Why Vintage Dealers in Collectives Earn More (hint: they talk about $!)
Plus, a $10 million Birkin, Celine Phantom revival, and a community activation strategy The RealReal should use.
Welcome to Second Take 🎤 where we dig into what vintage dealers and collectors are really talking about behind the scenes of this multi-billion dollar industry.
Future editions of Second Take will be for paid subscribers. Thank you for reading:
Hi! By now it’s mid-July and I hope everyone has managed to chuck their phone aside for at least a few pool days this summer. While Pre-Loved Podcast is on our annual July break, I can assure you, I've been trying to do exactly that!
Exception: there's no way I'd miss the livestream of the Sotheby's auction of Jane Birkin's original Birkin bag. When that first bid came in at €1 million euro, I gasped along with the crowd in the room — more on this later in the letter.
Here's what we’re covering today:
Why vintage dealers in multi-vendor collectives earn more — hint: it might be because they talk money with peers.
Michael Rider's Celine debut has collectors digging Phantom bags out of storage…
A social media trend that lets you show off your inventory without feeling "salesy"
What the record-shattering $10 million Birkin tells us about where luxury resale is heading
The RealReal's latest ad campaign has a golden community activation opportunity (and a creative way anyone with style can influence!)
Let’s dive right into it! ⬇️
The Collective Advantage: Why Dealers Who Talk Money Make More
Here's an uncomfortable truth from our 2025 Secondhand Sellers Income Survey: two-thirds of vintage dealers are operating in complete financial isolation.
Only 34.9% of surveyed dealers discuss pricing strategy with their peers, and just 31.7% talk profit or salary with other business owners. That means roughly 65% of dealers are flying solo on their finances—constantly second-guessing their prices and profits while colleagues do the exact same thing.
This is partly because they’re solopreneurs working in isolation. 90.5% of our survey respondents work completely alone, meaning there's no natural opportunity for the casual money conversations that might happen in other workplaces to occur.
However by contrast, we found dealers working in multi-vendor collectives were twice as likely to discuss finances with other business owners.
When you share booth space, pricing strategy becomes normal shop talk rather than a closely guarded secret. And those dealers who talk strategy with their colleagues? They're making more informed decisions—and more money.
To understand the collective advantage, I spoke with Andrea Dolter, co-owner of Sardines, a vintage collective in Milwaukee, and Ryan Kolczaski, of RK Vintage, one of their vendors.
Andrea and her partner Nate started selling vintage in 2018 (as To Hell and Back Vintage & Repairs) and opened Sardines in Milwaukee last year after being in a vintage collective while selling in Denver:
What drew you to the collective model beyond just cost-sharing?
Andrea: Before moving to Milwaukee, we were part of a very small collective in Denver. Beyond cost-sharing, we saw a deeper value in the model for building community. We didn't want Sardines to feel like a typical vendor setup with separate booths. We envisioned something more collaborative—a shared space where independent sellers could grow their businesses, earn a living, and build toward future goals while also working with peers to allow for more collaboration, inspiration, and advice.
Everything is intermixed in our store—all the dresses together, all the pants together—so shoppers see it as one cohesive store rather than jumping around to different vendor booths. Everything is individually tagged so customers can also build connections with specific vendors if they keep picking up the same person's items.
How does your collective work day-to-day?
Andrea: Nate and I own the business, and our vendors contribute by stocking their goods and working a set number of hours each month. We don't charge rent—just a percentage commission on sales, which covers our rent and business costs.
We do have a minimum guarantee. How that works is, if your commission doesn't make it to the minimum guarantee amount, you owe up to that amount — it's a pretty low number, but it protects our vendors and the business. It makes sure the bills are covered and also makes sure no one's treating the space as storage, keeping sellers motivated to keep putting their quality stock in there.
My research found that dealers in collectives are twice as likely to discuss finances with peers. Do you see that happening at Sardines?
Andrea: Absolutely. The collective builds a safe space and camaraderie with this group of people who all have a shared interest in making sure this thing succeeds. We've all built individual relationships with each other, and we have a group chat where everyone's always sharing resources or asking questions and navigating situations together.
I definitely hear people having more conversations around finances— sharing how much they made at a specific market, or what events are worth doing. It's really valuable to have that face-to-face connection where you understand someone else's business beyond just seeing their Instagram posts.
Ryan: Pricing is the main thing we talk about [in the collective] as far as business strategy. We also talk about different leads, like giving leads to your dealer friends if you have a lead on something that isn't quite your style. Within the collective, at the end of the day, we all want each other to succeed. It's a benefit to both our individual businesses as well as the collective as a whole.
