SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The demand for new and vintage sneakers and clothes is growing in Sioux Falls and PB & Thrift is hoping to take advantage with their new storefront opening this weekend.
21-year-old Victor Hernandez-Diaz has always had a love for sneakers, especially Jordans.
“I gathered a love for it, did some research on it, and really fell in love with that subgenre of fashion. And, you know, started collecting and had a nice little personal collection and saw the money in it,” Hernandez-Diaz said.
Hernandez-Diaz started thrifting clothes and shoes at places like Goodwill and Savers, building up a collection of his own. That turned into reselling some items on sites like Depop and Mercari before eventually starting his website, PB & Thrift.
Now, Hernandez-Diaz is opening a store front at the intersection of 57th Street and Cliff Avenue, joining the growing sneaker businesses in town.
“So, there’s definitely a growing market in Sioux Falls, and just seeing how people dress and you know, how certain people wear shoes in town, the popularity is growing and catching up with the rest of the world. And it’s great to see,” Hernandez-Diaz said.
While a lot the clientele for PB & Thrift is young men, Hernandez-Diaz said that the collection of vintage sneakers brings in a wide variety of patrons.
“Since we are doing shoes, there’s a lot of Jordans that came out in like the late 80s, early 90s and whatnot,” Hernandez-Diaz said. “There’s a lot of older people that do come in and do value what a shoe has to offer, because it was something that was a part of their childhood. They can go back and just, you know, recollect memories that they may have had with that shoe, or just certain pieces that were a part of that era.”
With the school year approaching, Hernandez-Diaz hopes to see back-to-school shoppers who are looking for a fresh look.
But whether you’re new to vintage clothing, or already have a collection of your own, Hernandez-Diaz is excited to see you at his store and talk about what he loves about sneaker culture and clothes.
“It comes from expressing and expressing who you are as a person,” Hernandez-Diaz explained. “I think slowly as a society we’re trying to stay away from the big designer brands where it’s like, oh, I have a shirt because it’s expensive. And I think we’re going more towards like, you know, vintage looks just because it’s a very affordable thing to get into. And it just looks really nice.”
His own personal style involves a lot of early 2000s and 2010s Jordans as well as Harley Davidson tees because he loves the graphics.
Hernandez-Diaz was intentional in choosing the location for his shop as well, picking an area of Sioux Falls that has recently seen a lot of growth in businesses and restaurants and is close to the growing city of Harrisburg.
“I really liked the direction of where both cities are going, and there’s going to be an eventual meeting point. And like you said, yourself, there’s not really places for people to shop, especially at an affordable price point here,” Hernandez-Diaz said.
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PB & Thrift on 57th & Cliff -
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And PB & Thrift doesn’t just sell vintage clothes and sneakers…
“So, anyone you know, out there who has shoes, or maybe wants things to be authenticated or just looked at or praised: Bring it in, because we’re always going to be buying, we’re always going to be selling obviously, and we can always do trades and whatnot,” Hernandez-Diaz said.
The young businessman is relying on Instagram and TikTok to build a loyal base and hasn’t spent any money on marketing thus far. With close to 18,000 followers across both platforms and millions of views, Hernandez-Diaz is using social media to attract other sneaker-heads to PB & Thrift.
“But beyond that, it’s just been me just putting in, you know, hard work, you know, throughout the past couple years and not getting paid for it until now. So hopefully, the dividends pay off and we can, you know, I can run because a successful company,” Hernandez-Diaz said.
The grand opening of PB & Thrift is Saturday, July 23 at 11 a.m. and there will be opportunities for prizes for shoppers.
“So, just by attending the grand opening, you will get a raffle ticket and we are giving away stuff like Panda Dunks, store credit and just a bunch of other stuff that we are going to surprise the people with so just by coming in, you’re automatically entered into the giveaways that we have announced and we will definitely be announcing new giveaways as the day approaches,” Hernandez-Diaz said.
For the opening weekend, the store will be open both Saturday and Sunday but after that the hours will shift to 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday through Saturday.