Looking for vintage, resale clothing in downtown SLO? Here’s a guide to 8 spots
Looking for some vintage clothing without breaking the bank?
Downtown San Luis Obispo is the place to go, with no fewer than eight retailers ranging from small specialty shops to big resellers.
And that’s not even counting the thrift stores that sell other secondhand items.
“Having a wide variety of shopping options downtown is crucial to attracting people to the area,” said Jim Dantona, president/CEO of the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce. “It’s great to see such a variety of shopping options available. There really is something for everyone.”
Dantona said the collection of stores definitely contributes to creating a vibrant downtown retail community.
“Many different types of people enjoy shopping secondhand, and it’s great to see our downtown bustling and thriving as a result of so many different types of business,” he said.
Each of the stores has its own specialty and flavor. Here’s tour of what you can find downtown.
Calico Trading Co.
Sister duo Jeannie Mielke and Susie Hawkins started Calico Trading Co. in 2019 with a clear vision: selling quality and sustainable secondhand clothing that have the seams and fabric to last another 10 years.
“I think where we really shine is we cater to everyone,” Mielke said. “One of the best compliments we got from a customer just a few weekends ago was that she sees a little bit of everybody in our store. We have a grandma shopping with her granddaughters and college students and families coming in. We have it all, which is pretty fun.”
The shop is located at 883 Marsh St. next to the Post Office.
A frequent customer of the reseller, Zara Croe was shopping on a Tuesday afternoon and had her hands full of colorful secondhand clothing.
“Whatever catches my eye,” Croe told The Tribune about her selection process. “Location is really good. It’s close to the post office, and I got in there frequently. They’re good at display. They’re good at keeping families together as far as items, colors, that kind of thing.”
Calico is open from Sunday to Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. For more information, visit its website.
Thrifty Beaches
The carefully curated clothing of Thrifty Beaches recently moved to a larger location at 876 Higuera St., in the former home of Beverly’s.
Owner Adam Kemp had a vision of creating a high-end vintage store that is accessible to everyone.
“We see H&Ms and Forever 21s and Anthropologies, like stores that are really big, and those are just selling new clothes,” Kemp said. “But there’s enough clothes on the planet as is to open a really big store and fill it up with all used items. Those stores can be nice, too.”
Thrifty Beaches has two levels and a large variety of secondhand items.
Clothing is displayed on long rows of hangers and against all store walls and on racks around the room. Kemp said he sources high-quality pieces from San Francisco, Los Angeles and Japan. When finding vintage apparel, he looks for the “ingredients” of attire, rather than specific name brands.
“I think that’s what people are looking for. Like deep down, if you touch something, you should be able to feel the quality and the love that went into it,” he said.
Thrifty Beaches has bins around the store with $5 curated clothing items, and Kemp said he was the first to bring the idea to the Central Coast.
“Everyone was like, ‘No, people don’t want to dig through bins, everyone wants things hung up,’” he said. “I was like, no, I think I want to try it. I brought bins to a pop-up, and it was insane. People were digging through them, and it was like this thrifty mentality.”
Thrifty Beaches is open from Monday to Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. The shop’s updates and recent items are found on its Instagram.
Blackwater
Once you wade through the botanicals and trinkets at Blackwater, vintage clothing and hats await you.
The shop is run by mother-daughter duo Maryalice Hamilton and Erica Hamilton and opened in 1990 under a different name: H&G Clothing. Blackwater has since evolved to selling home decor and plants beyond vintage clothing, at 705 Higuera St. at the corner of Broad Street.
Blackwater’s vintage attire comes from Village Vintage, where Erica’s husband Ely Panos runs the store at 233 Granada Drive.
“Ely’s been doing this for over 20 years, and he kind of sees things that a lot of these newer stores might look over,” Erica Hamilton told The Tribune. “At Blackwater, you’ll find leather, you’ll find fur, you’ll find chain stitch and more of a quality garment that is more of a timeless aesthetic than a lot of the other shops.”
Blackwater also transforms into a Christmas-themed store annually, selling ornaments and holiday gifts, Hamilton said.
The shop’s environment includes hanging plants, trinkets and its original Home of the Coastal Cowboy branded attire.
“It feels like you’re walking into your cool aunt’s house, that she’s been collecting items for years, and you’re going to find things that you don’t usually see at gift stores, especially with our vintage,” Hamilton said.
Blackwater is open from Sunday to Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. To shop online, visit its website.
The Switchback
The Switchback is unique from other classic secondhand stores in the downtown area. It exclusively resells and accepts high-quality outdoor gear.
The store is located at 667 Marsh St. Suite B, next to its sister store The Mountain Air.
Josh and Lindsey Harding opened The Switchback in 2023 after taking over The Mountain Air in 2020. The store sells tents, sleeping bags, backpacks, outdoor apparel and snow gear.
