Find Curated Nostalgia and Style at Top Shelf Vintage Co.

Photography courtesy of Top Shelf Vintage Co.

Remember the wacky days of the ’90s and early 2000s, when decor and clothing were meant to be as loud as possible and gimmicky characters were all over clothes? Annie Schisler certainly does, and misses it, which is why she and her partner Doug Valeri opened Top Shelf Vintage Co., a secondhand clothing shop in Pawtucket that embodies the silliness of earlier times.

The Pawtucket shop sells vintage memorabilia curated by owners Annie Schisler and Doug Valeri. Photography courtesy of Top Shelf Vintage Co.

The shop’s clothing selection spans from the 1970s to the early aughts, as Valeri and Schisler consider items vintage if they’re at least twenty years old. Relics around the store invite customers to reminisce on times when Super Mario Kart was a shiny new game and Converse sneakers were known as Chuck Taylors or just Chucks — you know, the good ol’ days.

“When people walk in, they get hit with their past, which is really special,” Schisler says. “Getting to stir up some nostalgia and allow people to forget about the other stuff in their life and think about the memory the store is evoking is one of the coolest parts of the job.”

While pulling up for our interview, I found Schisler dumpster-diving through boxes of discarded items a few storefronts down. It’s a hobby she’s always enjoyed. In fact, her early years of buying and selling secondhand to Florida classmates foretold her future as a secondhand shop owner.

Her love of vintage also led her to Valeri. The Massachusetts native was selling a vintage camera online when Schisler, a photographer, reached out to purchase it. Finding commonality through their love of vintage clothing and decor, they coupled up and  decided to go into business together.

Photography courtesy of Top Shelf Vintage Co.

They started Top Shelf Vintage Co. in 2012, selling through sites like Etsy and eBay. In 2019, they opened the storefront in downtown Pawtucket. The decision to open a brick-and-mortar store was easy; they’d long grown tired of the difficulties of running an online business.

“We chose this path because we had to make a choice,” Valeri says. “Do we keep doing online, do we keep doing pop-ups, or do we open a storefront? We chose the storefront option because we liked talking to people and having people be able to try the clothes on.”

Local artists have used the eye-catching store as backdrops for their own projects. Providence-based band Bochek used the space for record drop parties and musician Eric Barao filmed music videos in the colorful space. Every year around the store’s anniversary, Schisler and Valeri keep the doors open late to throw a party complete with free goodies and big discounts.

“We love having the parties because if you shop with us when you could shop somewhere else that’s so validating and beautiful, so we like to give gifts and celebrate our amazing customers,” Schisler says.

Photography courtesy of Top Shelf Vintage Co.

The owners are perfectly happy in their little corner of Pawtucket, perfecting their wares and traveling to sales and pop-ups — think the Brimfield Antique Flea Market and the Little City Thrifty sale in Providence — whenever they have the time and inclination.

“It’s like kids — one and done,” Schisler says. “Right now, we’re just cruising and enjoying continuously making the shop what we want it to be.” topshelfvintageco.com