How Alfargo's Marketplace is changing secondhand shopping

We chat with the Alfargo's team from NYC about personal grails, why they started a vintage marketplace, and how they're using clothing to create deeper connections.

Feb 15, 2024

Today, we chop it up with the boys from Alfargo’s, a secondhand vintage marketplace that pops up in NYC every month. What I love about these guys is that there’s zero ego around what they’re building: just having fun, hanging with good people, and creating connections through vintage shopping.

The marketplace has blown up in the last year or so, so I wanted to put you into what they’re doing. Thanks to my guy Chris Fenimore, who photographed this one, yet again delivering heat.

Enjoy the interview and pass it on to someone who’d appreciate it.

Give the Alfargo’s fellas a follow on IG while you’re at it!

How did the name Alfargo’s come about? And how does one get in?

Alfargo is my dad’s name, it’s kind of my way of commemorating him by naming the market after him. By supporting the marketplace, you are already in the extended team that keeps this train going!

Each member has a different background—and it’s obvious you all share commonalities with clothes. What else gives the group the special sauce?

Elias: Zane is a great photographer. He has great energy, which I think is important for a photographer. He’s uplifting at the pop-up when he asks a person to take a photo. He has done an excellent job handling social media for Alfargos.

Nick is super friendly. He’s the youngest person in the group, which is handy. He’s in clothing forums like MFA, Reddit, style forums, etc, and he is able to bring that crowd of consumers to the marketplace.

Nick is also involved with the creativity of the merchandise and with finding new vendors. Stephon is a great leader and listener! Stephon and I are the oldest in the group; we have been around the menswear scene for a long time. Friends for nine years now.

I’m involved with scouting prospective vendors/ finding manufacturers for merchandise.

How did everyone meet before the first Alfargo’s Marketplace in 2021?

Pretty organically, to be honest. I first met Elias in 2016 in a subway station, which is crazy looking back. Nick was introduced to us via our mutual friend Derek from Team Cozy Boys. Last but not least, Zane walked into the second or third Alfargo’s, and we hit it off immediately!

Second-hand shopping has been booming over the last few years—how has building a sense of community made this bigger than you all imagined?

Nick: It’s been insane seeing how much we’ve grown and the greater vintage community has grown over the last few years. Creating a safe space for people with similar interests to hang out and “put that shit on” has allowed us to flourish!

Stephon: Huge shoutouts to all of the wonderful people who make up our community! They are the ones on the ground spreading the word and helping us to where we are now. A huge thank you to all the real ones who have been here every step of the way.

What’s a grail you refuse to sell or let go?

Nick: I’d have to go with my vintage 60’s Abercrombie and Fitch Patchwork Hunting Jacket, famously worn by Hunter S Thompson. It’s a rare piece that took me almost 15 years to find!

Elias: At the moment, it’s my watches. I refuse to sell most of my watches. The price has gone up on them. I wouldn’t be able to get them again at the price I picked them Up.

Zane: my Ralph Lauren tie collection! (25 and growing)

Stephon: I just picked up a Barbour Solway via eBay. It was made in the mid-70s and is in fantastic condition for its age. There are no smells and large holes, which is a common thing with old wax jackets. I lucked out on this one.

Why’s the in-person relationship so valuable with second-hand shopping?

Nick: For us, the in-person experience is a necessary part of the experience. Not only do you get to try on what you’re buying, but you also get to interact with other people just as passionate about the clothes as you are! Nerding out about clothes is the best part for us!

Is shopping vintage the reason menswear is in a genreless state?

Nick: I certainly think that it certainly plays a big element. Right now, we’re in an era where individual expression and non-conformity are most peoples’ top priorities. Vintage and secondhand clothing is the most accessible way to acquire unique and 1-of-1 pieces right now.