Dive Brief:

• Apparel consignment retailer Second Time Around is rebranding to 2nd Time Around and expanding its number of stores in New York by at least six. 

• The chain, which also has stores in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington DC, has revamped its logo to get away from a “thrift” vibe to a more upscale look that reflects its offerings, which include up-to-date fashions and designer labels.

• The retailer has updated its consignment process, introducing a pick-up service and online tracking for consigners to keep track of what they’ve sold.

Dive Insight:

Once a haven for cash-poor fashionistas and vintage hunters, consignment shops have gone mainstream in recent years, especially among younger shoppers who like a deal and the idea of recycling used apparel. The retailers are enjoying it, too, with healthy sales growing. Second-hand stores have the “treasure hunt” appeal of discount retailers like T.J. Maxx, and less of the iffy lower-quality merchandise often found at outlet stores.

A consignment shopper must be assertive when going through the racks and bins at a consignment store, and it’s no different for the retailers. It’s no longer your grandmother’s second-hand shop — 2nd Time Around is on the right track, keeping its logo fresh and using its stores to attract and learn from its customers.

"We have an opportunity to own the contemporary market on up through designer," president and CEO Kristin Burrows told Women’s Wear Daily. "We have the largest base of brick-and-mortar stores and we use them as an asset.”