vintage love
Black and white pictures of Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly hang on the walls. Piano music fills the boutique. Inge Grandl, owner of the clothing store Vintage Love, is surrounded by floor-length dresses and coats. Her dog lies on her lap, next to it green wool that she is crocheting. “I’ve been collecting for more than 45 years,” says Grandl, looking through her shop. She puts the wool aside, keeping the dog on her lap. Vintage Love is filled with evening wear from the fifties to the nineties. Completely in the old Hollywood flair. The clothes are sorted by color. Grandl’s goods are exquisite: Big labels like Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy or Valentino can be found here on Frauenstrasse. Most of it is from the last century, but “everything comes back in fashion,” says the owner. That’s why she also owns pieces that are a bit newer, but that fit her range in terms of style. In addition to the large Munich theaters, which request clothing from Grandl for historical performances, more and more young people are coming to her. This allows the owner to observe the growing interest in sustainability in her industry only too well.
Vintage Love, Frauenstrasse 22, Mon-Fri 1pm-7pm, Sat 1pm-6pm, phone 25542207, www.vintageandmore.de
Alexa’s
It goes from a glamorous place to one where more of the “young underground shops”. The mannequin at the entrance is wearing a short, bright red fringed jacket. A Jimi Hendrix poster on one wall, concert tickets on the other. “For everyone who wants to look a little different,” is how owner Alexa Schab describes the range in her vintage store Alexa’s. Opened in 1985, it is one of the oldest in Munich. “I’ve always specialized in the fifties, sixties and seventies,” says Schab. That’s not to say the Roaring Twenties can’t be found in elbow-length gloves and beaded hats. What is special about the range? It comes from all over the world. Schab has based her travel destinations on the city’s fashion fundus and has traveled to New York, Paris and London. “1972 was my first shopping trip when I was 17, that was in Amsterdam at the Waterlooplein,” says the owner. From there she took thick leather jackets from the war to Munich, which now hang between colorful dresses with trumpet sleeves and necklaces with peace signs. Schab has a tip for vintage lovers: “It takes a lot of learning to recognize what’s genuine and good. But once you understand it, you’ll never again run the risk of meeting someone at a wedding who’s wearing the same thing.”
Alexa’s, Utzschneiderstraße 10., Tue.-Fri., 1 p.m.-7 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m.-6 p.m., phone 2604203, www.alexas.de
Holareidulijö
It can also happen at the Oktoberfest that you see your dirndl on someone else. After a two-year break, the Wiesn could possibly take place again this year. To avoid a look-alike faux pas, Holareidulijö is the solution. In this case, this is not an attempt at yodelling, but the place to go for second-hand traditional costumes. Old, Bavarian clothes, lederhosen, dirndls, brogues, deer roses or quill belts. Michaela Klein, the owner of the shop, which opened in the early 1990s, buys and sells everything that goes with traditional Bavarian clothing. Sewn, washed and patched old parts can be found in Klein’s large range. Like other vintage and second-hand shops, Holareidulijö offers clothing for film and theater performances: “For example, we were the main outfitter for the State Opera in London when ‘Der Freischütz’ was performed there,” Klein says on the website. However, unlike most traditional costume shops, Holareidulijö is open all year round and exhibits three times a year at Auer Dult to present the sustainable goods.
Holareidulijö, Schellingstraße 81, Thurs.-Fri., 3 p.m.-6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m.-2 p.m., phone 2717745, www.holareidulijoe.com
Fashion & Fantasy
At Fashion & Fantasy, women’s clothing is often mixed with one or the other piece of decoration.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
Not far from the traditional costume shop, past the Pinakothek, there is another vintage store, run by a very unusual couple. Welcome to Annette and Betty at Fashion & Fantasy. Betty, a large, colorful bird sculpture, guards the entrance. Annette Schlagheck does the rest of the work. As a big fan of Niki de Saint Phalle, Schlagheck presented the bird in front of the shop, which was founded in 1987 by Karin Lawrence. Her daughter called this place “a psychotherapeutic practice with a clothes shop,” Lawrence once said Süddeutsche Zeitung. The customers would like to come not only because of the sustainable fashion, but also because of the always nice chat. In 2012, Schlagheck took over the sale: women’s clothing for everyday use, evening wear, shoes, bags, fashion accessories and also one or the other decorative item that she usually finds at trade fairs, she sells in the depot from 1847. The learned woman also brought something personal Florist with you in the business: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, Annette Schlagheck has seasonal flowers and potted plants ready for her customers.
