Pre-Loved Podcast with Emily Stochl

Today we're chatting with Gianna Corvino — the founder of The New York Archive, which has just opened The New York Archive Collective, a brand-new flagship vintage collective in the heart of Chelsea. Gianna is a vintage shoe specialist turned store owner, and I'm so excited for you to hear how she went from playing dress-up in her mom's closet to curating 15 vintage vendors – across the range of the fashion dress up closet – under one roof.
Gianna grew up in New York City, completely enamored with her mother's shoe collection — pink, sparkly heels that felt like the coolest thing in the world to a little girl. That early love of nostalgia, accessories, and on-screen icons from movies like 13 Going on 30 and The Devil Wears Prada eventually became the foundation for The New York Archive, which Gianna started as a portfolio project while applying to fashion school.
Amidst starting the archive, though, her story took a wild turn — after a startup equity deal fell through she felt the push to go all-in on vintage. She landed her first Manhattan Vintage Show spot, started sourcing pieces for celebrity stylists and television shows, and built a devoted online community through sharing radically transparent "building in public" content on social media. 
Just one week ago, Gianna opened the doors to The New York Archive Collective — a brick-and-mortar space she built out with her building's handyman, Angel and with help from his son, almost entirely through DIY, donations, and Facebook Marketplace finds.
On today's episode, we get into all of it — why the vintage shoe niche was a space nobody else was filling, the holy grail hunting and sourcing stories – including for pieces worn on the recent Love Story show about Carolyn Besette Kennedy, and what it's like to watch your wildest dream become a physical space you can actually stand in.
Let's dive right in!
DISCUSSED IN THE EPISODE:
[4:46] Gianna grew up in New York City, completely enamored with her mother's shoe collection.
[10:11] Why she talked herself out of fashion and into business school instead 
[15:43] A DM that changed everything
[18:01] Starting NY Archive as a portfolio project while applying to fashion school.
[23:11] Landing her first Manhattan Vintage Show spot — and nearly selling out her inventory 
[26:14] Working on stylist pulls for  the recent Love Story show about Carolyn Besette Kennedy.
[32:47] Choosing to specialize in vintage shoes when no one else was.
[33:26] Her love of Manolo Blahnik — and wanting to democratize luxury through vintage 
[35:46] "Building in public" by sharing content on social media about her founder journey
[39:17] Making the leap from apartment showroom to brick-and-mortar 
[46:22] Designing The New York Archive Collective on a DIY budget 
[51:52] Her personal vintage collection — the pieces she keeps and why 
[53:57] Holy grail hunting and tracking down signed Manolos 
EPISODE MENTIONS: 
The NY Archive
@thenyarchive
NY Archive on TikTok
Phoebe Gates
Manhattan Vintage Show
Chloe Felopolus
The Millennial Decorator 
Vintage of Saints
LET'S CONNECT: 
📸Instagram: @emilymstochl
🐦Threads: @emilymstochl
🎥TikTok: @emilymstochl
📧 Substack: https://prelovedpod.substack.com/ 
🎧Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/prelovedpod 
SPECIAL THANKS: 
A special thanks goes out to my Patron Insiders – your support makes Pre-Loved Podcast possible!
Patty Weber
Kathy Brand
Lisa of Queenie & Pearl
Lydia Welp
Michael A.
Megan Morris
Jennifer
Alana Rivero
Jerrica Yasumura
Amanda Hale

