Allow me to introduce Tracy who owns the shop RetroModernco. We met nearly ten years ago as fellow vintage sellers on a marketplace website. We have both moved on from there but still stay in touch via social media. With the opening of her own website, her business has taken on a marvelous new appearance. I am looking forward to seeing more fabulous vintage from her in the future. So without further ado, here’s Tracy to tell you her story.
Where are you located: Naples, Florida
How did you become a vintage seller? By chance I suppose. I had a girlfriend tell me about the cool handmade items on a popular website, so I went to look and instead started looking at the vintage items for hours. That interest quickly evolved to wanting to find vintage and open a store.
How long have you been a vintage seller? 10 years. I started seriously collecting in 2010
What is your favorite era? The ’60s. To me the 1960s had some traditional feel left from the ’50s but also was changing and evolving. I like the bohemian style.
What would you describe as your specialty? Glassware. I can appreciate just about any decade. I have a fondness for midcentury because it was used every day but it was fancy compared to the decades that followed.
What is the best thing you’ve ever found and sold? An Emile Gruppe painting found in a Goodwill bin. It needed some restoration but was a great find!
What is the greatest challenge of being a vintage seller? To not get stuck. To try new things. To change and evolve.
What is the best thing about being a vintage seller? I love the freedom of doing my own thing and being able to research pieces and constantly learn about history. And of course the thrill of finding unique pieces.
What is the hottest category of vintage for you now? Art and glassware.
What’s something we have in our homes now that vintage buyers will be looking for in twenty years? I think vintage collectors will be hunting for photographs and books in twenty years. With technology, photos are obsolete now and in twenty years I think books will be too.
What do you collect? Glassware is the main thing I collect but I also collect art and sculptures.
Here is a sampling of items from Tracy’s shop
Social media links:
RetroModernco on Instagram
RetroModernCo on Facebook
Tracy’s website
1 comment
You have a great eye, Tracy! Thanks for sharing your backstory with our readers. It was interesting to learn that you were lured into buying & selling vintage by chance. That anecdote supports my theory that the love of vintage is contagious and I find that to be a good thing!?