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Consignment shops face unique challenges as they begin to reopen

Posted at 1:10 PM, May 18, 2020
and last updated 2020-05-18 14:10:56-04

As retail stores reopen throughout Ohio , businesses are navigating a new standard and figuring out what works for them. But some stores, like consignment shops, have different hurdles to go through than other ones.

At consignment shops, most of their stuff has been previously owned, and the inventory comes from all different places.

At All Things For You, a consignment shop in Cleveland, owners Dwight Kaczmarek and Tim Yanko are doing things a bit differently to make sure their customers feel safe.

Located at 3910 Lorain Ave., All Things For You has a wide range of inventory, from antiques, furniture, decor, jewelry, and more.

Kaczmarek said they acquire the inventory a lot of different ways—from people bringing items in, estate sales, finding the stock themselves, and more.

But he said, right now, that's kind of on hold.

"Now, things are a little different than what we've done in the past," said Kaczmarek. "We haven't bought a lot since the beginning of everything and what we do have, we have been cleaning daily, or it has been sitting since we closed in March."

Kaczmarek said they clean an item the moment they acquire it anyways, and once they begin to purchase again, that cleaning protocol will just be heightened.

But there are other changes they've implemented since the pandemic.

"We've set up stations so everyone can sanitize their hands, we also ask our customers, also ourselves, to wear masks," he said. "We have set up arrows on the floor in our underground, where we have 26 dealers to keep the flow of traffic in a way to keep people separated and enjoying their shopping experience."

Kaczmarek said they're also allowing customers to call in and make appointments.

You can find All Things for You contact information here.

WEWS' Jessi Schultz originally reported this story.