Everything is expensive, and clothing is not an exception.
This is a fact that Victoria Romero, Racial Equity and Inclusion Alliance (REIA) executive, knows well.
“Inflation continues to rise, and even at thrift stores, prices of clothes rise too,” she said.
To make the burden a little lighter for students, REIA plans to host a pop-up thrift shop, selling clothes at affordable prices.
Romero, vice-president cultural and social engagement, noted the “lack of affordable options” for clothing, as places where students may shop for second-hand clothing, like Value Village, continue to raise prices. There are few other inexpensive options besides fast fashion. Instead of focusing on profit, REIA wants to focus on affordability, sustainability and accessibility.
“Everyone deserves to have new things, clothes that they feel good in and the opportunity to buy that,” said Romero.
The event will be held from Dec. 4 to 8 in University Centre, and all clothes at the thrift shop will be sold at flat rates of $7, $12 and $15.
For those looking to clear out their closets, Romero said the thrift shop allows students to both buy affordable items and make some money selling clothing. For any items sold, students will receive $5 for shirts, $10 for bottoms and $10 for outerwear and dresses. Clothing can be dropped off at REIA’s community room, 183 Helen Glass, until Dec. 1.
With its focus on accessibility, REIA will be displaying all clothes at the thrift shop solely by size.
REIA co-president Ivan Nunez Gamez said, “At the end of the day, clothes have no gender.”
The thrift shop is open to anyone, however, both Romero and Nunez Gamez said the disparities that many BIPOC and racialized students face inspired the idea for the thrift shop in the first place.
“A lot of people who face financial instability tend to be racialized individuals just because of our systemically racist structure,” said Nunez Gamez.
Since the recent start of REIA’s community room office hours, Nunez Gamez said many students have approached to discuss their concerns surrounding the lack of scholarships awarded to racialized students.
The money raised from the thrift shop will go toward the creation of the REIA scholarship fund. This comes as a result of new regulations concerning Community Initiative Funding that were implemented by UMSU in July.
Now, student community groups are prohibited from using the funding provided to them for student scholarships.
Through the thrift shop and future REIA initiatives, the student organization hopes to raise $5,000 by the end of the year to put toward scholarships, said Nunez Gamez.
“We do think that scholarships are some of the most valuable things that community representatives can provide to students at the U of M,” Romero said.
If any clothes are left unsold and uncollected after the thrift shop, Nunez Gamez said that REIA plans to donate the remaining items to a non-profit or charity within Winnipeg.
