Ulku Albasmaciyan, owner of By Retro, a second-hand store, displays a dress at her store in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 10, 2022. TO GO WITH: "Feature: Second-hand stores gain popularity in Turkey's Istanbul amid financial woes" (Xinhua/Shadati)
by Zeynep Cermen
ISTANBUL, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- Burcu Turkoz, an accountant who had put on a red-and-white tartan wool cloak and a stylish white vintage hat, was checking her new look in the mirror in a second-hand store in Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey.
"They are old, but they definitely keep you warm," she told Xinhua.
Located in the busiest Harbiye neighborhood in Istanbul, the second-hand store sells numerous colorful clothes, coats, cocktail dresses, headdresses, slippers with pompoms, shoes, and accessories.
As Turkey's annual inflation rate has exceeded 36 percent amid the financial turmoil, second-hand stores are becoming increasingly popular in the country, especially in Istanbul, Turkey's financial and cultural center.
For Ulku Albasmaciyan, owner of the second-hand shop, Turkish young people buy second-hand clothes not only for their affordable prices but also for their elegant and unique styles.
Albasmaciyan has been collecting all kinds of used items since 1994.
"I always see myself as a story hoarder. It is like recollecting my childhood memories, my family, or the women, the people, the characters of my neighborhood I grew up with," she spoke of her job.
Turkoz paid 500 Turkish liras (37 U.S. dollars) for the cloak and the hat she had tried. If she would buy similar items off the shelf, it would cost her at least 2,000 liras.
"When you look at the common shops, you can see the same products in every store. There is no need to go from one to another because you see the same items, with different price tags," Turkoz noted.
However, those in second-hand stores are very distinct, unique, and they become personalized products for those who buy them, she added.
By Retro, located inside the historic Syrian Passage in the Asmalimescit neighborhood of the Beyoglu district, is also a favorable store for second-hand fans in Istanbul.
Firat Uyanik, co-owner of the store, told Xinhua that the store has "endless student discounts."
"We make very little profit from it (selling second-hand clothes)," Uyanik confessed. ■
Ulku Albasmaciyan, owner of By Retro, a second-hand store, works at her store in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 10, 2022. TO GO WITH: "Feature: Second-hand stores gain popularity in Turkey's Istanbul amid financial woes" (Xinhua/Shadati)
Hairpins and other accessories are seen at a second-hand shop in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 10, 2022. (Xinhua/Shadati)
Firat Uyanik, co-owner of By Retro, a second-hand store, speaks to Xinhua during an interview in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 6, 2022.(Xinhua/Shadati)
Ulku Albasmaciyan, owner of By Retro, a second-hand store, tries a hat at her store in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 10, 2022. (Xinhua/Shadati)
Ulku Albasmaciyan, owner of By Retro, a second-hand store, works at her store in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 10, 2022. (Xinhua/Shadati)
Firat Uyanik, co-owner of By Retro, a second-hand store, works at his store in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 6, 2022. (Xinhua/Shadati)
A client selects products at a second-hand shop in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Shadati)
A client selects clothes at a second-hand shop in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Shadati)
A client selects clothes at a second-hand shop in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 13, 2022.(Xinhua/Shadati)
Firat Uyanik, co-owner of By Retro, a second-hand store, works at his store in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 6, 2022. (Xinhua/Shadati)
