Steve and Cindy Johnson are opening a new franchised resale store at the location of their former Clothes Mentor shop.
The franchisees recently dropped women’s clothing reseller Clothes Mentor and are investing in the Once Upon A Child brand, with a targeted Aug. 17 opening at 1258 E. Battlefield Road.
Steve Johnson said the closure of Children’s Orchard resale store after a fire last year opened the door for the new venture to complement his other clothing franchise store, Plato’s Closet. Once Upon A Child handles used children’s clothing, strollers and other accessories, while Plato’s Closet resells clothing for teenagers and young adults.
“What’s unique about children’s clothes – at large, not totally, at 12 and under – the parents are not so worried about style as they are about condition,” Johnson said. “It needs to be cute, and it needs to be nice.”
Johnson said the average Once Upon A Child franchise costs $300,000 to open, but he’s done it for less.
“I do a lot of the work myself. I do my own build-outs,” he said. “I reused some of my counters from my Clothes Mentor. I just refaced them.”
There is also a $20,000 startup fee and a 5 percent royalty, he said.
He said the Plato’s Closet store generated $1.8 million in revenue last year.
The Johnsons were first introduced to the business of resale shopping in 2000, when they adopted two infants. They bought clothes for their children at the Once Upon A Child location in Cincinnati, Ohio, where they were living at the time.
The Johnsons built the Battlefield Road building in 2010, and it’s now shared by the two stores.
“I’m not bullish on getting another five or 10 year lease, to have a third location,” he said.
Both businesses are franchised through Winmark Corp., Johnson said, which also sells franchises for Play It Again Sports, as well as women’s clothing and music resale concepts.
The Johnsons also operate three out-of-state Plato’s Closet stores through franchisor NTY Franchise Co.
Other children’s resale shops in town include Other Mothers and Haute Tot Upscale Kids Resale, as well as various thrift stores. Johnson said his store currently is buying from the public – baby sizes through 12-years old – to prepare for the opening.
