Spring clean your wardrobe with the help of a dress agency

9:56am Tuesday 16th March 2010

By Maxine Gordon

NOW that March is here, it’s tempting to ditch our winter woollies and spring clean our wardrobes. The shops and lifestyle magazines may be brimming with the latest styles, but the grim economic forecast is threatening to rain on our fashion parade. Given the financial climate, blowing the weekly housekeeping on some new gear for spring may seem reckless – especially when politicians are lining up to tell us how much worse things will be after the election.

Why not follow the footsteps of canny fashionistas whose first port of call isn’t the high street but their local dress agencies.

These are the women who won’t settle for Marks & Spencer or Dorothy Perkins when Marc Jacobs and Donna Karan are among their financial reach.

Dress agencies sell quality, unwanted clothes for a fraction of the original price and are a mecca for bargain hunters with a taste for designer gear – or women who want to clear out their wardrobes and make a buck to boot.

These agencies will sell your clothes on your behalf, often giving you half the sale price. However, they are discerning: most want clothes that are nearly new or “gently worn”, in top-notch condition from designer labels or shops at the high end of the High Street.

“Dress agencies are a win-win for everyone involved,” says Jacey Lamerton, who so loved the concept she opened one herself – Get Your Frocks Off, in Goodramgate, York. “You can make money from your wardrobe clutter knowing that one woman’s clutter is another woman’s chic.”

They are ideal for recessionistas – woman who still want to look trendy during the economic troubles. “It enables you to buy wonderful clothes much more cheaply,” says Jacey.

Among the top-end labels on sale at Get Your Frocks Off are a Paul Smith dress (original price: £300, now £100); a pair of Rock & Republic jeans (were £200 now £80) as well as an Armani skirt for £40, an All Saints dress for £80 and a Farhi dress for £40.

Dress agencies make environmental sense too, insists Jacey. “It’s very green. It’s recycling and also a way to buy clothes and cut out sweatshops.”

Sonia Room ran a dress agency on Fossgate in York for nine years before selling it on. But she’s back by popular demand and her clients couldn’t be happier. Well, where else could you bag a Prada handbag for £98 (original price £280) or a suede Dolce & Gabbana fringed jacket that was bought for £2,000 for £300?

Other steals include Ugg boots worth £280 for £88. “I had a Mulberry handbag the other day that flew out for £280 but probably cost £575 new,” says Sonia.

The key to a successful dress agency, she believes, is being fair to the seller and customer. She splits all sales 50-50 with the seller, and keeps her prices keen, aware that if they are too high, the goods won’t sell.

As a guide, items are sold on at about a third of their original price. Stock is only kept for eight weeks, when it is either returned to the seller or passed on to charity.

Lorraine Turnbull operates a similar policy at her shop in Malton, The Frock Exchange, on Savile Street.

“People can come here and pick up beautiful pieces that would normally be out of their budget,” says Lorraine.

Highlights in her collection include a Dolce & Gabbana black satin evening dress which cost £225 new but is now £80; a Joseph Ribkoff dress, new at £225 now £65 and a Hobbs jacket, bought for £225 and now £45.

Lorraine’s boutique also stocks bargain-priced designer hats, shoes and accessories, making it a one-stop shop to find the perfect outing for the races or a wedding.

Local fans include Vicki Fahey, wife of Malton racehorse trainer Richard Fahey. During racing season, Vicki may have to attend two or three meetings a week, while a stint at Royal Ascot demands five different outfits.

“It’s a fantastic idea,” says Vicki. “When you wear an outfit you might not want to be seen in it again, so it’s great, I can bring it here to sell on – and buy something else while I am here.”

Lorraine even admits to touting for new sellers. “Last year I went to York Races and gave out my card. I went up to ladies and said: ‘If you don’t think you will wear your outfit again, do come and see me’.”

Seller’s story PAM ABBOTT, from Burythorpe, near Malton, is a regular at The Frock Exchange.

She sells lightly used clothes and accessories via the shop and uses the proceeds to buy something for herself from the boutique in Savile Street. Among her best buys have been a pair of LK Bennett boots, still in the box, worth £229 for which she paid £45.

Pam said: “I could not possibly afford £225 for a new pair of boots, but at The Frock Exchange you can get designer labels for a fraction of the price. All the items are quality goods, which is why, I am sure, it is successful.”

Pam also likes the “lucky dip” aspect of a dress agency. “You never know what you might find. It’s a lot of fun – great retail therapy.”

If you want to cash in on wardrobe gems you’re fed up with, follow these selling tips from Jacey Lamerton:

• From the top end of the High Street upwards (ie: brands such as LK Bennett, Hobbs, Whistles)