Today we're chatting with Kathleen Schaaf — the owner of Meow Vintage, located right in the heart of Retro Row in Long Beach, California. Kathleen is a vintage legend, someone who has been doing it for a long time, and doing it her way, and I'm so excited for you to hear her stories from four decades in the business.
Kathleen grew up thrifting with her mom, raiding her aunt's hand-me-downs in elementary school, and haunting the cheap, treasure-packed shops of downtown Long Beach before anyone was calling it a "vintage scene". She opened Meow Vintage in 1986 — nearly forty years ago — and has been a fixture of vintage ever since.
But Kathleen's story goes so much deeper. She's a dead stock hunter — crisscrossing the country before the internet even existed, cold-calling merchants and slipping into back rooms and dusty attics from New Mexico to Massachusetts, building relationships with dealers and shop owners that have now spanned three generations. And along the way, she built a parallel career outfitting film and television — from Roseanne and Seinfeld all the way to Stranger Things.
On today's episode, we get into all of it, plus what forty years in the business has taught her about people, quality, and the difference between loving vintage and just selling it. All that and more!
Let's dive right in!
DISCUSSED IN THE EPISODE:
[5:05] Kathleen grew up thrifting and accumulated a lot of great vintage.
[6:22] The "aha" moment where Kathleen realized she could be a vintage dealer — buying an entire rack of deadstock 60s pointy flats 
[9:51] She quickly became a deadstock hunter, criss-crossing the country looking for "new old" stock.
[13:36] Opening Meow Vintage in 1986 on Retro Row in Long Beach, 
[16:06] Crisscrossing the country before the internet even existed, digging for deadstock.
[20:36] What the vintage landscape looked like when she opened 
[26:52] She built a parallel career outfitting film and television
[36:26] How the vintage industry has changed over the years
[43:41] Reflections on Brimfield — what's changed, what hasn't, and the chaos that's part of it.
EPISODE MENTIONS: 
Meow Vintage
@meowvintagelb
Larry from Hellers Cafe 
Amy Parris
Pickwick Vintage
Rin Tanaka's books
Liz Baca
Shirley Kurata
LET'S CONNECT: 
📸Instagram: @emilymstochl
🐦Threads: @emilymstochl
🎥TikTok: @emilymstochl
📧 Substack: https://prelovedpod.substack.com/ 
🎧Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/prelovedpod 
SPECIAL THANKS: 
A special thanks goes out to my Patron Insiders – your support makes Pre-Loved Podcast possible!
Patty Weber
Kathy Brand
Lisa of Queenie & Pearl
Lydia Welp
Michael A.
Megan Morris
Jennifer
Alana Rivero
Jerrica Yasumura
Amanda Hale

Today we're chatting with Lexis Zenobia , a full-time artist and vintage dealer, the owner of Ladies of the Loon — which is doing something really unique – this is a vintage brand that has taken a truly singular path in the resale world, one paved entirely in vintage mohair.
A little background, Lexis grew up in Wisconsin, and came of age in Milwaukee's vintage scene. She launched a fashion photography business at 18, and spent several years on the road in an RV, selling vintage out of the back and collecting pieces across the American West. 
But it wasn't until she became the steward of a one-of-a-kind vintage mohair collection that everything changed for Lexis. Today, you're going to hear the story of a find beyond her wildest dreams: thousands of vintage and hand-knit mohair pieces, spanning from the 1920s onward, capes, gowns, skirts, sweaters — including a collection of nearly 200 hand-knit Italian cardigans from the 1950s and 60s. This is a collection so significant, it should be shown in a gallery.
On today's episode, we get into all of it: how a sleepless night and a full moon set this whole thing in motion, why Lexi made the bold decision to sell off her entire existing inventory and go all in on mohair, what makes this textile so special to photograph and to wear, and the pieces — that sold in minutes which she still thinks about. All that and more!
Let's dive right in!
DISCUSSED IN THE EPISODE:
[5:16] Early memories of Lexis vintage shopping with her mom, including an antique store in a rural barn.
[7:50] Her career in vintage actually started with fashion photography.
[11:04] She originally became a vintage dealer because she needed to do a big closet cleanout, and it accidentally launched a decade-long career. 
[14:31] How COVID reshaped the business 
[18:16] How she became the steward of a one-of-a-kind vintage mohair collection, spanning from the 1920s onward.
[26:35] Why vintage mohair is a special textile, nicknamed "the diamond fiber"
[29:39] The Italian handknit mohair cardigans 
[31:08] On the decision to wholesale her existing collection and focus singularly on vintage mohair. 
[37:44] Her dream to show the mohair collection in a gallery 
[41:05] How to care for vintage mohair 
[47:18] The two mohair pieces that sold in minutes and that she still thinks about 
[52:46] On her personal style and memorable pieces
EPISODE MENTIONS: 
Ladies of the Loon
Midwest Vintage Flea
SUDESTADA Gallery
"Wool Skirts," an exhibition of one woman's 40-year thrift-store collection, reveals a rich tapestry of clothing manufacturing and feminist history. – The New York Times
The Black Web dress
Bleu Boy Vintage
Thank You Vintage
 
