Bristol’s best second-hand shops

By Luke Foster, Second Year, Politics and International Relations

The Croft // Luke Foster highlights the very best of Bristol's vintage and charity shops.

For freshers newly inducted to Bristol, it is essential to know the best places to get your hands on your baggy jumpers, flares and 90s puffas; Bristol’s known for its style so you can’t be letting the team down.

Starting on Cotham Hill, just around the corner from the ASS library, there are loads of charity shops, including Oxfam. Wherever you are in the UK, charity shops always seem to come through with bargain finds, and Bristol is certainly no exception. Whilst '70s fashion is making a comeback, Clic Sargent is a great place to jump on this trend. Nearby, St Peter’s Hospice Shop has its very own ‘designer brands’ section – only in Bristol, right?

Next, Thrift – my personal favourite in Bristol. Located on Park Street, it has a huge shop floor, good variety of stock and very helpful staff making it a winner! The good thing about Thrift is you can still shop on a student budget. Each section has colour coded rails according to price and even offers multi-buy discount sales! Thrift boasts two floors of vintage clothes from the '80s to the Y2K era, so you’ll never be short of options. Just opposite Thrift is BS8 – my close second favourite. Even though the prices at BS8 don’t make it the most affordable option, it cannot be beaten on the array of brands. It’s full of vintage brands from Dickies, to Carhartt, to Nike, the list is endless! As well as this, they have a high-end section at the back of the store with rare designer pieces! (As a little bonus, BS8 shares the building with radio/ON, a really cool independent record store, located just above.)

Found just next to the Bearpit is Loot. Loot similarly has an incredibly broad variety of clothes, mainly featuring '90s vintage. Despite it being the priciest option, you may find some more niche items like vintage DMs or American Baseball jackets - absolutely worth checking out!

After a tour around these shops, you’ll be Bristol ready.

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