Queer thrift shop already raised $2000 for community in just a month after opening

A thrift shop in Pennsylvania has already raised $2000 for LGBTQ+ causes just one month after opening.

Kate Farbo, the out founder of The Loop in Lancaster, said that she started her shop because she loves thrifting and giving clothes a new life. But it also serves a larger purpose, as its proceeds go to the LGBTQ+ Coalition, which offers a variety of services.

Related: These companies are working together to bring affirming clothing to as many trans youth as possible

Jamie Alexander, the proud dad of a trans daughter, and trans man Alexander Switzer understand the power of clothes that fit right.

“We have in-house therapists, we have a subsidized housing program that we run,” she told Local 21 News. “We’ve done a name change clinic with the bar association. We’ve had an STI clinic, DEI training.”

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The shop is also a safe space for people to try out a new style or a new way of presenting themselves to the world. Farbo said that everyone who works there is queer.

“You can try on anything you want, you can try on the wildest outfit,” she said. “You can try on something completely different than what you are wearing, and you are gonna only be encouraged and built up.”

“Sure, you can walk into any store and try out anything you want, but unfortunately, you don’t know how the people around you, strangers around you, are going to react.”

“When you go into a department store, I feel like there might be a little hesitation to break out of the boxes that you’re in,” one customer said. “Just come here, find out who you want to be and how you wanna dress, and you’re gonna be fully supported.”

The store is open on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, and Farbo says she is hoping the store can be open more days of the week in the future.

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