Mom Opens Consignment Store For Teens

News Times Live:

Diane Kozenieski has firsthand experience buying and selling clothing to consignment shops.

She recently ventured even farther into that world with Such a Deal, her new consignment shop on Old Mill Plain Road

Such A Deal sells gently used teen, young adult and career clothing. Accessories like jewelry, shoes, belts and handbags are also offered. So are small appliances, including microwaves, mini refrigerators and fans.

“My son has always been a clotheshorse,” said Kozenieski, a Danbury resident, about Keith, now 22. As a teen, he wore nice clothes but kept outgrowing them long before they wore out, she said.

“I thought it was a shame to keep throwing them out and began to look for consignment shops that would take them.”

At the same time, Kozenieski was searching for bargains for her son. “I was a single mom on a tight budget and it was difficult to find affordable brand-name clothing.”

She looked through the phone book, asked around her neighborhood, and scanned the Internet. While she found plenty of child and adult consignment stores, none seemed targeted toward teens.

“Teens are in a special category of their own,” she said. “They’re extremely conscious of how they look and judge each other by the latest styles and brand names.”