New store for old clothes: vintage store opens on North Monroe

Jun. 13—As a couple, some things are hard to do together — including running a business.

With one person manning the register, the other is hustling around town to thrift stores, yard sales and estate sales — anywhere used clothes can be found.

"It can be a pretty dirty job, I mean, I see underwear in clothes piles sometimes," said Bree Caballero, co-owner of Static Age Vintage. "You definitely have to be built for it."

Caballero opened Static Age Vintage clothing and record shop on May 25 with her boyfriend, Brandon Martell.

At 2814 N. Monroe St., the store is named after an album from American punk band the Misfits.

"I really like the Misfits," Caballero said. "I think it's a cool name and it's something a little different than other places in town."

Of course, Static Age shares some similarities to the other vintage stores in Spokane — or anywhere. It has Levi's from the 20th century, retired military attire, worn Carhart jackets and a killer band T-shirt collection.

But the North Monroe spot diverts from its counterparts in other respects. It specializes in dresses from the 1940s and '50s, rare antique clothes from the early 1900s and offers a diverse selection of vinyl. Also a departure from the typical vintage storefront, passersby can peruse a street-side bargain rack where every article is $8 — or three for $20.

When you walk in, you are regaled with music from a record player and welcome with natural lighting from the building's many windows.

"Not that they're not great, but other stores aren't lucky enough to have the lighting we have," Martell said.

Caballero and Martell met as you would expect — searching for treasures at a local Goodwill.

At the time, the two were running their own online stores. About two years later, they got the keys to their own brick and mortar in the popular business district. But that isn't without some dirty work. After years of operating as Corbin Park Cleaners, the space needed some help.

"We must've swept the wood floors up front 30 times before we painted them. But we kind of liked the look of the concrete floor in the back being kind of messed up — so we left it," Caballero said. "It's cool because it's grungy, but not too grungy."

The two elicited the help of their families to construct two changing rooms and some shelving. All work to its interior was completed in just two weeks, Martell said.

"We were basically working 14-hour days," he said. "Cleaning, tagging, organizing, washing — everything."

They were introduced to the property by their friend, Tony Brown, also known as DJ Breezy Brown, who previously ran a record shop adjacent to the Static Age Vintage property. Though he does not supply records to the store, Brown has a vendor spot at the back for a curated collection of Western-esque garments.

"That's his style, kind that hobo-ish, Americana kind of look," Martell said. "Which is cool and people dig it."

Another vendor on the premises is Charley Berryhill, who supplies the vinyl. The collection can be seen from the street through the large, east-facing windows. So can portraits of Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan and Ray Charles.

As their business matures, the two are hopeful to reach a few milestones: They want to organize clothes by size to make for easier browsing, and they aspire to have a spot at large vintage and antique conventions.

"We're open seven days a week, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. — it's a lot of work," Martell said, as he chuckled nervously. "We hope to eventually hire somebody to help us out."