Uptown Cheapskate

About Uptown Cheapskate

In 2009, the first Uptown Cheapskate opened its doors for business in Salt Lake City, Utah, but the idea of opening a trendy resale clothing store for teens and young adults started brewing years prior. Chelsea Sloan Carroll, co-foFranchises Under of Uptown Cheapskate, began thinking about starting her own resale company before she left to serve a church service mission in Anchorage, Alaska in 2006. On the day Chelsea came home from her mission, she and her brother, Scott Sloan, initiated plans for what would be known as Uptown Cheapskate.

Coming from a very entrepreneurial family, both Scott and Chelsea gained valuable experience early in life from working at their parent’s resale franchise, Kid to Kid. Founded by Brent and Shauna Sloan in 1992, Kid to Kid buys and sells new and gently used children’s clothing, toys, baby gear and maternity wear. The franchise has since grown to more than 100 Kid to Kid stores throughout the U.S. and Portugal. Kid to Kid’s successful buy-and-sell model inspired the siblings to start their own resale franchise concept for fashionable teens and young adults. With its chic vibe and upscale approach, Uptown Cheapskate was born.

The Uptown model proved viability early on, and the first franchise location was opened just a few months after the pilot store. This unique, environmentally friendly concept started receiving accolades from multiple sources. The first came by way of a third place prize for student-launched businesses in the Utah Student 25 competition in 2010.

While pursuing a Business degree at the University of Utah, Chelsea went on be listed in Inc. magazine’s 30 Franchises Under 30 and became the first female to win the 2012 Entrepreneur’s Organization’s Global Student Entrepreneur Award (GSEA).

Today, Uptown Cheapskate has expanded to over 80 locations in 23 states. With its solid franchise concept and strong family roots, Uptown continues to grow, bringing great like-new fashions at cheapskate prices to people all over the country.

Why Franchise?

Owning a resale clothing franchise is big business, especially when it’s an Uptown Cheapskate franchise
The resale clothing industry is big business, making now a great time to cash in on the resale clothing opportunity. In fact, Fortune reports that “the fashion resale market is exploding, growing 21 times faster than the retail market over the past three years, according to research from retail analytics firm GlobalData.”1

That’s right. For the first time ever, Americans are choosing to shop for used clothing over buying new en masse – and it’s about time.

Uptown Cheapskate is Getting Resale Right

Thrift store chic used to be a phrase that was meant to be a put-down. With global warming and the aftermath of the Great Recession, resale clothing is one of the only industries not impacted by the retail apocalypse caused by Amazon.

“There used to be a stigma associated with secondhand shopping,” says Dave Martell, Director of Franchise Development with Uptown Cheapskate. “People used to brag about what they spent on an item, and after the Great Recession, that no longer made sense. People want to look great and save money at the same time, and our franchisees really understand that. We’ve created a business model that allows them to provide a truly meaningful service to their communities, and you can do enormously well for yourself at the same time.”

Founded in 2008, Uptown Cheapskate has been growing rapidly for over 10 years, with more than 75 locations in 22 states. Our stores are unlike anything else in the resale clothing segment. We’ve modeled our stores on high-end, trendy retailers, so that when a customer walks into an Uptown Cheapskate, they don’t feel like they’re in a thrift store. They feel like they’re in the mall – only with prices marked down as low as 70% off name-brand items and with quality control that’s second-to-none.

Millennials Love Uptown Cheapskate

While other businesses are failing to get the attention of millennials, Uptown Cheapskate caters directly to them. In fact, most of the advertising that we do in our stores is geared towards buying back their clothes, and that creates a relationship that is based on trust from the get-go because our customers feel valued immediately.

What does it cost to own an Uptown Cheapskate franchise?

We might be an upscale retail franchise, but that doesn’t mean that the costs to own an Uptown Cheapskate franchise are high. On the contrary, Uptown Cheapskate is one of the most affordable franchise brands in the resale industry – and we offer financing to help make your journey to business ownership even easier. With a proven business model, world-class ongoing support and incredible brand recognition, Uptown Cheapskate is a best-bet.

Liquid Capital Required: $50,000 – $100,000
Net Worth Required: $200,000
Total Investment: $301,579 – $491,579
Franchise Fee: $25,000