24/09/2010

This is the story of/ Sam Greenberg Vintage

Sam Greenberg Vintage will open as a Marketplace boutique when the site launches in November. Daniel Greenberg, the boutique’s Managing Director (and Sam’s grandson) gives us an insight into the history of a family business as vintage as its stock.

Sam Greenberg Street Style

“My great grandfather, Benjamin, arrived in London from Poland at the turn of the 20th century. A tailor in Warsaw, he arrived with nothing and quickly began selling second hand clothing from a stall in London’s Petticoat Lane market to make ends meet. Sam Greenberg, my grandfather, worked alongside his father from a very early age.

Sam grew the business into a ‘rag yard’ – collecting & wholesaling used clothing & textiles. In 1935 he was able to open up a shop in the East End, selling men’s second hand tailored clothing. Today, I’m proud that Sam Greenberg Vintage is still family owned, selling handpicked and carefully selected vintage direct to the public.

This sense of family history has inspired not only my career path, but my general outlook on life. I’m definitely not a gadget loving technophile type guy. Old things turn me on far more than new, be it clothing, furniture or music. That said, my style changes as much as anyone’s. Last year’s vintage tee is this year’s classic wool Pendleton shirt.

I’m not a hoarder. I don’t think you can be when you approach Vintage as a business. Our pieces are all individually fashion led - in many ways they just ‘happen’ to be vintage too.

I started selling vintage clothing during my final year at Birmingham University 18 years ago. I’d largely lost interest in my studies, and instead found myself handpicking items from the general mass of second-hand clothing at the family warehouse. I successfully resold my crop at University markets in the area, and from there Sam Greenberg Vintage was reborn.

Today we carry a wide range of men’s vintage clothing and accessories, each piece with its own story to tell, upholding the same standards of the original company my Grandpa Sam started.”

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