Today we’d like to introduce you to Courtney Crash.
Hi Courtney Crash, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My company is called ATX Thrift -Recycled Threads. We are a clothing boutique specializing in sustainable festival and statement piece fashion at a thrift store price! We help people express on the outside how they feel on the inside without breaking the bank!
We call it ballin’ on a budget 😉
ATX Thrift is all about reduce, reuse and recycling of clothing and educating community on how to create sustainability and reduce fashion waste.
I have been a part of the Burner culture in Austin since 2011. Burners being those who attend Burning Man and regional communal events similar. I am Camp Lead for a major fashion-themed camp called BurninGlam. We take in donations and sort through them to gift clothing and costumes back to the community for free. We often host clothing swap fundraisers to also help circulate clothing back into the community and raise money for the arts.
Through the years, I have collected a ton of clothing for BurninGlam and clothing swaps. When Covid hit, I was out of work and found myself collecting even more clothing from people donating when they cleared out their closets and garages. Since there were no events happening, I had nowhere to bring all of these clothes. To support my family and supplement income, I began selling clothing online. I opened a Poshmark store and became quite successful. Once small events were allowed, I began vending at socially distanced and masked outdoor events like markets. My finance has been a vendor with a company called Orgone Vortex for over ten years. He taught me everything about booth set-ups and vending and how to run a mobile business. Within a year, I was able to keep going with ATX Thrift as a full-time job! We now have an amazing mobile boutique and together, we vendor coordinate our own markets, where he provides music with his dj support, and I sell what I call GLAM!
We host a monthly market called Freddo Bazaar at Freddo ATX. A beautiful new coffee shop in the heart of South Austin at the corner of Oltorf and Congress! Location is in the historical Walter Tips House, a Victorian style home built in the 1800’s! We have five hand-crafted vendors, four live painters and three rotating djs. I also coordinate large scale events, most recently a 14 vendor market, including four live painters, 2 body painters and a tarot card reader for a 2,500 person ticketed event at The Concourse Project. I look forward to working with them in the future. The event was for The Fluffy Cloud Experience, a large dj art installation who fundraises to bring their project to different cities and Burning Man! I’m currently producing a Vendor Market Fashion Show with the art coalition, Art Island this fall. We will be feature 10 of the best fashion, apparel and accessory vendors to be showcased down our runway!
We have also helped host, dj, vend and coordinate a 20 vendor market at Shiny Things for Shiny People. A crystal shop in North Austin. We originally started out hosting clothing swaps and from there a market grew. They now host workshops for flow arts where you can learn how to spin props like hula hoop or poi.
My company is beloved by the Pyrotex fire spinning collective. Pyrotex is a fire arts group that performs at BurningMan, and we have vended multiple fundraisers in support. We have also vended with the Austin Roller Disco, skating and One Wheel communities. I am Fashion Team Lead for Luxe Art Coalition, a traveling art show company. We vend at multiple venues through art shows including The W Hotel, Freddo ATX, and Whiskey Tango Foxtrot to name a few. Luxe Art also has an art gallery upstairs at Freddo. My fiance and I help produce an art party at Freddo ATX through Luxe Art, where I bring my mobile boutique, and he djs.
We have also set up at many festivals including Medicine for the People, InTents Music Festival, and Astronox.
I am working closely with Ignite on Wheels. A fantastic roller skating group that incorporates dancing and tricks on wheels! I’ll be vending with them at an upcoming black light neon roller disco.
Private Stock Art (PSA Gallery) is a supporter of ATX Thrift where a percentage of our sales go straight into their art gallery.
Almost Real Things HQ, off Shelby Lane, is an art gallery and event space in South Austin (South Awesome) which hosts events like Artists Supporting Artists where shows are curated of incredible local artistic talent and music. You can find my racks curated alongside their events, including their magazine issue release events at Distribution Hall quarterly. Almost Real Things Warehouse off Shelby Lane is the home and headquarters of my new boutique and retail shop! We are open based off events hosted, otherwise you can make an appointment for a private shopping experience. I also host weekly livestreams from that location and can ship clothing to online buyers, seen on Instagram.
I heard the saying, “do what you love, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.” While what I do IS work, I view it more as my passion. ATX Thrift is fun and a dream job come true. I’m surrounded weekly by artists and musicians in incredible locations. If you love fashion, music and art you’ll want to follow ATX Thrift for events that embody all that is Austin!
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Starting out vending was such a learning lesson! Figuring out which markets my clothing appealed to, along with how much inventory to bring was quite the challenge!
At first, I brought dozens of bins filled with clothing pre-tagged and rolled, which required me to hang each article one by one on the racks. Now I pre pack bins of curated clothing already on hangers, which saves a ton of time and fits the vibe of the event I’m vending.
I also have learned that my style appeals to people looking to dress outside of the social norm. Shiny, furry and flowy works great in the artist communities especially in Austin. I once vended in Luckenbach where Conservative folks looked at my mannequin wearing a purple wig and sparkles like she was the weirdest thing they’ve ever seen! ATX Thrift most definitely represents that Keep Austin Weird mentality, which can be a challenge for some to welcome.
We are taught in this world that men and women have to look a certain way to be accepted. One of my missions is to help people branch out of that mindset and have fun with their clothing! I love when people try on my clothing to have an experience. ATX Thrift creates a pressure-free zone to express yourself without judgment. I have helped people understand that it doesn’t matter the color, style or if a shirt has buttons on the “ladies” side. If the clothing makes you FEEL good, that’s what matters. Not what people think of you.
It can be a hard concept for people to overcome so I do my best to encourage participation when dressing up!
The shopping experience is quite liberating at ATX Thrift!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
ATX Thrift specializes in shiny, furry and flowy statement piece fashion. I am proud to be able to provide a safe space for people to dress outside of the social norm. I have a combo booth with my fiance through his company called Orgone Vortex. He is a handcrafted artist who specializes in energy device pendants and orgone pyramids. Our boutique also has music capabilities so we can provide a total fashion vibe experience! We set up disco lights and lasers, sell GLAM and provide local dance music. Together we shine light and give a fashion experience to the community with a lot of love.
Oftentimes, when people are shopping at ATX Thrift they also love to be in the space to hang out. We work closely with Generally Right Brained Photography and set up stylist photo booth and photoshoot experiences. Fashion, photography, art, music and GLAM all in one set us apart from others.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
It’s important to me for people to understand that they can dress how they want based off of how they feel. I want people to be liberated from the mindset that they have to look a certain way to be accepted. Having fun with fashion is such a free way to live, and I am passionate about giving that experience.
Sustainability is also incredibly important to me. By shopping resale, you are helping the environment by recycling clothing and reducing the carbon footprint. The fashion industry is the second biggest consumer of water and is responsible for a high percentage of carbon emissions. Cutting down rapid production of clothing benefits the Earth as well as helps diminish societal problems, like forced and child labour in developing countries. Supporting secondhand fashion helps aid and advocate for ceasing excess consumption in manufacturing. Shopping thrift respects people, animals, our environment and Mother Earth!
Shopping local and small business is also important and helps boost your economic impact. Keeping your local economy in mind is key because you’ll help give back to your community when doing so. Shopping local creates jobs and opportunities like local entrepreneurship and helps sustain future growth. By doing so, you’ll form real connections with business owners and employees which will create memories. Oftentimes, shopping small will also give you a better customer experience and will make your community strong.
Contact Info:
- Email: athriftx@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atx_thrift_/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AThriftX/
- Other: https://linktr.ee/ATXThrift
