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Thrift shop
Mary Skinner

London’s best thrift stores

Find yourself a second-hand steal at these fashionable treasure troves in London

Written by
Grace Allen
Contributor
Ellie Muir
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There's more to London fashion than catwalks, streetwear influencers and designer boutiques. If you want to source stylish one-offs that come with bags of personality, thrift and vintage stores are the places to go.

Yep, you'll find bigger bargains at charity shops, swap shops or weekend car boot sales. But the joy of thrift stores is the curation: the personal tastes of their owners bloom across their multicoloured rails, with sections that reference the latest street trends or high fashion directions.

Shopping secondhand is also an easy way to get eco-friendly: gallons of water and shedloads of pesticides go into the production of each new cotton t-shirt, so do both the planet and your wardrobe a favour and go vintage. Here are the best places to start your retro fashion journey. 

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The Best Thrift Stores in London

  • Shopping
  • Vintage shops
  • Bethnal Green

It’s difficult to walk into this east London institution and not be dazzled by the rainbow rails. With a decade under its belt, it’s easy to see what has made the franchise such a success: it caters for the festival teen, the trendy twenty-something and the shrewd, more mature, fashionista. For both men and women, this branch offers one of the widest selection of retro-wear in London, all under one roof. Ready for the summer shopper, the current stock includes Hawaiian shirts galore and its very own range of sleeveless cropped shirts in every shade and style under the sun. 

Rokit
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  • Womenswear
  • Covent Garden

As Rokit’s flagship store – there’s also one in Camden and two in Brick Lane – this branch stocks the most comprehensive selection of second-hand items, from tutus and military gear right through to cowboy boots and sunglasses. You won’t find many well-known labels here, but it’s still worth a rummage; on previous visits a Gunne Sax prairie dress and a Marimekko day dress were unearthed, and they were an absolute steal. There are also scarves, belts and hats galore. For men there's plenty of the usual male Americana. The shop at 107 Brick Lane is more boutiquey.

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  • Shopping
  • Vintage shops
  • Spitalfields

Formerly Blitz, Atika opened in 2011, and instantly put the other vintage shops in the capital to shame. This is a vintage department store, covering all floors of a glorious old furniture factory. The building itself is jaw-dropping, and has been renovated beautifully by the Atika team. Buyers Jan Skinners and John Howlin look to nearby Brick Lane for their inspiration, buying immaculate seersucker blazers, coloured denim, brogues and silk kimonos for their fashion focused clientele. The selection is all killer and no filler – and cleaned, steamed and folded before it hits the shop floor. 

Reign Vintage
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  • Vintage shops
  • Soho

Reign Vintage started out in 2002 and really established themselves in the vintage fashion world, later opening two stores in London and Oxford. Handily, they have a decent, regularly updated online store, too, making it easier than ever to shop for second-hand treasures. They source a lot of their stock from Europe, and shoppers can expect to find fun logo sweatshirts and kitsch dresses mixed in with Gucci loafers and Versace blazers. Prices are fair – £25 or so for a pretty vintage shirt.

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House of Vintage
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  • Vintage shops
  • Brick Lane

This well-curated Shoreditch shop takes the guesswork out of vintage shopping, offering immaculately arranged rails of pieces from '20s gowns to point-collared '70s shirts. Shop for special occasions and expect pricetags to match.

Pennies Vintage
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  • Vintage shops
  • Clerkenwell

This high-end Islington shop is one of the handful of vintage spots left on Camden Passage, offering a very curated assortment of (predominantly pre-1960s) vintage eveningwear and wedding dresses, as well as unusual collectables. Pennies previously sold an intricately beaded 1920s wedding dress to Downton Abbey, for Lily James's character to wear – this is costume-worthy vintage wear, people. For show-stopping gowns, this is your first port of call, and you can pick up a gorgeous wedding dress for around £200. 

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  • Vintage shops
  • Victoria

Run by charity FARA, Retromania is just a short walk from Victoria and Pimlico stations. With super fashion-savvy staff, items are priced knowledgeably and range from £15 to upwards of £200. Fun memorabilia like vinyl and magazines are mixed in amongst pretty embroidered shirts, wacky 70s dresses and eye-wateringly bright oversized sweaters.

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  • Vintage shops
  • Hackney

With a spread of clothing, shoes and accessories dating from 1900 to the 1980s, you don't know what you're going to find in East London's Paper Dress Vintage. Helpfully, the shop offers alterations, and also doubles as an event venue hosting comedy, burlesque, dance classes and much more. If that wasn't enough, the Paper Dress Vintage has its very own bar to make clothes shop even more of a hoot. 

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  • Richmond

Might just be London’s chicest charity shop? With its industrial interior by Hemingway Design, art student fanbase and staff fingers firmly on the fashion pulse, Shelter’s flagship boutique in Barnes can more than hold its own alongside its trendy neighbours. You’ll find quality vintage, premium labels and ‘how did I miss that the first time round?’ high-street gems, all handpicked with care but priced within reason. Its similarly trendy sister stores can be found in Coal Drops Yard, Finchley Road, and Islington's Upper Street.

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