A Thrift Store In The Heart of The East Side

A clothing store for overflow donations made to the local Chabad

For years, the Chabad of the Upper East Side had a problem. People in the neighborhood would routinely drop off clothes and other household goods at its Upper East Side home, but there was nowhere for all of it to go.

Now there is. Chanie Krasianski, wife of Chabad Rabbi Ben Krasianski, and Mussa Zakon late last year opened Solomon's Wives, a thrift store that sells goods that have been donated to the center. All the clothing inside the quaint store on 89th street has been donated to the Chabad, and the proceeds earned go to different causes it supports, and their beautiful Jaques & Hanna Schwalbe Mikvah.

"The community has been really excited about it, and we are slowly getting noticed by more and more people," Zakon said. "We came up with this idea because people have been donating clothes to the Chabad forever, and we really didn't have anywhere to put it all."

The store is filled with lots of vintage clothing, designer pieces for both men and women. On a recent Sunday afternoon, it was buzzing with new customers. A pair of friends was searching for some new items to bring with them on vacation, and found some fun vintage bathing suit cover-ups.

Elyse Sosin volunteers her time working at the store every Sunday, and a majority of the other employees work as volunteers. Sosin works as a nutritionist, and has attended lectures and services at the Chabad in the past. She was looking to volunteer, and give back to the community in some way.

"So many interesting people come in, the woman next door has the best sense of style," Sosin said. "She works at Lenox Hill Hospital, but when she shops here she puts the best pieces together."

They found the space through a friend of the Chabad who works in real estate; he helped them find a small space to get started. Zakon explained that they wanted to start small and see how things went before committing to a more expensive space.

"We want to grow, and eventually open a bigger store but we didn't know how well people were going to respond," she explained.

So far, she says, so good.

Solomon's Wives is open each week on Sunday and Tuesday from 12pm ? 5pm, and Thursday from 12pm ? 7pm. To donate clothing, you can drop it off at Chabad at 419 East 77th Street during the week. All donations are tax deductible.