What do you think keeps dealers from having these transparent conversations more broadly?
Andrea: Money is a tricky subject in this world—there's a lot of fear and stigma around it. Instead of ‘paycheck to paycheck,’ many of us dealers are running ‘pop-up to pop-up’ and barely have time to track what we're actually earning or spending. There's this mentality of "as long as the bills are paid it’s okay" and there’s a lot of fear around the reality of what we're actually spending and making, instead of using that information as a tool to make better decisions.
Without consistent metrics, it's hard to compare. Someone might say they had a “great market,” but are they factoring in costs, fees, labor, or travel? Usually not.
Even at Sardines, when we proposed sharing average sales metrics with all vendors to help them benchmark, the vendors voted against it. No one wants to feel like they're falling behind.
Are there other ways this industry could be more transparent about success?
Andrea: Markets, for example, do not tell you how successful you could or couldn't be at their market. They just want you to do the market. I get it— as the event coordinator, you don't want to be responsible for someone else's success or failure. But, I think saying something like "on average, this is what our vendors take home" would set an expectation and allow someone to determine whether this event is a success or failure for them. We've built that concept into our collective with our minimum monthly guarantee.
I think, if we took those kinds of benchmarks and brought them into markets—like "hey, this is on average what our vendors make"—it would help everyone. If you've done an event a few times and you're not getting anywhere near that average, then maybe that event is just not the right fit for your business.
How do you personally broach having these kinds of business conversations?
Andrea: Whenever someone is dancing around the topic of money, I usually try to just dive right in and be open about sharing. Sometimes even if someone's not asking me specifically how much money I made at an event, I'll openly share that information without being asked because it's information that's valuable to have.
I think we need more metrics to understand this industry. Having actual numbers and data helps because we already have so much emotion tied to finances. I think it's more valuable to treat it as a data point, and then make informed decisions moving forward.
Ryan: It can be uncomfortable to ask those types of questions, but when I’ve asked friends, they have reassured me: "you can ask me anytime you want, if you have questions on anything." I would do the same for them. Just tell them that you don't have to feel uncomfortable about this—I want you to sell your piece for the most you can.
What advice would you give dealers who want to have more of these conversations?
Andrea: If we want more people to act collectively, we need to create environments where transparency, shared learning, and mutual support are the norm—not the exception. That starts with leading by example, being honest about both the wins and the struggles, and creating space for community, not just commerce.
Even something as simple as a group chat for dealers in your area (editor’s note: that’s how International Vintage Day came about!) can make a huge difference. It doesn't have to be a formal collective—just a space where people feel safe to share resources and ask questions.
Ryan: Be on the same page with your friends and tell them, "I want you to succeed as much as you want me to succeed." There's no reason we should keep pricing from each other. Just have that mutual respect for each other's business.
Dealers, try this:
✅Start a group chat with other local dealers ✅Share your earnings first to normalize the conversation ✅Ask friends: “Can I ask you business questions without it being weird?” ✅Treat finances as data points, not emotional topics ✅ Look for, or create, collaborative selling opportunities like collectives!
Time to pull out that Celine Phantom…
Days after Michael Rider's debut as Celine's creative director in Paris, vintage dealers and collectors are already taking notice and doing the math.
Aesthetically, the collection featured what Marie Claire called “French girl requirements” — “the collarless bouclé jacket, the Mary Jane ballet flat, and the Jane Birkin-inspired wicker basket bag,” while W Magazine noted how it “drew from American sportswear refracted through a distinctly French lens.”
But here's what matters if you’re someone who watches The RealReal like it’s a stock ticker: the revival of the Celine Phantom bag, originally released in 2011 under Phoebe Philo's creative direction.
Much like when Chloe put a re-rerelease of the 2005 Chloe Paddington bag on the runway this spring and the RealReal searches for pre-loved versions increased sixfold (up 54% the week following the show!) — expect to see pre-loved Phantom bag prices climb, and for fashion editors and influencers to start pulling original references.
Another trend to watch from the show: the boxing boot reference that Chelsea Von Mach spotted here — vintage athleticwear is having a moment, in general, and this collection had those references. (I also spotted vintage boxing boots as Brimfield street style this May—photo below):
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If you've got Celine Phantom bags from the 2011-2018 era sitting unworn in your closet, now might be the time to pull them out and restyle them, or price and sell accordingly…
“Better be nice!”
