Juanita Gaynor
Teresa Okeefe
Nicolaos Stefanou
Shane Oriolo
Manuela Castro
Rutgers Business School
Jeana Wirtenberg
Keep this story going! Share below!
Once and Again Consignment is a repurposed furniture store. The company recycles used furniture and other goods, such as shoes, clothes, and household goods, to resell and make them more affordable for those on a budget. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that it tackles would be #12, Responsible Consumption and Production. Gina's goal is to restore and repurpose gently used furniture, saving them from the massive landfills where it would rot and cause harm to the environment. The resale of these items allows individuals and families who are tight on money to have the ability to decorate and furnish their homes beautifully at an affordable cost. The store also provides an opportunity to purchase higher-end designer items to dress for success.
One aspect of Once And Again Consignment is that Gina assists homeowners looking to downsize their personal belongings, whether used items such as shoes, purses, clothes, art, furniture, jewelry, mirrors, or other home decor items. Gina stated that this gives her clients who sell their used items a loving home that will allow them to get the full use out of belongings that otherwise may go to waste. Opening the second store in Towaco allowed Gina the opportunity to expand and help many more people by being able to house more items.
On the buyer's side, Gina gives everyday people access to higher-end items at prices everyone can afford. Now, customers who are on a budget and spent most of what they had saved up to get their new home, condo, or apartment can get nice furniture and everything they need at a fraction of the price they would pay at a retail store. They don't need to settle for store-bought items that may be less expensive and constructed from mediocre materials. Their dollar will last the furniture a lot longer with the items that are made better and lasting.
During our interview, one thing was clear with Gina: her motivation and inspiration. As an interior designer for 27 years, she had the vision to transform a store that she referred to as a "terrible garage sale" into a revamped and refurbished store, turning it into a higher-end consignment store with stunningly beautiful pieces of furniture, jewelry, handbags, and home decor. Her inspiration is to help people, whether homeowners are downsizing and need to get rid of their furniture or people who recently purchased a home and have limited funds to invest in their refurbishment.
The innovation empowers customers to hire the company to repurpose and reshape their old items into something fresh and beautiful instead of paying loads of money to retail to get something brand new. In addition, used and old items do not end up in a landfill but in the customers' homes since it would be a waste of resources and money to dump them.
The innovation provides numerous benefits for the company, as originality characterizes the whole idea behind it. The business started as a small consignment shop which "looked like a terrible garage sale" (as mentioned above) from Gina's words in the interview. Gina has expanded the business significantly over the years, opening another store, more significant than the first one, after the highly positive feedback she received from clients and customers alike. It was evident that the business grew immensely financially. Gina expanded her business while also looking to expand her business in the future. She stated, "I opened my second store, four times the size. So that we could help more people fulfill their dream of having a nicely designed home." When asked whether she thinks of expanding nationally, she stated, "I would love to go national." Of course, it is no secret that her work attracted hundreds of new customers and received overwhelmingly positive feedback on her work.
Her innovative idea is beneficial to the environment as it emphasizes the importance of recycling, renewing, and reusing items. By restoring old decoration items and other goods, these items are not going to a landfill. Instead, they are renewed and resold to be appreciated in different forms. This concept of recycling contributes to the well-being of the environment. It is also the source that generates revenue for the company, which consequently impacts the economy. Restoring the items requires labor, thus promoting jobs and benefiting the people who work for the company. In today's environment, climate change is a serious topic that surrounds us every day; Gina's efforts bring greater consciousness to how our actions impact society and the environment and positively impact people and the economy.
Get stories of positive business innovations from around the world delivered right to your inbox.
Gina Falco, CEO
Once & Again Consignment is a high-end consignment store with affordable prices for all, and a heavy focus on recycling and consumer access.