(Hannah Gunnell/South Indy Connect photo) Beech Grove alums Erika Sussman and Nicolas Hendrickson turned his passion for vintage clothing into a new store in town. Afterglow Vintage purchases and sells clothes from the ‘80s, ‘90s, and early 2000s.
By HANNAH GUNNELL
Nicolas Hendrickson’s love for vintage clothing began when he was a student at Beech Grove High School.
He specifically likes the uniqueness that comes with finding individual pieces to add to his style.
“People would say, ‘Hey, where’d you get that shirt? We like this.’ ‘I thrifted it, but you probably can’t find it because a lot of these are one of a kind pieces,’” he said. “You go to the mall to buy something and ten other people could have the same shirt as you.”
The 2014 BGHS alum and his girlfriend Erika Sussman (BGHS ‘21) held a grand opening for their new vintage clothing store at 45 N. 6th Ave. Suite B, Sept. 20. Afterglow Vintage offers vintage clothing, which is by definition at least 20 years old or more.
“This doesn’t really exist around here,” he said. “There’s a lot of younger people moving to Beech Grove and the demographic is there, and everyone appreciates vintage at any age — it doesn’t just have to be young. I wanted to bring something I enjoy and other people can enjoy.”
Hendrickson and Sussman have a little bit of every style in their shop. They purchase clothing from customers and while out on road trips.
“If it’s ‘80s or ‘90s, we’re buying it,” Hendrickson said. “We have a lot of street wear, or something that can be worn every day.”
The advantages of purchasing vintage clothes over new items is that the quality is better, he said.
“Clothing is one of the most bought items annually, so it’s also good to recycle and reuse and repurpose, but for a lot of these older clothes, the material is better,” Hendrickson said. “They’re 100 percent cotton, they hold up and they last a long time.”
Hendrickson can tell just by looking at an article of clothing if it’s vintage or not.
The biggest giveaway is whether or not something is single-stitched or double-stitched, as the former stitch was more common two-plus decades ago, he said. Another giveaway is if something is 100 percent cotton, because newer clothes are typically a polyester blend. This means the older clothes are also thicker to the touch.
Hendrickson majored in history at Indiana University following his time as a Hornet, which he said kind of goes hand-in-hand with the vintage clothing business venture.
“It’s an appreciation for the past — it was quite fitting,” he said.
The location just off Main Street is actually next to Hendrickson’s family flooring company.
“This is my thing I’ve always done and enjoyed,” he said with a smile. “So, I can still help my dad but I can also do something I enjoy.”
Sussman hopes their business will help bring new people to the heart of Beech Grove — especially to support the other businesses here.
“It would be nice, if we do get a younger demographic because of our store, they get to support other local businesses too,” she said. “We want them to try Napoli Villa [Italian Restaurant], and eat some nice Italian food, and check out [Rustic Root] Ice Cream Shop and everything.”
Afterglow Vintage is open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.
