Better than New: Finding the Sparkle in Secondhand with Nifty’s Rosie Carroll

Tell us a little bit about how Nifty started and the ride so far.
It was 2018 and, although a fair bit of time had passed since the earthquakes, it felt like there weren’t many places for young people to shop and hang out. I’d visited flea markets overseas where young people would be selling a mix of pieces from their own wardrobe or things they’d made. I just remember thinking that we needed something like this back home and so I started visualising how I could create a vintage and secondhand scene that was really accessible to younger people. 

Nifty markets started out at Benny’s Barber Shop which was on Disraeli Street at the time. I hardly knew Benny, but I asked if he could recommend any pop-up locations and he kindly offered up his place. We did the markets once a month and eventually started mixing up the venues when the crowd outgrew Benny’s space, with pop-ups at Isaac Theatre Royal and La Voûte in Woolston. For the first one I put a callout out on Instagram for stallholders, but mainly relied on word of mouth which sparked a domino effect.

The store opened in October 2022 and we still do our flea markets out the back behind the building. Our next market will probably be in the spring. I’m traumatised by doing them outside in winter since it rained last year.

Since opening the Cashel Street store, your sellers have obviously expanded to include everyday locals clearing out their wardrobe. What’s that like?
People are hilariously polite and sometimes a little embarrassed about coming in with their bags of stuff. This is a safe space, you know? This is what we love to do – please give us your clothes! People will also pop in before they donate items to an op shop in case there’s anything we want. Some of our sellers have low expectations but more often than not we’ll find an absolute gem. I often tell people to come to us first, try to make some money, and if they don’t sell then everything goes to the City Mission anyway. 

What’s your acceptance criteria?
We have guidelines around brands but mainly we focus on quality and style. Style is a really intuitive and subjective thing. It’s something you learn over time so that when an item comes in, you already have a pretty good idea of whether people will love it based on your own taste, previous sales experience, or insights into what’s currently trending. 

If an item doesn’t sell or we can’t accept it, then the customer can either pick it up or have us donate it to Christchurch City Mission, who are just around the corner from us. We love working with them and it means that unaccepted or unsold items continue to live on.

With so many threads coming through the door each day, how do you manage to keep your own wardrobe under control?
I’ve learned to become more refined with what I buy. The amount of clothing coming through every day has made me better at knowing what I actually like (and what’s going to like me). After years of being a keen shopper, one day something just clicked and I became better at narrowing down my wardrobe choices. For example, I know I’m going to hate anything with a three-quarter sleeve or a drop waist on me.

What’s one of your favourite brands at the moment?
I really love Frisson. They’re a New Zealand brand that makes beautiful handknits for around $600, so it’s a secondhand waiting game. I’m on the hunt for one of their cardigans with massive shell buttons so if anyone sees one… 

What does a week at Nifty look like for you?
Processing and pricing clothing is the biggest thing. There’s so much time that goes into analysing and selecting each piece that makes it onto the racks. Social media has always played a big part in the business too and it’s probably my favourite part. We get to connect with so many people who don’t necessarily live in Christchurch but still enjoy what we’re doing. The team is really great at helping me keep up with TikTok trends.

Tell us about your team and their different roles.
There’s five of us, including me. Bailey was the first employee so she’s been here since we opened. She’s second in charge so helps me with store management, processing, pricing and training new people, as well as dipping her toes into social media and events. Liv, Hannah and Lucy have joined our team in the last 6 months – they also work in the store and help with all retail and consignment related tasks (as well as all the other hats that come with working in a small business).

Some op shops require one’s full body strength to trawl through the stock. How do you curate Nifty to be inviting and easy to navigate? 
It’s really important for us that people can browse with ease. We try to organise each category in a way that makes as much sense as possible when customers are doing a full round of the store. Our racks are full but never brimming to avoid making things overwhelming.

We love to have fresh stock every day to keep things exciting for customers but for our team too. That’s why processing is such a major part of what we do. I knew we would get clothing in but I didn’t understand the daily volume of it. It really does highlight just how much clothing is out there, which makes it possible for us to showcase a daily rotation.

What are some of your secondhand shopping tips?
Look through everything and never limit yourself to a category or a gendered section. Categories are so subjective – some little old lady that works in an op shop might think shirts and denim belong in the men’s section. Browse the lingerie rack because you’ll probably find some beautiful silk or lacy numbers there. Wear loosey goosey stuff that you can easily whip off and on. Comfort and practicality is key, otherwise you will start screaming.

What is your relationship with fashion like?
In my teens and early 20s, I worked in a lot of fast fashion retail stores. I would buy new things as soon as they came into the store. Pink? Sold! Billabong? I must have it! I felt like I lost my sense of style and had no concept of what I actually liked or what I felt best wearing. I’d wear something once, it’d lose its sparkle, and the cycle would repeat itself. My consumption was all over the place and I ended up with a massive wardrobe which was funnily enough how I ended up selling at markets. 

Once I learned about fast fashion and gained experience working in secondhand shops, my relationship with clothing started to become a lot more positive. These days, I feel really good about the styles I own. That’s not to say I’ll keep the same styles forever, because your needs change and your body changes, but when the time comes to pass something on, I’ll know that I loved it, wore it hundreds of times and the quality will see it through another lifetime in someone else’s wardrobe.

What sort of influence do you hope to have on consumers and the fashion industry?
As fast fashion continues to ramp up and cycles get faster, we really want to encourage people to shop secondhand as much as they can. Take it from us – there are already so many amazing quality pieces and vintage styles out there. 

If we could have influence over anything else it would be for people to wear the things they feel most like themselves in – there’s nothing that makes me happier. It’s nice to see individuality on the rise in Christchurch and I hope Nifty can play some part in seeing that trend continue.

What was your wardrobe like as a kid?
My mum, bless her heart, would take us to op shops for school mufti days. I still clearly remember the slay outfit that I picked. It was a mini skirt, major platform Pulps, and a Maggie Simpson baby tee. When I moved to a new school that didn’t have a uniform, I was wearing bedazzled trucker caps and inappropriate Supré graphic tees with Angel 69 on the front. I also had this t-shirt that said Von Bitch instead of Von Dutch on the front. Mum just rolled with it.

That’s incredible. What’s your style like these days?
I definitely gravitate towards colour and comfort. Comfort is key when working in retail and I think the world can always do with more colour. I also love 90s fashion with a dash of early 2000s (not too much as it’s still a little bit triggering for me).

I have a lot of dresses and like to layer them up in winter. I recently bought this broderie anglaise peasant-like nightie with lots of lacy details and outrageous sleeves. I can’t believe people used to wear this stuff to bed. I love it with a chunky knit and a colourful shoe.

Who’s your fashion icon at the moment?
Miley Cyrus. I love the era she’s in right now. She's pulling from a lot of vintage archives for every appearance and it’s perfection. The pieces are really unique and colourful. I found the 1996 Tom Ford for Gucci green dress she wore recently on eBay… but it was $5,000. Just a nice reality check that Miley and I are not in the same tax bracket. 

You’ve got the day off. How are you spending it in Ōtautahi Christchurch?
I’m picking a warm day, so I’d start with a sunrise walk in Sumner followed by a swim. I’d read my book on the beach and grab a coffee from Niche. Because it’s my perfect day I can have as many coffees as I like without facing the consequences, so I’d meet a friend at Akin after. I love walking around the city and having a nosy at all the new spaces popping up. For dinner, I’m heading back to Sumner for Biang Biang noodles at Miss Peppercorn.

A dream day would honestly include setting up at a cafe and working on Nifty. I’m so lucky to have a job that I’m obsessed with and that keeps my cup very full.