“(We) really just wanted to create a space where people could gain access into some of the stuff that we sell and the sports that we’re a part of, without that really high barrier to entry,” Josh Harding told The Tribune. “We really wanted to make sure that we’re buying gear that we need and gear that we love and are familiar with.”
For those looking to sell, an appointment must be made on the shop’s website. Harding said they are winding down buying snow gear and are now looking for sleeping bags, tents, backpacks and apparel for the summer months.
The Switchback is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. To call or make an appointment, visit its website.
Central Coast Vintage
Central Coast Vintage was founded by four friends from Bakersfield who moved to SLO for college.
Nate Smidt, Dominic Gamboni, Austen Hanner and Beau Gamboni thrifted and sold secondhand clothing at pop-ups and farmers markets around town, before purchasing a shop at 982 Monterey St. near Boo Boo Records.
Gamboni took over the store in December 2023 while the other founders moved onto other ventures.
Central Coast Vintage specializes in fashion for men and boys looking for vintage clothing and shoes, something that Beau found was missing from the shopping scene.
“My grandma was also from or lives in Avila Beach, so I came here a lot growing up,” Gamboni told The Tribune. “I noticed that every time we’d come to downtown, there was nowhere for men to shop. So we wanted to open up a place where men, kids, boys of all ages, could come and shop and have a place to spend their time in downtown SLO as well.”
The shop always has ‘90s music playing, with a chill, laid back atmosphere, Gamboni said.
Central Coast Vintage is open every day from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. To see what’s in store, visit its website.
A Satellite of Love
A Satellite of Love sits right outside the downtown area of SLO at 1335 Walker St.
Owner Malik Thorne opened the shop in 2018 using his retail experience from working at Boo Boo Records and Phoenix Bookstore downtown.
“My house was just full of books and records, so I really just started with a lot of that stuff, bringing it in and just growing the shop with different things,” Thorne told The Tribune.
The shop hosts concerts and book readings, though it paused during the winter due to weather and space constraints.
“The last three years were just so wet,” he said. “This winter would not have been a problem because it was so mild, but because we have this garage door, a really small shop, when it gets really cold, it’s hard to really host things properly.”
Alongside the local events, A Satellite of Love sells vintage clothing, new and used books, vinyl records and handmade goods from local vendors, Thorne said.
Most of the store’s inventory comes from former customers who sold their clothing, according to Thorne. He is currently accepting menswear like flannels, pure denim jeans, T-shirts and outerwear, for cash or store credit.
A Satellite of Love is open from Tuesday to Friday from 12 to 6 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. To find out more, visit its website.
Mysteri Vintage
Mysteri Vintage is the new store on the block.
The store is owned by Juan Aguilar and Jazmin Cortes, who have been reselling vintage clothing around the Central Coast for five years.
The store opened two months ago at 1115 Broad St. next to the old Big Sky Cafe location, and its name brings a sense of intrigue and “mystery” to customers, Aguilar told The Tribune.
“It just kind of leaves a question mark,” he said.
Mysteri Vintage offers essential pieces like workwear and outerwear and caters to everyone no matter their fashion journey, Aguilar said.
“All ages, from kids just learning about fashion to people that have been in the vintage community for year and look for a specific item that’s hard to get,” he said. “We kind of have a broad audience: men, women and a little bit of kids as well.”
Mysteri Vintage is open Monday, Wednesday and Sunday from 12 to 7 p.m., Tuesday from 12 to 6 p.m., Thursday from 12 to 8:30 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 12 to 8 p.m. For more information about Mysteri Vintage, visit its Instagram.
Jeff’s Spot
Jeff’s Spot focuses on quality and sustainable new and old clothing.
The owner, Jefferey Henderson, supplied vintage clothing to Passport on 968 Monterey St. in 2023 before taking over the lease of the store in May 2024, renaming it Jeff’s Spot. It’s next to Urban Outfitters.
The shop primarily focuses on vintage clothing and new streetwear that still has years left of use. Jeff’s Spot follows a buy, sell and trade policy, taking in vintage or secondhand items for a reasonable price.
“The overall vibe of the store is very homey,” Henderson told The Tribune. “We try to make it a very relaxing space where you could come in, just hang out for a while, play a game of Pac-Man, or just chop it up with whoever’s working. We try to make it as clean and inviting as possible, so it’s more of a vibey hangout spot where you also find cool drip than just a store.”
The store’s small space allows for workers to have genuine conversations with customers as they shop, Henderson said. He feels connected with other vintage and secondhand stores in the area, as many owners of the downtown shops started out together.
“A lot of them are actually my friends that we used to sell together on Dexter’s lawn at Cal Poly and at pop-ups in different cities, and (to) see us all now like having our own little home base is really, really cool,” he said. “Especially because with vintage, every single store has their own kind of style and their own vibe and their own niche.”
Jeff’s Spot is open every day from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. To see the latest styles, visit its website or Instagram.