Kelowna entrepreneur cuts through saturated thrift clothing market

Kelowna’s thrift and vintage scene is full to the brim, but an entrepreneur is carving himself a slice of the market with a bit of know-how.

Austin Swedish runs Shoot First Vintage. He’s an environmental science major at Okanagan College, and like many students he has a part-time job, but his gig is finding the hidden value in things people give away.

“I go to thrift stores, and I purchase things that I see have a bit more value to them, compared to what the thrift store prices,” he said, adding there’s never a shortage of gems at garage sales this time of year.

He then takes pictures, lists everything and sells most of his items on sites like eBay and Poshmark or pop-up markets and events.

There are a lot of people who have tried and failed to make some cash by reselling vintage clothes themselves, and Swedish said the secret is doing your research.

“I know the things that do sell, the things that do have value and what kind of styles are popular at the moment,” he said. “I do follow up on the trends… that’s kind of my trick to source my items.”

Kelowna’s unemployment rate hit eight per cent in April, according to Statistics Canada. Unemployment in Canada is also highest among young people, it’s around 10 per cent for those ages 20 to 24 and eight per cent from ages 25 to 29.

Kelowna also has a higher rate of self-employment, around 19 per cent. Last year, the number of business licenses increased with 17,299 issued in 2025, up from 16,802 in 2024.

Swedish said starting your own business is difficult, but it’s something more young people could do.

“When times are tough people are always looking to make a few extra bucks. I think doing your own thing is a good way to supplement your income,” he said. “People are looking for more creative job opportunities as well, and entrepreneurship is such a great outlet to do that.”

He was taking some business classes in college, but found that he was learning more on his own.

“Doing my own business. That was a shift for me, throwing myself out there and learning through experience,” he said.

He’s turned his garage into a warehouse with hundreds and hundreds of items that have been posted online and are ready to sell.

He said Kelowna has a good thrift scene which makes his business a bit easier.

There are 16 thrift and vintage stores in Kelowna, and Swedish said with the state of the economy the demand is only going to grow.

“It’s just too expensive for the most part going to the mall,” he said. “People are looking for good deals, they’re looking for good quality clothing at a good price.”

There are maps for thrift store crawls, and many stores that do what Swedish does but with a brick and mortar location.

Even though the thrift and vintage clothing scene might seem saturated, he thinks the demand is so high there’s room for savvy self-starters.

“With the right skillset, you can definitely work your way through it,” he said.

The next pop-up for Shoot First Vintage is the Bike to Vintage Market event at Railside Brewing, 1186 High Road in Kelowna on June 4.