Designer vintage shop Thrift the Runway opens in Bellmore
A lifelong thrifter, Dawn Gonzalez opens her first store, Thrift the Runway, in Bellmore. Credit: Thrift the Runway
Dawn Gonzalez has been an avid thrifter since she was a kid.
She remembers visiting her grandmother in Florida, where the two would always go thrift shopping. Gonzalez says there was a "stigma" around thrifting at the time, unlike today, when the market is thriving and thrifting is "considered cool."
She opened her first brick-and-mortar store, Thrift the Runway, in Bellmore in September, selling thrift and vintage clothing and accessories for women.
A Bronx native, Gonzalez moved to Long Island 20 years ago. The building blocks of her business started back then, when she stumbled upon the thrift store Unique in Westbury and "got hooked."
Gonzalez began selling her favorite thrifted pieces online and started a Facebook group, eventually making a website to accommodate her growing following.
In 2019, Gonzalez rented a small space in a Lynbrook salon, and started selling products in person. When the pandemic hit, the owner sold the space, bringing Gonzalez back to her online roots. This time, though, she worked with a friend in Atlanta who had a large online community through her Facebook group where she resold thrifted finds. It was there that Gonzalez got the opportunity to host live online events. She sold her entire inventory during her first Facebook live show.
Since then, Gonzalez has continued to collect while juggling Thrift the Runway and a full-time job at LaGuardia Airport. But with a growing supply, she wanted to expand her business into a commercial space.
When she stopped by an auto body shop in Bellmore to get her car fixed, she saw a "For Rent " sign on the window of an empty store and shortly after, Gonzalez was signing a lease.
After years in the online reselling community, she says she learned "some tricks of the trade" and sourced some of the best quality vintage items for her shop at MyUnique, Goodwill and Salvation Army.
Typical brands shoppers will find at the store are Michael Kors, Kate Spade, Anthropologie, Free People, Boston Proper, Chicos, Yumi Kim and Jovani.
Prices range from $15 for a BCBGeneration dress to $45 for a Kate Spade leather bag. Shop hours are posted weekly on the store's Instagram account.
Thrift the Runway is a one-woman show — Gonzalez not only owns and runs the shop but is also a stylist, helping women look and feel their best.
Thrift the Runway, 2717 Grand Ave., Bellmore, thrifttherunway.com, Instagram: thrift_the_runway
