There’s nothing quite like the rush of getting your hands on a stunning vintage Gucci bag, pair Versace jeans or Chanel sunnies. Now the fashion obsessed, or just sustainability conscious, can do it from the comfort of their Instagram feeds.
Etsy used to be the place for vintage clothing gold digging, but shopping for vintage on Instagram is a whole other ball game. The thrill of stumbling across another account filled with vintage treasures just waiting to be bid on is not exactly a brand-new phenomenon, has definitely shot up in popularity of late.
Whether you are based in London, LA or a small country town in Australia, you have a whole digital bidding experience right at your finger-tips. Instagram accounts auctioning off vintage pieces generally shop world-wide, giving you a whole new world of sources to find your next designer treasure.
The process is simple, place your bid in the comments quickly and keep post notifications turned on for your favourite vintage accounts. On most accounts, items are up for anywhere between a few hours to a whole day, with bids going up in increments of $5.
Fashion Industry Broadcast spoke to one of Australia’s most successful Vintage accounts on Instagram, sourced by Melbourne’s talented Netta Talmi.
What made you get into vintage sourcing, and the subsequent auctioning of it on your Instagram account @nine.co?
“I grew up surrounded by vintage, my mum has been in the industry since she was a young adult. When I was twelve, I started tagging alone with her to trash and treasure markets. We would get up at 6am and drive out to weird suburbs – I guess I was really fortunate to learn a lot from her, about the quality and history of vintage fashion.
The bidding system on @nine.co started based on the fact that I could never decide on the value of the garment! So, I liked the idea of giving people an opportunity to determine the worth.”
What are the benefits of using Instagram rather than an online store?
“With Instagram being one of the highest used social media platforms, the exposure is incredible. It is an opportunity to reach all kinds of people, many who wouldn’t necessarily think of shopping second-hand… It isn’t all fun and games with Instagram though. The platform has a sickening power over small business like my own. My Instagram account was removed from Instagram in 2018. I was very fortunate to get it back, but I still have nightmares of this reoccurring.”
What do you look for in an item of clothing or accessory?
“I source based on my own personal taste and whether I would wear the garment myself. I have learnt that it is important to focus on finding higher quality pieces”
Do you think vintage shopping is a good way to offset the problems with the fast fashion industry?
“Absolutely! Vintage shopping is one of the most sustainable practices, I try to encourage anybody I know to shop second hand.
“With such a disgusting amount of clothing ending up in landfill, it’s so important for people to realise that you can recycle and find second hand clothes that are also fashionable.”
You can find Netta’s Instagram treasures at @nine.co – let the bidding wars begin!