Want to become more sustainable but also keep up with the latest trends? Well, we are here to help. Thrifting is not really the norm but is starting to gain traction as fast fashion has started to get a bad rep, with most clothes only being made to be worn around 10-14 times! Grab your wallet and come with us as we take you through some of the UAE’s best thrift stores that offer some one-of-a-kind vintage pieces, and even great second-hand pieces that are too good to be thrown away.
Thrift Stores in Dubai
At first glance, Dubai doesn’t seem like the best place to go thrifting as it’s created an atmosphere that revolves around a luxurious lifestyle. However, we discovered several locations that will satisfy all your thrifting needs.
Thrift For Good
Thrift for Good is one of the thrift shops that has recently gone viral on TikTok. It is one of the only major ones in Dubai. They have 2 locations, with one in Golden Mile 8, The Palm and the other in Times Square Center, making them easily accessible to the public which is something that we admired. Apart from being easily accessible, the store was very large, spacious, and organized which is quite rare for thrift stores, and made us want to stay in there for hours on end.
They offered a wide range of clothes, from dresses to tops, bottoms, shoes, and even accessories. All of the items were very good quality, and clean, which is nice to see and is great for anyone that is thrifting for the first time. They were also size-inclusive and had a wide variety of sizes, allowing all people to become more sustainable. The majority of the brands were just regular brands, which are nice for anyone looking for second-hand basics. However, they did also have well-known luxury brand names such as BCBG, Juicy Couture, Calvin Klein, Tory Burch, DKNY, and many more.
You should definitely check out Thrift For Good as they have an amazing mission. Alongside that, they donate 100% of their profits to Gulf For Good which is a charity that raises funds for children in need, worldwide.
(Pssst. You can also thrift online with next-day delivery! )
Price Range: 1 – 200 AED
Location: Golden Mile 8, The Palm & Times Square Center – Dubai
Timing: 10:00 am – 10:00 pm
Dubai Center Souq
Dubai Charity Souq which was previously known as Dubai Charity Center is definitely one of the best-hidden thrift stores in Dubai. One of the best things about it is that it simulates the real experience of thrift shopping, digging through piles of clothes, and finding that hidden gem is one of the best feelings. The store’s atmosphere is not great but it is modest enough for what it is.
The store consists of two floors, but it is quite small. The first floor mostly consists of random artboards and household items. However, if you look closely enough you will be able to find some beautiful vintage watches and accessories that can definitely be a great addition to any outfit. It also includes a lot of casual men’s clothing which can seem boring, but they can elevate any outfit, especially if you are going for an androgynous look.
The second floor includes mostly women’s and children’s clothes, alongside purses. This is definitely where you need to keep your eyes peeled and look thoroughly, you can easily miss great vintage and second-hand gems. Most of the items are unknown or regular brands such as Zara, H&M, Charles & Keith, and Misguided. However, there were also some vintage and expensive luxury brands that you don’t want to miss. These include as Ted Baker, Babe, DKNY, Dolce & Gabbana, and Gucci.
Although the quality of the products is inconsistent, they do have a large selection of unique pieces. Most of the products are used, but some still have the tag! Their prices start at 10 AED. This is especially great as their prices are hard to beat, especially for low-income individuals. Perfect for people who are looking for rare and distinct apparel that is hard to come by.
Dubai Charity Souq is a great place that does not only give products a new life at a great price but also donates all their profits to Dubai Center for Special Needs.
Bonus, they also have 50% off everything, every Saturday!
Price Range: 10 – 40 AED.
Location: Al Karama – Dubai
Timings: 9:30 AM – 7:00 PM
Thrift Bazaar
Thrift Bazaar is a thrift store that harbors warm feelings towards its customers. The store has a great atmosphere with a wide selection of great music and bright lighting which makes you want to jump straight into thrifting. The staff is fun and welcoming towards their customers making them feel like friends! While interacting with the staff you can feel a strong connection between them and their customers, which is simply perfection!
The store has one floor that caters towards both male and female attire, while also including fitting rooms. In addition to offering a wide variety of clothing, they include a vast array of size-inclusive pieces that customers can enjoy. Thrift Bazaar offers more than just clothing at their store, they offer shoes, bags, swim attire, and some furniture pieces. The quality of the clothing is great, with lots of clean and new clothing. As well as offering secondhand pieces of attire.
Although Thrift Bazaar does not offer vintage or expensive brands, they do have a wide variety of generic brands that are highly fashionable. Ever felt like you might not be able to afford something? Well, you’re just in luck as Thrift Bazaar’s prices start at a whopping 6 AED and stop at 150 AED max! Most pieces have a price that ranges from between 20 – 30 AED.
While thrifting is the main conversation of Thrift Bazaar, so is the feeling that we experience. We can assure you that Thrift Bazaar will make you feel more than welcome to stay and have fun.
Price Range: 6 – 150 AED
Location: Al Barsha 1 – Dubai
Timings: 9:00 am – 11:00 pm
Thrift Stores in Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi is pretty conservative in comparison to Dubai, so it was pretty difficult to locate many thrift shops. However, we did discover one location that is quite popular amongst the Filipino community in Abu Dhabi, which contains ‘Ukay Ukay’ shops and is a must-go for any thrift lovers located in the capital.
