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COVER ARTICLE Sustainability Meets Luxury at DoubleTake
SUSTAINABILITY
Meets LUXURY at DoubleTake
By Melissa Sorge, photos by Dan Epstein
The average person can’t afford to pay top dollar to add brand-new Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Hermes and other luxury brand products to their wardrobe. In fact, even updating one’s wardrobe with less luxurious brands can be a stretch for some people.
However, there is a way to achieve both goals without breaking the bank. DoubleTake, a sustainable luxury boutique located in Short Hills and Red Bank offers like-new luxury brands at reasonable prices that the average person can afford.
As a luxury consignment shop, DoubleTake is reducing the environmental footprint of clothing by upcycling like-new luxury items to interested buyers. “The goal is to upcycle luxury designer pieces in a responsible way where they gain a new life without creating a new carbon footprint,” says store owner Marci Kessler. According to Kessler, “upcycling ensures that luxury items can be worn for more than one occasion or one season.”
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Rachel Tressitt, Regional Manager
SUSTAINABILITY Meets LUXURY at DoubleTake
Julian Martinez
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It is the sustainability model that she is quite proud of. “In a time where businesses are valued as much for their environmental responsibility as they are for their products, DoubleTake lets you shop in good conscience,” she states. In fact, Kessler had sustainability in mind when renovating the DoubleTake boutique in Short Hills last August, which was constructed from environmentally conscious materials. But businesses aren’t the only ones focused on this trend, DoubleTake’s consumers, many of whom are Millennials and Gen Xers, “place great emphasis on making socially responsible choices when shopping, they embrace brands that resonate with their same sensibilities,” according to Regional Manager Rachel Tressitt. “Recently, a customer told me she could never have dreamed of owning a Louis Vuitton bag before, and that she was thrilled to be purchasing one, especially an upcycled one,” remarked Tressitt.
While the items at DoubleTake are being newly loved by ecofriendly buyers, the store is also enjoying somewhat of a resurgence. “After COVID there’s been a real return to supporting local retailers,” says Kessler, who feels that “purchasing clothing and accessories at DoubleTake is not just about
repopulating one’s closet, it is about having an enjoyable local shopping experience.”
To this end, the DoubleTake staff is trained to provide both customers and consigners with the highest level of service—comparable to what one would experience at the world’s most expensive boutiques.”
Shopping local goes a long way with Kessler, who says “At DoubleTake, customers enjoy the privilege of perusing items in-person as opposed to using blind faith online.” In addition, she says that “unlike other consignment brands that have myopic focuses on just bags or accessories, DoubleTake carries everything from clothing to shoes to handbags and accessories. So, if women want to create a fully sustainable wardrobe, we can do that for them”.
“We are an ecofriendly one-stop-shop,” says Kessler. “Our customers purchase high-end designer brands at accessible prices, while also reducing environmental impact.”
DoubleTake Luxury Consignment
800 Morris Turnpike, Suite 105, Short Hills, NJ 973-564-6464 dbltkeboutique.com
