new Americana ” tees as a retail merchant could be , and yet , the comportment of both conservator is part of what make a visit to The run-in a boon for vintage lover .
Another menswear gatherer , Ricky Li ofTried and True , found it made more sentience to decamp from West Hollywood and move into this Arts District composite , where he opened The General Store , a haven for hip - record hop memorabilia and streetwear place and clothing . “ Once the pandemic hit , everything change , and we decide to leave West Hollywood , ” Li enounce . “ In 2020 , we launch the General Store , and a fresh location with a tonic first gave us the chance to show a bit more than just time of origin . Here , you ’ll feel everything we gravitate to , like footgear , art collectibles , upcycled clothing , and more . Vintage is always our first love , but we wanted to do more here . ”
The General Store is forthwith across the street from Arcade , bring in it an easygoing one - stoppage shop for vintage hunters , but again , the varied aesthetics in their curation style mean these outlet are n’t really competing with each other ; instead , they dovetail . And unlike Arcade ’s celebration of all things Los Angeles , there ’s more than a small New York in the DNA of the General Store .
Photo courtesy of Arcade
“ The mode we curate and our selections now ponder the clobber I grow up wearing back in the ’ 80s and ’ ninety , ” Li sound out . “ As a youthful kid grow up in the Lower East Side , I was going to flea markets with my grandparent , and I hated it . But then I started noticing different lifestyles and styles of dress . I started hunting or digging in the same flea markets as my grandparents because I was n’t able to give new dress from Bloomingdale ’s or Macy ’s . prospicient storey short , the hunt never stopped . ”
For most thrifters , what Li is describing is the thrill of the hunt , which is precisely what keeps them going . But for Lee , the community he ’s regain at The course and being showcased alongside these other vintage retailers is part of what ’s helped him grow over the last few month . “ Being here alongside Arcade and Tried and genuine , we occupy different lane in vintage , but there ’s enough of an overlap in price of murder and customer base that it just makes common sense , ” Lee said . “ Plus , The Row offers a level of support that you ’re not going to find just spread out up shop class on some random street in Los Angeles . It truly does palpate like a biotic community of low businesses . ”
Photo courtesy of Arcade
