View all Class in the spotlight ArticlesSubscribe to the Class in the spotlight RSS Feed View all This Week ArtcilesSubscribe to This Week RSS Feed View all The Arts ArticlesSubscribe to The Arts RSS Feed View all Class in the Spotlight ArticlesSubscribe to Class in the Spotlight RSS Feed View all Sports Features ArticlesSubscribe to the Sports Features RSS Feed View all Professor of the Week ArticlesSubscribe to the Professor of the Week RSS Feed
the campous chronicle features footer
The Campus Chronicle Artifact Header
Poetter Hall was purchased by the SCAD founders in March 1979. Classes began in September of that year.  
The Campus Chronicle Artifact Footer

Trivial Pursuits

Trivial Pursuits
 
Alumna fulfills longtime goal

Robyn Reeder at Civvies
Photo by John McKinnon 
In her new store, Civvies, SCAD alumna Robyn Reeder combines affordable new clothing — some created by SCAD students — with a rotating stock of used and vintage items.

By Monique Bos
Published: Friday, February 17, 2006

Robyn Reeder is a familiar figure to many members of the Savannah College of Art and Design community. She has co-owned and operated Primary Art Supply, 14 E. Broughton St., for a decade, and also earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the college’s metals and jewelry department in 1999.

Now, drawing on her knowledge of the college market and some pre-SCAD retail experience, Reeder has embarked on another enterprise: Civvies, 35 Montgomery St., a buy-sell-trade store that offers affordably priced new, used and vintage clothing.

“Between the ages of 17 and 20, I worked at a vintage clothing store in Tucson, Ariz., where I’m from,” she said. “That’s what got me into retail.”

That store, the Buffalo Exchange, has since expanded into a chain with more than 30 locations throughout the West Coast region. And although Reeder was interested in opening a store modeled on a similar business plan, she became involved in Primary when a friend from the metals and jewelry department opened the art supply store. Reeder later became a co-owner, and when the friend moved away from Savannah, she assumed full responsibility for the store’s operation.

“I had to wait until Primary was really solid,” she explained. By this winter, “I was ready. I felt like I had the extra time for a new project.”

Reeder kept her schedule of working four days a week at Primary, but she now spends the other three at Civvies. “I don’t mind. It’s exciting,” she said, although she also conceded, “I hope to eventually have a day off.”

She has patterned Civvies on the buy-sell-trade model used at the Buffalo Exchange. “We buy directly from the public, so we have a constantly changing inventory,” she explained. “Our business plan is really based on customers coming in and selling us their stuff.”

When customers bring in their used clothing and accessory items, staff members select what they want to carry in the store. Rather than using a consignment system, Civvies offers 35 percent of the selling price in cash or 50 percent in store credit. In addition, staff members offer to donate any items they don’t accept to a local charity.

“We have to be very selective, but we urge everyone to bring in everything they have, and we’ll go through it,” Reeder said.

The store also features new clothing, jewelry and other accessory items — and Reeder already is  showcasing work from the SCAD community.

“We are definitely interested in carrying local artists’ clothing, and we already carry a few lines from SCAD students,” she said. “We also have jewelry from local metals and jewelry alumni … I’m completely looking to involve some local fashion and jewelry designers.”

She recommends that interested designers call her office, (912) 233-7637, to set up an appointment to present their work.

Reeder said her experience and client base at Primary contributed to the successful launch of Civvies.

“I knew the student market from Primary,” she said. “They want items that are affordable and funky and set apart from the boutiques that are opening up.”

She launched Civvies in January with a fashion show in a rented space on Broughton Street. Models — mostly staff members from Primary — showed off clothes from the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s, while a live band performed songs from each era to accompany the vintage fashions.

“The fashion show was a big success,” Reeder said. “It was fun.”

She also has been pleasantly surprised by how well the store has taken off. “Within the first three weeks, I wasn’t expecting to have as much business as I’m having,” she said. In fact, inventory already changes daily. “It’s fun. There’s some great stuff.”

She credits the SCAD community for her retail success and inspiration.

“It’s been worth my while to stay in Savannah and grow my business with SCAD,” she said. “I completely rely on SCAD’s success and the student body for my personal success. I’m grateful to them and the fact that it’s growing. It not only helps me but helps the whole city, so that’s great.”


Civvies is open Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m. - 7 p.m., and Sunday, noon - 5 p.m.