This trending social media post format would work perfectly for vintage — the shop owner introduces a team member and asks them to show their favorite items in the store, telling the viewer that they “better be nice!” See how Dunkin’ incorporated the trend here, and then see how
collaborated with Hauteline to show off curated rentals available in their new Lower East Side store here:
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If you struggle creating social content that feels fun instead of overtly "salesy," this format works by putting your team (or yourself) front and center while naturally showcasing inventory. Plus, the "better be nice" hook grabs viewers' attention and gives them a reason to engage—people love hyping up small businesses.
Jane Birkin's Birkin Just Broke Every Record
Fashion history was made at Sotheby's Paris this week when Jane Birkin's original Hermès Birkin prototype sold for €8.6 million ($10.1 million USD), officially becoming the most expensive handbag ever sold at auction.
After the opening bid of €1 million euro drew audible gasps from the auction room, the bag sparked a 10-minute bidding war between nine bidders. I watched every minute 👀 knowing it was going to shatter the record for most-expensive bag (the number in my head going in was $6 million…) just not knowing by how much!
The morning after the auction, the buyer was revealed to be Tokyo-based luxury resale company, Valuence Japan, who placed their bids via telephone through Maiko Ichikawa, Head of Sotheby's Japan. Valuence operates several luxury fashion businesses but told the Tokyo Weekender “the acquisition is not for resale purposes.” Instead, the company views the bag as “a piece of cultural heritage that will be made accessible to a broad audience.”
This is heartwarming to hear. While Paris-based vintage dealer Catherine Benier owned the bag from 2000 to present, she loaned it for exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York and the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London. Many hoped it would end up in an institution like the Met in this sale (but museums do not have that kind of budget, lol!) and most were just glad it didn’t go to Kim Kardashian or Lauren Sánchez Bezos who were rumored bidders.
I definitely observed a tension in the public’s reaction to this sale, which I think is largely down to grappling with feelings about fashion items being “personal luxuries” versus pieces of “cultural history” — a conversation it feels like we’ve been having since Kim Kardashian wore the Marilyn Monroe dress to the Met Gala.
Of course, the pieces that command the very highest prices aren't just rare, they're historically significant — what auction houses refer to as “provenance” — but where do we draw the line between what is collectively-stewarded and what is individually-owned? I don’t singularly have those answers, but for luxury auctions, this record-breaking sale certainly sets a new benchmark for what collectors are willing to pay for fashion history.
‘That’s So Last Season’ is So Last Season
The RealReal's new ad campaign "'that's so last season' is so last season" was really clever copy that grabbed attention across my social feeds. The campaign features pieces like the Miu Miu Arcadie bag and The Row jelly flats on taglined billboards, positioning these previously (micro?) trendy items as timeless pieces to restyle season-after-season.
Marketing strategist Hayden Freedman gave free advice via LinkedIn: it would’ve been really fun for this campaign to seed some of last year’s “it pieces” to influencers with a brief to restyle them for 2025.
I think this restyling concept has legs beyond social — there's a community activation opportunity for
to bring influencers into stores for a personal styling event, helping their actual customers restyle challenging or trendy pieces. Attendees could bring their own pieces from their actual closets — and, hey, if it doesn’t work out they can always consign! — and crowdsource styling advice from tastemakers they follow.In-person community activations create authentic connections between the brand, its customers, and the influencers that represent the brand’s ideal persona. This idea responds to the reality that traditional influencer events (drinks + product preview) are done and dull, with brands pivoting to more creative engagement strategies, we’ve even seen brand inviting customers on influencer/press trips.
And — bigger picture! — what if we normalized personal styling as a form of influence?
I think personal styling is an excellent service-based business for any platformed person with style credibility — look to the type of success influencers have had with platforms like Pickle (for rental) and Indyx (for personal styling). Rather than relying solely on affiliate links and product placements, services like styling offer recurring revenue opportunities and deeper community relationships with followers.
💌 Everything Else You Missed This Week:
🌍 Chile's government added textiles as a "priority" category to its Extended Producer Responsibility laws to combat the fashion waste accumulating in the Atacama Desert.
♻️ Billie Eilish worked with Universal Music Group to upcycle 400K unsold concert tees into new merchandise.
✨ Olivia Rodrigo wore a vintage red gingham Ralph Lauren dress from the spring 2000 collection to Wimbledon.
🛍️ Brimfield Flea Market kicked off its July edition, drawing vintage dealers and collectors from around the globe to Massachusetts July 8-13th.
What story caught your attention this week? ⬇️
Got a tip for Pre-Loved? 💌 Solving a piece of the circular fashion puzzle? Have a buzzy piece of vintage news you want readers to know about? Put a tip in my inbox: prelovedpodpr@gmail.com. 📥
And find me across the internet on Instagram, TikTok, and Threads!💛 - Emily