Al Yousef Center
Al Yousef Center is currently one of the only known places to thrift in Abu Dhabi. It consists of a few floors filled with numerous Ukay Ukay stores. The atmosphere of the overall area is decent, with some stores being a bit more spacious than others. However, most were quite tight and congested, which is definitely something to keep in mind if you are claustrophobic.
The place mostly consisted of secondhand clothes, some being gently used while others seemed to be pretty loved in the past. Most of the clothes were unknown brands but there were also some brand names such as Calvin Klein, Banana Republic, Champion, Nike, and Under Armour. We were also told if you come at just the right time, you can grab some pretty cool pieces as the clothes are yet to be sorted, so try your luck!
There were not many vintage pieces, however, we did spot a vintage wedding dress that would be a dream for anyone going for that specific style! You never know what you’ll find as new items come in daily. It is definitely a place to check out in Abu Dhabi as there is something for everyone. if not today, tomorrow!
Also! don’t be afraid to bargain, the more you get, the better the price.
Price Range: 1 – 50 AED
Location: Hamdan Bin Mohammed Street – Abu Dhabi
Timings: 8:00 am – 12:00 am (Closed on Fridays)
Online Thrift Stores
In current times, most people prefer to shop online as it’s so much easier to have a look and way less time-consuming in comparison to regular shopping. Shopping on the go has become the new norm, with just one click, you can have anything delivered the next day. Here we are going to explore the best online thrift stores in the UAE! Just keep an eye on that cart, because once you start shopping, there’s no stopping!
Vintage Vibe
Vintage Vibe is an online thrift store that specializes in offering consumers the best finds when it comes to retro pieces. Vintage Vibe has a style of its own that is unique from any other online thrift store in the UAE. They have a massive following of 12k users on their Instagram account! Apart from having an online store through their Instagram page, website, and YouTube account. They also appear on pop-ups every Saturday in Ripe Market, Police Academy in Dubai. Vintage Vibe sure knows how to keep their customers engaged with the process of how they come to find such rare pieces from the 90’s on their YouTube page. So, for all our 90’s babies watch out! You never know when you’ll find something that you wanted to get in the past!
Vintage Vibe has a variety of clothing that is suitable for all kinds of people who enjoy thrifting fashionable items. The staff is wonderful when it comes to the services during and after purchase. When purchasing any item from their store, we can see just how thoughtful they are. With all purchases from Vintage Vibe, you will get a detailed description of the product. Some of these descriptions will include the year it was sold and the quality of the product that was thrifted. Most of the thrifted items that the store offers include sports jerseys and many branded and luxury goodies like Nike, Adidas, Puma, Harley Davidson, and Champion.
Vintage Vibe does frequent drops to keep their consumer engaged with the store. Although frequent drops sound interesting, wait till you hear this. They create mystery boxes and biddings for super rare holy grails! Which makes shopping at Vintage Vibe even more worthwhile. Although they are a thrift store whose prices can start from 30 AED, it is possible to go even higher than that due to biddings for holy grail items.
Overall, Vintage Vibes is definitely a dream for anyone who is into retro streetwear and sports attire, so you better make space in your closet!
Price Range: 30 AED +
Shipping: 15 AED
Instagram: @vntgvibe_
Location: Every Saturday at Ripe Market, Police Academy in Dubai Time: 9:00 am – 9:00 pm
Rewyned Apparel
Rewyned Apparel is one of Dubai’s leading online thrift shops that offer sustainable second-hand clothing. The online thrift store is owned by three sisters that are very interested in saving beautiful previously loved pieces, every item of used clothing is handpicked, inspected for flaws, and sanitized before being shipped off to its new home. The store offers a variety of clothing, from vintage premium apparel to activewear, swimwear, accessories, and many more.
Rewyned apparel releases a new drop almost every two weeks, all drops are previously announced on their Instagram page @rewyndapparel, so make sure you follow them for the newest updates and best finds! When scrolling through the retro website and seem to like one of the second-hand items you can view the details of each item to learn the size, material, and condition. Most of the products are gently used clothing, the thrift store gives each article of clothing a score out of 10, and the worst they have is an 8, which says a lot about the quality you get!
Price range:15- 250 AED
Shipping: 20 AED
Instagram: @rewyndapparel
Reeborn Vintage
Reeborn Vintage is a luxury online store based in the UAE that sells second-hand items as well as new ones. The shop was founded by Lina Sabry. She started the business at the start of the pandemic based on personal interest in all things vintage and antique.
The store is perfect for any shopper that is looking for unique timeless luxury pieces. They are quite pricey but all of their products are from well-recognized luxury brands and are vintage. So they are pretty hard to get a hold of in the first place. Reeborn vintage gives you access to a good amount of hard-to-come-by pieces, that would be the staple to anyone’s closet. They offer a range of products, from tops to bottoms, purses, sunglasses, shoes, and more!
They also keep a catalog of all the products that have been previously sold. This gives consumers a look at what has come before and what type of product might be available in the future. Keep an eye on their website constantly because you never know what vintage item you might miss!
PS. All their items are authenticated by experts beforehand so don’t worry about that, shop at ease. Happy shopping!
Price range: 80+ AED
Shipping: 30 AED
Instagram: @reebornvintage
With that being said, we hope you can start thrifting with us and become more sustainable in the long run! If you are interested in fashion, you would probably be interested in checking out our Ultimate Guide to Fashion Designing Courses in Dubai.
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