Oct. 1 marked the third annual Vintage Fall Crawl, a local event centering on woman-owned second- hand shops in the Twin Cities. 

For all of October, customers can travel to 15 vintage shops throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul with their crawl passports to visit the businesses. All of the proceeds from the passports go towards the YWCA of St. Paul and Minneapolis. 

Rebecca Sansone, one of the original organizers for the crawl and owner of The Mustache Cat, said the nonprofit’s goals of empowering women and eliminating racism are the core of the event. She wanted to uplift the community she had found in the vintage community. 

“We love that they’re working in our communities to do exactly what their mission says, empower women and eliminate racism,” Sansone said. 

The crawl started as an idea to link the different communities of each shop, inspired by popular bar crawls shop-owner Amanda Baumann had seen in the Twin Cities.

Baumann opened her shop Tandem Vintage three years ago after leaving her previous field of work that left her feeling unfulfilled. After selling vintage on the side for many years, she decided to open her own shop. 

“I’ve always been a second- hand shopper and a thrifter, and in 2010 I started selling vintage,” Baumann said. “I had so much fun with it over the years, and I eventually opened my shop.” 

This love and history of being a vintage shopper was echoed by other shop owners in the crawl. 

“I have been collecting probably forever,” Sansone said.

Growing up in New Jersey, she would spend every weekend at a flea market or local antique shop with her father. On these visits, she was inspired by a local store owner, Jude, who had an eye for vintage finds. 

Betty’s Antiques owner, Liz Murphy, 55, opened her vintage shop two years ago, naming it after her thrifty grandmother who inspired her love of vintage home goods. After working a corporate job at Target for 19 years, she was at a crossroads. 

“Life is short, and I’ve put in the hard work for all these years,” Murphy said. “I just want to do something that I love and on my own.”

Lindsey Cason, co-owner of the shop Carousel + Folk opened the second-hand home goods shop with her cousin after years of selling vintage goods on Etsy. The store incorporates sourced vintage goods, as well as flowers, produce and eggs from Cason’s family farm. 

“My husband and I had always dreamed of owning a farm,” Cason said. “Our goal with our farm is to provide for our family and also make income off of it. Because why not when you have land and the ability to?” 

The crawl also centers on vintage fashion shops, like Up Six Vintage in St. Paul. Store owner Megan McGuire grew up around vintage clothing her whole life. Her mother kept many pieces from her childhood that McGuire and her siblings wore regularly. 

“I grew up having all of that at my fingertips if I wanted,” McGuire said.

Up Six Vintage recently passed its 23rd anniversary in September. The shop curates vintage clothing that is dry cleaned and ready to be worn the day of purchase, so customers in a pinch can wear their finds immediately after purchase. 

Another long-standing shop featured in the crawl is Encore Boutique, a women’s second-hand clothing boutique that originally opened 30 years ago. For the past seven years, it has been led by 44-year-old Molly O’Keeffe. 

O’Keeffe worked in the retail industry since she was 16 but always dreamed of having her own shop since she was little. Loving vintage fashion as a child and dedicating a portion of her store to it, she was happy to participate in the crawl for a second time.

“I feel very fortunate to be included in this group of women and be part of it,” O’Keeffe said. 

The crawl has created a sense of comradery in participating shop owners, creating a support system that celebrates each other’s victories instead of fostering competition. 

“There’s a different investment when you’re working for yourself, not just monetarily,” McGuire said. “It’s kind of your soul you’re putting out there, and almost like nobody really understands unless they’re doing it too.” 

At the heart of the crawl, its organizers said they hoped the event would link their stores and foster a community within the vintage fashion movement. 

“We are our businesses, right?” Sansone said. “And so they’re a reflection of us and what we bring to the broader community. So I think we’re worth investing in.”