Closets Consignment Boutique

Be sure to shop on Thursday, Friday or Saturday… AMAZING staff! You are unfortunately going on the wrong day. At least for now. :(
I love closets!

Fabulous store! Great shopping! Fantastic Deals!
I would come here frequently, and I urge you to stop in and see the continuously changing inventory!

One word… RUDE. If you prefer not being acknowledged by the sales associates aka snooty old broads «working» then this is the place for you. And since when does selling second hand forever 21 items give you the right to be a snob? Gross.

Consistently rude and condescending staff…
Unsure of why they are not at all interested in helping and act like they are doing you a favor by allowing you to shop there.

I have been using this consignment shop for years… and years. Recently, I finally asked myself why. lol They are so incredibly rude. Every time I walk in the door with clothing, they roll their eyes and sigh… I’m so sorry to inconvenience you! I bring in all designer clothing… and a lot of it! Yet I feel like I am bothering them when I walk in. So I thought maybe it was me… but watched them treat everyone like that. So felt a little better…
During my most recent visit, after both girls that were working clearly expressed their frustration with my arrival… they gave me a pile of clothing back… as «rejects». Most of which I had just picked up from the dry cleaner… explaining that there may have been some «sparkle» still in the arm pit. I’m sorry but have you looked at the clothing on your racks??? and you will never get every last sparkle out of a shirt. and a pair of pants had been hemmed???
I guess if they were nice, I would feel much better about have all of the rejected items. But it started to feel stressful to even walk in the door!
There is a new shop in Westlake on Center Ridge and King James… going to take my clothing there! …At least they greeted me with a smile. :)

So I was delighted to walk in here. Used to the glittering and endless gems filling NYC consignment shops, I never expect much in Cleveland. But I’ve found solace in The Apple Core, and most recently, Closets Consignment Boutique. Holy crap.
The Good:
HUGE selection; huge. I probably took over 20 things to the dressing room with me; a perfect mix of things I wanted to buy for my mom (50s) and things I personally couldn’t live without (I’m 23). While the previous reviewer is right, it caters more to the middle-​agers, I found a TON I loved; Sunny Leigh, Free People, Poleci, oh my! I literally had to spent a solid 15 minutes narrowing down from what I loved to what I could realistically afford. I WILL be back with mom.
The Bad:
I spent the duration of my visit (about an hour) being entirely ignored by the staff, hence why I can’t give a rave review. It was actually distracting me from enjoying my shopping; the fact that I was blatantly disregarded. Which, to me, is a big deal, especially since Joyce at the Apple Core knows me by name and asks how my mother is every time I’m in there. When the owner knew I was about to drop a hefty sum on some merchandise, she warmed up, but was still… blunt, which perhaps is her nature.
Regardless, this is now one of very few consignment shops I love in the area, and shall return.

This cute little resale shop is somewhat hard to find, but so much fun to look through when you get there. I’ve found a lot of gems here, but it does take some patience. A lot of the items skew toward the middle age set (yes, Chico’s aplenty here) but we thirtysomethings have plenty to choose from as well. Don’t forget to look upstairs, where they keep the shoes, workout wear, kids’ and men’s sections, along with the really discounted stuff. The men’s selection is fairly puny, but my husband has found a few high-​end dress shirts for shockingly little money. The store is well-​organized by type of clothing and then sorted by color. Contrast this to its competitor up the street, who shall remain nameless, and who sorts their clothing by designer, which I find a chore to wade through. Worth a look for sure.

While I agree with the previous reviewer that Cleveland isn’t exactly «rife» with upscale consignment stores, I think, to be fair, you have to take into account that this IS Cleveland &, at that, on the far more conservative west-​side.
To establish my shopping/​fashion «cred» allow me to share the following admittedly trite story. I had just popped back in to my car after safely depositing a little blond cherub on her doorstep when my daughter & her friend (who were in second or third grade at the time) eagerly told me that, and, I quote — «[blank] doesn’t like the way you dress.» When, frankly annoyed, I asked for clarification (I mean, it was 3:15 in the afternoon & I wasn’t exactly having the best last six months), they chirpily replied, «Oh, you know, you dress ‘cool’ & don’t wear like sweaters with Christmas trees on them.» They then quickly assured me that THEY liked how I dressed. Oh joy. Lest u get the wrong impression, I do NOT wear mini skirts, tight clothing, low necklines or have the least interest in dressing like a 14 or even a 19 year old. I do, however, believe that it isn’t a crime to be fashionable and a mother, professional, etc. I was also raised for a time in the south where people take pride in their appearance, irrespective of income & later in San Diego/​So Cal where appearance is «everything» (a view to which I do NOT subscribe).
So true enough, you are probably not (if ever) going to find Chanel, Prada, or the designers you’d find in Chicago, DC., Atlanta, NY in Closets. But, if you look carefully & take yr time — really take yr time — you will consistently find extremely well-​made/​maintained & occasionally even «edgy» clothing @ terrific prices. What I particularly like about the store is their shoe department which almost always (98% of the time) has a nice selection & occasionally causes me to throw caution to the winds & risk my husband’s disapproval (he doesn’t quite grasp the «fe-​vah» that can overtake you when finding a truly exquisite pair of shoes & most likely never will).
As for the «rude» staff, that takes a little more unpacking. Truth is, the first few times I overheard the person (who I surmise offended the previous reviewer) speaking to one of the young clerks, it took everything I had not to clock her. (I recently told her so, in fact). As time went on, I realized that the same person is actually quite nice; is happy to give regular customers a break on prices here & there; & is actually very fond of the same salesclerk I almost risked jail time for. It’s true her first language was probably gruff & she clearly graduated with honors in sarcasm, but if you can look beyond the obvious, she’s really just a great DAME. If your sensibilities won’t abide that kind of disposition, then by all means, go elsewhere. As for me, in a clinch when I need something to wear last minute to a party, I know I can count on Closets to ensure that someone’s MOTHER on the west side is sure to hate what I’m wearing.
Coda: On the way home that day, in a moment of weakness, I churlishly said to my child, «Well, I’m not that crazy about that giant bow so & so wears.» I did my best to backpedal when I realized how pathetic it was to be peeved at a second grader who was obviously repeating what her mother had said. But like I said, I had had a really lousy six months.

I have been in here numerous times, both as a shopper and as a consignor and the staff is always rude. While they have a good selection and one can often find designer clothes at modest prices, sometimes the selection is outdated. I have purchased some decent shoes here: Bruno Magli and Cole Haan, it is not what I consider up-​scale.
Unfortunately, the Cleveland area does not have many good upscale consignment shops, so I have to take what I can.