Just a few months after celebrating his graduation from BW, Noah Mowery's vintage clothing store, The Thrifting Tree, celebrates its grand opening on Saturday, September 20, just a block away from the BW campus.
Noah Mowery '25 has prevented thousands of pieces of clothing from ending up in landfills through his online store, The Thrifting Tree, a venture he started as a middle schooler.
Now, the May 2025 Baldwin Wallace University grad, who double majored in management and innovation and human resource management, is making the leap to a brick-and-mortar vintage clothing shop to house a "thriving brand that curates high-quality, affordable vintage pieces for customers who care about both style and the environment."
"Opening a physical store has always been the dream," Mowery explained. "And this year, I finally decided to go for it."
Mowery has been renovating the space at 44 W. Bridge Street in Berea since he got the keys in August, with a grand opening slated for September 20.
"When I found this place on W. Bridge, it needed a lot of work, but something about it just felt right," Mowery said. "I've been pouring everything into transforming it. It's been a total DIY build out, and I've been documenting the whole journey online: the good, the messy and everything in between."
As he told us a year ago, the Medina, Ohio, native started his thrifting business when he was in middle school, aiming to sell "cool vintage clothing" to his friends even before he recognized that resale was also good for the planet.
"I noticed the trend of dressing in vintage was becoming very popular online, so I began selling clothing on eBay. My middle school side hustle quickly became a full-time occupation for me in high school," he added.
Mowery later expanded his reach by leveraging Instagram and, while studying at BW, rebranded as The Thrifting Tree and launched his own e-commerce website.
Now, the May grad credits BW LaunchNET, Powered by the Burton D. Morgan Foundation, with giving him "the tools and confidence to believe I could actually pull this off." LaunchNET support included three micro-grants and "people in my corner," he said.
"On top of this, the BW student community has been supporting me through my pop-ups [hosted in the Strosacker Union] and website drops since I started to ramp things up with my business around junior year. It's wild to think how far it's all come."
When Mowery launches the storefront business on Saturday, September 20, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., shoppers will find "tons of vintage pieces from the '70s to the early '00s" and a pop-up station with fresh-cut flowers, build-your-own bouquets and more from another "amazing BW LaunchNET venture," Dahlia Gypsy Farms.
"I can't wait to open the doors, meet everyone in person, and create a space that's constantly evolving," Mowery said. "We'll be restocking often and have some really fun curated drops planned for the rest of the year. It's not just my store; it's my life's work and dream finally coming to life. It still feels surreal that it's actually happening."
To find out more about The Thrifting Tree, "a vintage clothing business dedicated to sustainability, self-expression and the fight against fast fashion waste," visit The Thrifting Tree online.