LET'S CONNECT: 
📸Instagram: @emilymstochl
🐦Threads: @emilymstochl
🎥TikTok: @emilymstochl
📧 Substack: https://prelovedpod.substack.com/ 
🎧Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/prelovedpod 
 
SPECIAL THANKS: 
A special thanks goes out to my Patron Insiders – your support makes Pre-Loved Podcast possible!
Patty Weber
Kathy Brand
Lisa of Queenie & Pearl
Lydia Welp
Michael A.
Megan Morris
Jennifer
Alana Rivero
Jerrica Yasumura
Amanda Hale

Today we're chatting with Rachel Koffsky Parker, Senior Vice President and International Head of Department for Handbags and Accessories at Christie's auction house — one of the most recognized voices in the global luxury handbag market and, an auctioneer herself, having taken handbag sales in New York, London, Geneva, and Hong Kong.
After internships at the Met and the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, Rachel found her way to Christie's in 2014, just as handbags were becoming a formalized auctionhouse category. Since, she has helped build the handbag category from the ground up, growing into what is now one of the most strategically important departments in the house — responsible for bringing in 12% of all new Christie's clients and selling in excess of forty million dollars in handbags worldwide last year alone.
Over the last decade plus, she's brought the first single-owner handbag collections to market in both Milan and Paris, set world auction records for Hermès, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Gucci, and helped transform the way an entire generation of collectors thinks about handbags — not just as accessories, but as objects with history, rarity, provenance, and serious investment value.
On today's episode, we get into all of it: how she built her expertise by cataloging up to a hundred bags a week, what actually drives value at auction, the record-breaking lots that still give her chills, and why a little wear and patina has gone from a liability to a badge of honor in the eyes of today's collectors. All that and more!
Let's dive right in!
DISCUSSED IN THE EPISODE:
[4:00] Rachel grew up obsessed with Lucky Magazine, loving all things fashion and handbags. 
[6:35] How her love of luxury handbags led to a career in the auction house. 
[9:16] The first Christie's auction to include handbags was in 1978, but it wasn't until 2014 that handbags became a formalized category at the house. 
[10:25] Handbags now bring in 12% of all new Christie's clients, making it one of the most strategically important departments in the house. 
[12:20] Christie's customers began to understand handbags as an asset class. 
[18:06] What drives pre-sale estimates, and what provenance means in the auction world  
[23:55] Christie's world-record handbag auctions
[31:43] Current trends on the secondary luxury market 
[36:17] The upcoming Christie's luxury week sale with over 250 lots 
[38:10] What goes into producing an auction 
[40:32] Rachel's Holy Grail lot 
[42:22] The personal pieces Rachel will never part with 
EPISODE MENTIONS: 
Christie's
@christiesinc
@christieshandbags
Yayoi Kusama x Louis Vuitton pumpkin bag 
Hermès Kelly Doll 
Upcoming Handbag auction: 28 May to 11 June. 
LET'S CONNECT: 
📸Instagram: @emilymstochl
🐦Threads: @emilymstochl
🎥TikTok: @emilymstochl
📧 Substack: https://prelovedpod.substack.com/ 
🎧Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/prelovedpod 
SPECIAL THANKS: 
A special thanks goes out to my Patron Insiders – your support makes Pre-Loved Podcast possible!
Patty Weber
Kathy Brand
Lisa of Queenie & Pearl
Lydia Welp
Michael A.
Megan Morris
Jennifer
Alana Rivero
Jerrica Yasumura
Amanda Hale

