The Best Thrift Stores in Montreal
Some of the city’s most well-dressed residents get their nice gear from secondhand and vintage stores rather than splurging on designer wares. And it's no secret that they scour yard sales, browse Facebook Marketplace and follow Montreal’s best clothing swaps to score one-of-a-kind pieces at a fraction of retail price. “You can find really amazing things if you’re patient and scour the right places,” Alex Mondry, co-owner of Marche Floh, told The McGill Tribune. This is especially true for plus-size shoppers. The independent boutique offers an authentic thrifting experience with its decor and layout, but also promotes body positivity by promoting affordable fashion for all sizes.
The store hosts an assortment of resellers, who curate the shop with their own styles in mind. The resulting environment is very judgment-free and inclusive, says Mondry. “You can walk in wearing a black and white art tee with your workwear pants and it’s totally cool.”
Renaissance, meanwhile, is another local favourite, with 16 stores around the city that give contemporary and vintage items a second life. It’s a non-profit business that integrates underprivileged members of the community into its workforce and has an incredible social mission behind it. The company takes in donated items from the public and resells them, allowing customers to find both contemporary and vintage pieces without breaking the bank.
Thrifting is popular amongst hipsters and millennials who want to add an eclectic flair to their wardrobes while being environmentally conscious. It’s not only a money saver but a way to avoid the waste that comes with new items made in fast fashion. “Thrifting keeps garments from being sent to landfills,” Mondry notes. “When you buy a pre-loved item, it’s less carbon intensive.”
While some of the city’s most coveted finds can be found at the Mile End’s curated vintage store Marche Floh, there are many others in the city worth checking out. For example, Eva B in the Plateau is an independent boutique stocked with a mix of upcycled retro and plenty unaltered vintage; and Cul-de-Sac on the Main is a great spot to hit for an ugly holiday sweater or loud summer BBQ shirt. For more details please visit best thrift stores in Montreal
Other options for shopping the latest trend for less include downtown’s resale clothing warehouse The EcoDepot (6521 Avenue Van Horne) which carries everything from dresses and skirts to shoes, accessories and furniture, all made by local artisans. Or head to the Plateau’s Studio Citizen, which sells its own in-house line of clothing from scraps and deadstock fabric to ensure nothing goes to waste.
Other vintage shops worth checking out include the aforementioned Club Theos Montreal Inc (5319 Park Avenue) in the Mile End with its 90s streetwear-vintage for hypebeasts, and Ex-Voto in Little Italy, which stocks a mix of Y2K silhouettes and workwear staples. Also worth a visit is Kitsch’n Swell in the Mile End, a vintage clothing and gift shop that specializes in Canadian independent design.