Business

Retro Rack a cornerstone for vintage apparel

Sun-Gazette correspondent

Karen and Tom Kunkle's retirement project has become a cornerstone for vintage apparel and goods in central Pennsylvania. Retro Rack, 43 W. Fourth St., is a hot spot for locals and tourists in search of vintage pieces to add to their closet.

The store is stocked with clothes, accessories, shoes, records, comics and other memorabilia from the past. The couple searches for unique, quality pieces through private sellers, estate sales and auctions.

The couple's years of experience buying and selling antiques has translated to them curating the shop's inventory with quality items from decades past.

"When you find that great old stuff, it's hard to turn it away," Tom Kunkle said. They have purchased pieces from the Victorian era up to the early 2000s.

When possible, they add treasures from local companies like LL Stearns, Troisi's Menswear and Woolrich.

"People remember shopping at those places," he said.

Vintage clothing can give customers the opportunity to enjoy moments of nostalgia that take them back to yesteryear. Shoppers enjoy seeing graphic t-shirts and posters that remind them of the good old days.

Purchasing quality items at shops like Retro Rack is a sustainable way to add something special to one's closet.

Recently, there has been chatter on social media encouraging people to buy clothes made of natural fibers instead of ones derived from plastic like polyester, nylon and acrylic. Affordable clothing is often made from plastic which tends to not last long compared to clothes made from cotton, linen and wool.

"A majority of what we sell are items with natural fibers, are American made and are built to last," he said.

Shopping vintage goes against the trend of fast fashion. As defined by Britannica, fast fashion is "the rapid production of inexpensive, low-quality clothing."

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Americans tossed 11.3 tons of textile waste into landfills in 2018.

"There are things we sell that because they're rare, they cost more," Kunkle said. "But, it's affordable in a way because that item will last four times as long. There's value that's there."

Aside from sustainability, Kunkle said shopping vintage is a fashion choice for many people.

"We have younger shoppers that have a very unique fashion sense that they want to stick to," he said.

Those one-of-a-kind items can be found in stock at Retro Rack.

The shop opened in 2024 in a small space on Pine Street. A couple months after, the significantly larger spot at 43 W. Fourth St. became available and they moved in. Their current location is three times bigger than the original shop.

Prior to opening up the store, the Kunkles bought and sold antiques for many years. They would have stalls in antique malls and eventually started gaining more of an interest in vintage clothing. They started learning more about vintage clothing which eventually lead them to starting Retro Rack.

They do all of the shopping for the store's inventory at auctions and estate sales. Kunkle said they are more often doing private buys for people who are cleaning out their homes. Potential sellers can make an appointment with the couple who will examine the items and decide whether they want to move forward with a deal.

When making those decisions, they're open to everything. They really enjoy finding mens pieces like dress shirts and pants. Even items that show some wear and tear, it's fashionable these days if an item is distressed or visibly mended.

The couple have loved being a part of Williamsport's downtown.

"We are thrilled with being downtown," he said. "There are great shops and restaurants."

About 70 percent of their customers are not local. Some make a trip to the city to specifically visit Retro Rack while others stumble upon it during their visit.

"It's encouraging for us to have customers come from bigger cities where I know they have other great vintage options and stores," he said. Their out-of-town visitors share how much they enjoy the store and checking out the rest of downtown.

Looking towards the future, the couple hopes to continue finding cool things for the store and be a vibrant part of downtown Williamsport.

To stay up to date on the latest information, you can find Retro Rack on Facebook.