Last month I had the pleasure of connecting with Polish thrifter, Wika! My mom immigrated from Poland to Chicago back in the 80’s but I still have many relatives in Poland. Thanks to one of my cousins I was able to connect with Wika, who amongst her friends is known as a beauty, super stylish, and a fashion conscious consumer–buying practically all her clothes secondhand.  

Check out my questions for Wika and her responses, below. 

Question: What are the different ways to say thrift shopping in Polish? ️ 

“We have many ways to say “thrifting” in Poland. Everyone says it differently. The most common phrase is “chodzić do ciucholandu”(going to clothing land). When you visit Poland, you can use that. But my friends and I use more slang terms like “idziemy na lumpy” (we’re going thrifting/second hand store), “idziemy na ciuchy” (we’re going to buy secondhand clothes), and “szmatex” (rags).”

Question: Is there a stigma around thrift shopping?

“Nowadays thrifting in Poland is very popular. Young people want to express themselves by buying unique pieces of clothing that no one else has. Also Poland, not many years ago, was a very poor country. We didn’t have luxury or designer stores, or if we had them they were too expensive. Our moms went thrifting because it was more affordable. “I got it from my momma”–when I was little we used to go thrifting very often so this is completely normal for me.” 

Question: Are there any thrift shop chains in Poland? What are your favorite thrift or vintage shops?

“Yes we do have thrift store chains here. The most common are Vive Profit, Biga, Cream, Tekstylowo. In bigger cities (Kraków and Warsaw) you can find vintage stores but they are pretty expensive. In my city (Gliwice) we have thrift stores where you can sell or buy high-end clothes, bags, shoes and maybe even jewelry. But still, you need to have more money for that. My favorite thrift shop is probably Biga. I always find something cool there and prices are lower compared to the other shops I mentioned. It is also divided into two sections; one half has price tags and the other one you pay by weight. This is cool and very affordable but the clothes aren’t as good of quality in the pay by weight section. But you can still find treasures. Also in some cities you can find shops that sell only furniture or home stuff.”

Question: Is it hard to find good vintage clothes in Poland?

“I think a few years ago when thrifting wasn’t as popular as it is now, you could find more and nicer vintage items. Fashion from the 70’s-early 2000 is trendy sooo where is a better place to buy such stuff than thrift shops?”

Question: Are there ever any outdoor vintage/thrift markets?

“Yes, we do have outdoor markets (Polish word: targ)! There are a few popular ones in Poland. They sell more “streetwear” style and aren’t that cheap. But in most Polish cities we have outdoor markets with everything you need. From vegetables to beautiful flowers sold by old ladies. This is a very good place to find cheap vintage stuff like jewelry, cameras, cups or plates etc. It is a good place to find inexpensive and cool things and help out the poor old ladies.”

Question: When you go thrift shopping, do you have a certain way you shop or things you look for?

“I don’t have certain ways to shop. Everything depends on how much time or energy I have. Sometimes I look at every hanger but I’m a lazy person so most of the time I walk around and look for patterns or material that I like and then I further look at the piece. When I go thrifting, I don’t look for certain things. I just go and when I like something I usually buy it.

Question: What’s your favorite thing to thrift?

“I don’t have a favorite thing to thrift but if I had to choose, it’d be jackets. I love jackets. For me it’s the easiest way to complete the whole look.”

Question: What’s one or a few of the best things you’ve ever thrifted?

“Hmmm…there are many. Probably half of my closet is thrifted so it’s hard to say which one is the best but I think it’d be my neon pink Prada bag that I bought off Poland’s DePop (online secondhand market app). Another thing is my pink Dickies jumpsuit and a North Face puffer coat.”

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Question: Do you have any advice for thrifting in Poland?

”Ask younger locals where the best secondhand stores are, they’ll for sure know!” 

Question: Are secondhand online markets popular in Poland?

”Yes, thrifting online is very common. Not only buying but also selling. I’m probably the biggest example of this. I look on these websites for something cool almost everyday. Also, I’m trying to sell every piece of my closet that I don’t want anymore. Then I’ll have some cash for ice cream and somebody will have a new thing that he or she bought for a lot cheaper than in a store. The most popular Polish online secondhand markets are Vinted, Less App (celebrities sell their stuff here and fashion bloggers), OLX, Instagram and groups on Facebook.”

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Marlo here! I hope you enjoyed reading my conversation with Wika and learning about secondhand in Poland. I wanted to add more context to the video above. I’m lucky to have a native Polish mama and recorded her saying thrifting in the different ways Wika recommended. I overlaid the audio on images of two thrift stores I found in Warsaw back in 2019. The last few photos in the video are of my sister and babcia (grandma) in a targ (outdoor market) in Gliwice, Poland. I made my mom say these words quickly, but if you kept listening she says them slower with the translation. See the Polish words and their literal translations again, below.

• Chodzić do ciucholandu: going to clothing land – my mom didn’t give the literal translation in the below recording

Slang ways to say thrifting in Polish:

• Idziemy na lumpy: we’re going thrifting/secondhand store
• Idziemy na ciuchy: we’re going to buy secondhand clothes
• Szmatex: rags – my mom didn’t say rags in the recording but this is the literal translation
• Targ: outdoor market

As mentioned above, the last few images in the video are of my sister and babcia (grandma) in a targ (outdoor market) near where my Grandma lives in Poland. Back when my mom was little, secondhand clothing was sold at this targ along with chickens, eggs, bunnies, cats, puppies and some produce. Today, the targ is primarily food and new items but you can still find secondhand targs in Poland.

I can’t wait to share more conversations I’ve had with thrifters from around the world and some research on secondhand clothes I’ve done abroad. More to come, thanks for dropping in!