Dear Editor,
I am the proprietress of a small business in Tarrytown called Trilogy Consignment. It’s a lovely place that makes me very proud. Owning a consignment shop is not only my vocation, it is a collaborative environmental effort with our ever-growing community of customers and all the consignors who keep Trilogy stocked with interesting, quality, pre-loved items. I’m writing to celebrate our customers and consignors for helping a local small business thrive by participating in what is essentially the only recycling initiative of its kind in Westchester.
Since opening, we have worked with about 800 consignors, nearly all of them living in Westchester. This means that when customers shop at Trilogy, their money not only goes to support a small business, but also right back to people in this community. I recently learned that money spent at a local small business generates 3.5x more wealth for the local economy compared to money spent at a chain owned business. Consignment shops source their merchandise locally, working directly with people in their communities while increasing their local economic benefit.
Consignment is the kind of thing where the people who love it seek it out wherever they go. It’s one of my favorite things to have someone new visit, who found us because they were specifically looking to shop secondhand. Many customers tell me that the experience of shopping at Trilogy is something special, or that shopping usually stresses them out, but they leave Trilogy feeling better than when they walked in. I often hear customers claim that they get more complements on their Trilogy finds than anything else they wear. I think what people notice when they give a complement is the confidence that comes with doing something enjoyable that also aligns with their values. Plus, finding that perfect something in a consignment shop is like meeting a new friend that feels like an old friend, and that’s a good feeling that lasts past the first wear.
March 15th was the 4th anniversary of Trilogy opening in Tarrytown, and March 3rdmarked one year in our gorgeous new location on Main Street. These milestones have inspired me to take our recycling efforts to the next level by collaborating with a local non-profit, BEBeauty, for a recycling initiative launching this spring. We want to help make it easier to recycle clothing and make-up containers, and educate people about why it’s important to think about these things. To learn more, come visit us or check our website: consigntrilogy.com.
Nothing but good can come from us collectively making an effort to treat the land we live on with respect. Happy Earth Day!
Heather Reid