Photos courtesy of Anela Selkowitz
In a world where anything you want can be ordered online and delivered to you in two days—local Harrisburg vintage retailers are promoting the “hunt.”
They love looking through clothing racks, peering at items on a shelf, and browsing displayed art. It’s the thrill of scouring a store and finding a hidden gem that they enjoy.
Customers can do just that at Found Collab, a new store in downtown Harrisburg, which opened in late May by retail business partners Andrew Kintzi and Anela Selkowitz.
Since 2018, Kintzi, owner of The Midtown Dandy, and Selkowitz, owner of Stash Vintage, operated a joint storefront on S. 3rd Street, in the city’s SoMa district. However, over the years they realized they’d outgrown their space and had a vision for something even bigger.
In May, they closed their shared storefront and moved operations just down the block, to the location of the former Walker’s Art & Framing.
Found Collab still features Stash Vintage and The Midtown Dandy merch—their unique and funky clothing, accessories and home goods, but with lots more to shop. The store sells work from artists, curators and makers locally and nationally.
“We want to be that place you are able to find cool things,” Kintzi said. “It’s a destination to come and hunt.”
There are racks full of men’s and women’s clothing—jean jackets, colorful dresses, trucker hats, vintage T-shirts, footwear and plaid blazers. A wall of shelves displays glassware, bars of soap, rings, mugs, candles, flasks with a map of Harrisburg on them and other hand-picked finds. The shop also features works from several local makers like polymer clay earrings from Earrings By Dee, naturally dyed clothing by Dirt Petal and ceramics by artist Tara Chickey, among others.
By providing a space for local businesses to sell their wares, Found Collab owners hope it helps them expand their reach.
“You can’t get anything we have here on Amazon,” Selkowitz said. “I hope it’ll be a place where artists and makers can succeed.”
Thrill of the Hunt
Selkowitz and Kintzi have been hunting vintage for years, but, in the past several years, the practice has taken off, trending especially among younger shoppers who want one-of-a-kind pieces.
“The vintage scene has gained such popularity as of late,” Kintzi said.
Found Collab owners are happy to see it and cite several reasons why the fad has stuck around. For one thing, during COVID, people started visiting thrift stores both for cheap finds for themselves and to sell during a tough economic time.
In the earlier days of the trend, someone might’ve hit the jackpot and stumbled upon a valuable piece, Kintzi said. But as the popularity of vintage grew, those odds dropped.
“A lot of it was that get-rich possibility of finding that Tupac T-shirt while sifting through the racks, and that doesn’t exist anymore,” he said.
While hunting down hidden gems may have become more difficult, Kintzi and Selkowitz are glad to see so many people pushing back against the fast fashion industry, opting for re-used and locally made items.
At Found Collab, they continue to promote this type of sustainable shopping.
“Whether you’re selling vintage or thrifted, used things, it’s all good,” Selkowitz said. “There’s no bad.”
Customer Rachel Delavan of Camp Hill has shopped at the business’ former location and came to visit Found Collab with her son on opening day.
Her teenage son loves the vintage T-shirts, she said.
“The new store looks amazing,” Delavan said. “I love all the little knickknacks. You don’t have to dig through as much to find the good stuff.”
Take a Chance
Found Collab is one of a small number of retail businesses in Harrisburg. In the city, there are restaurants aplenty, with almost every cultural cuisine at your fingertips. On the other hand, shopping is hard to come by. It was that way when the Stash Vintage and The Midtown Dandy opened downtown, and it is still that way today. But they’ve decided to stay in Harrisburg, on the same block even, with their new venture.
Even so, over the years, they’ve found and kept loyal customers of all ages.
It hasn’t always been easy to be one of the few, but the owners love the city and have a passion to see it thrive.
They hope their neighborhood in SoMa will become even more of a destination and that more businesses will move in. They pointed out several recent initiatives to drum up interest in the area, such as local marketer Sara Bozich’s summer block parties, Sip@SoMa events, and the finished construction of Harrisburg University’s new UPMC Health Sciences Tower. Also, just down the street, Tamara Boutique recently opened and, within the past few years, Boneshire Brew Works opened a taproom on the block.
Selkowitz hopes that Found Collab’s investment in the neighborhood inspires others.
“There are so many empty spots around here,” she said. “We already proved that something could sustain the neighborhood, so, hopefully, other businesses will take a chance. Maybe there can be some inspiration.”
Found Collab is located at 25 S. 3rd St., Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.foundcollab.com or find them on Instagram at @foundcollab.
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