Fashion & Fantasy, Fürstenstraße 17, Mon.-Tues., 11 a.m. – 6 p.m., Wed. 11 a.m. – 8 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., phone 2800600, www.fashionandfantasy.de
The Second Gerdismann
Unlike Fashion & Fantasy, The Second Gerdismann is the home for men’s fashion. The store smells of leather. The floorboards creak. Red model cars are displayed in the showcases next to sunglasses. Boxing gloves and one or the other basketball also serve the ambience. The fashion world for men is generally manageable – not to call it puny. The Second Gerdismann is one of the few places that offers sustainable shirts, sweaters, jeans, shoes, full suits, ties and other accessories. Everything from high-quality brands such as Prada, Dior, Jil Sander or Etro. Owner Nina Bauer includes well-preserved parts from well-known labels in her range. The goods are available for sale for three months, until new, elegant men’s clothing is then fed back into the sustainable cycle.
The Second Gerdismann, Barer Str. 74, Mon.-Fri. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., phone 80993240, www.thesecond-gerdismann.de
white raven
With the purchase of jewellery, clothing or other accessories you can do a good deed at the Weißer Raben.
(Photo: Florian Peljak)
Apart from the fact that second-hand fashion is good for the environment, you can do even more good things at Weißer Rabe on Drygalski-Allee. Supported by Caritas, the inclusion and employment company helps unemployed people in various ways, such as giving free toys to families in need. People with a smaller budget, students or older people can find second-hand women’s and men’s clothing, shoes and accessories, as well as tableware, furniture, jewellery, decoration and books in good condition at low prices. The used goods store gladly accepts donations in kind.
Weißer Rabe, Drygalski-Allee 33e, Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m.-3 p.m., phone 7474680, www.weisser-rabe.de
picknweight
At Picknweight, the name is the concept: clothing is sold by weight.
(Photo: Catherine Hess)
Picknweight was born in 2014 based on the idea of selling by weight. Striving for sustainability and individuality plays into the group’s hands. Because the offer is as the company wants to present itself: diverse. Jeans, dresses, jackets, shoes and accessories. From Japanese kimonos to 1950’s costumes. For women as well as for men. Picknweight obtains its vintage clothing from sorting plants in Germany, as well as additional second-hand goods from the USA, Japan and England. The concept is simple: instead of paying per item of clothing, you simply pay per kilo here. Managing Director Sarah Leila Mesgarzadeh-Aghdam runs other branches in Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne and London in addition to the Munich store on Schellingstrasse.
Picknweight, Schellingstraße 24, Mon-Sat 12-6 p.m., phone 24241400, www.picknweight.de
Clothes Friends
Another type of environmentally friendly shopping that was also a bit different emerged from a bachelor thesis: Clothes Friends. The two Munich women Sonja Wunderlich and Carmen Jenny studied at the Academy for Fashion and Design. The idea was to develop a platform on which clothing could be rented and rented, thereby “enabling the most lasting variety in the wardrobe,” says Wunderlich. In the app you can browse through the range and rent what you like without having to participate in the environmentally harmful fast fashion industry. You can pick up the rented piece in so-called hubs, a café or vintage shop nearby. With Clothes Friends, the founders want to offer the opportunity to save CO₂, energy and plastic. Together with the Munich slow fashion brand Akjumii, Clothes Friends founded the first circular fashion space. In the Glockenbachviertel you can also rent the clothes on display there and thus keep your ecological footprint as small as possible.
Clothes Friends, Reichenbachstraße 36, Tue.-Sat. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., phone 0175/5033445, www.clothes-friends.com