Today we're chatting with Brooke of Daisy and Stella Vintage — a collector, seller, and curator who has been living and breathing vintage since 1999, and more recently, became the founder of the Twin Cities True Vintage Show.
Brooke grew up in Wisconsin, where her mom sold antique dolls, and she spent a lot of time in auction houses and antique malls and the vintage shops on State Street in Madison. By college, she had a name for her future vintage shop picked out — Daisy and Stella, but it would be some time before she dove fully into her lifelong dream.
Today, Daisy and Stella is a deeply specialized shop focused on Victorian fashion through the 1930s — the era of leg-of-mutton sleeves, hand-beaded gowns, corset covers, and construction so intricate it would cost thousands to replicate today. Brooke has built a reputation as one of the go-to experts in this niche, sourcing pieces through estate sales, online auctions, and a growing network of collectors and friends who know exactly what she's looking for.
In 2023, she took that expertise and turned it into something bigger: the Twin Cities True Vintage Show, a curated, experience-driven vintage event where everything sold on the floor is 50 years old or older, and shoppers dress in vintage – we've covered the incredible street style in Pre-Loved's newsletter this spring!
On today's episode, we get into all of it: how she found her niche and why narrowing down was the best thing she ever did for her business, and what it takes to build a vintage show that draws buyers and dealers from the coasts — and internationally — to the Midwest for one-of-a-kind finds.
Let's dive right in!
DISCUSSED IN THE EPISODE:
[4:35] Brooke grew up in Wisconsin, where her mom sold antique dolls, and she spent a lot of time in auction houses, antique malls and vintage shops.
[5:23] The vintage landscape of the late 90s and early 2000s 
[8:58] Starting a vintage shop was a lifelong dream for Brooke – one long in the making.
[14:09] Daisy and Stella is a deeply specialized shop focused on Victorian fashion through the 1930s.
[17:23] What's most in demand right now from Victorian through 1930s 
[22:47] Brooke has tried many resale platforms over the years – most recently livestreaming on Whatnot. 
[25:08] Educating customers about pieces that are extremely old and rare. 
[28:00] The piece Brooke had in a bin for 10 years before realizing it was a rare, sought-after French label, Boué Soeurs
[32:28] Why she started the Twin Cities True Vintage show as a production dedicated to vintage fashion older than 50-years-old.
[38:50] The "live mannequin" feature at the Twin Cities True Vintage show 
[44:00] What draws buyers and dealers from the coasts and internationally to a Midwest show
 [45:00] The most rare and remarkable pieces on the floor at the April Twin Cities True Vintage Show.
[48:49] Brooke's own personal collection and favorite vintage pieces.
[56:45] The pieces Brooke has sold that she still thinks about — and her vintage bucket list. 
EPISODE MENTIONS: 
Daisy and Stella Vintage
@daisyandstellavintage
Twin Cities True Vintage Show
@twincitiestruevintageshow
Pre-Loved's coverage from the Twin Cities True Vintage Show
@timelessvixen
Timeless Vixen on Pre-Loved Podcast
Dressing History video on "survival bias"
Candice at Collecting Dust
Glamdiggers Vintage
Stay Gold Vintage
Threadbare
Sturbridge 
Goldstein Museum of Design 
Cora Violet Walters
LET'S CONNECT: 
📸Instagram: @emilymstochl
🐦Threads: @emilymstochl
🎥TikTok: @emilymstochl
📧 Substack: https://prelovedpod.substack.com/ 
🎧Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/prelovedpod 
SPECIAL THANKS: 
A special thanks goes out to my Patron Insiders – your support makes Pre-Loved Podcast possible!
Patty Weber
Kathy Brand
Lisa of Queenie & Pearl
Lydia Welp
Michael A.
Megan Morris
Jennifer
Alana Rivero
Jerrica Yasumura
Amanda Hale