Before I embark on my next intervention, I interviewed the owner of LYSAXU, a vintage shop established in Shanghai.
Chat record:
Chat content
Question: How and why you founded this store? Who are the typical customers for your shop?
Xu: I established this store nine years ago mainly because of my personal interest in vintage culture. The majority of buyers are younger people.
Question: Is there any specific story or experience that inspired your passion for vintage culture?
Xu: Actually, there isn’t a colorful story. When I was studying abroad in Japan 9 years ago, I was really fond of vintage culture. It started with a simple love for buying vintage clothing, and as I accumulated more, I thought of trying to sell them myself. Now, it has become a part of my life. At the beginning, it really was just an experimental venture for me.
Question: Is the majority of your customer base from offline purchases, or online?
Xu: Offline. Since I don’t focus much on online sales, most people come in person and I prefer customers to experience the items in-store before making a purchase.
Question: In these nine years, could you describe the rate of customer retention and the growth of new customers? I asked this question to gain insight into whether there has been an increasing interest among young people in the second-hand market over the years.
Xu: I believe there has been an increase.