VALDOSTA – Although Plato’s Closet has been open for quite some time in Valdosta, it has not always received the attention it deserves. 

That’s where current owner Rachel Johnston came in. 

Johnston traveled to Valdosta from her home state of Colorado to run the day-to-day operations of Valdosta’s Plato’s Closet, the business she co-owns with Theresa Preston and Tim and Denise Dabbs.

“We had computer issues coming in and were doing hand transactions,” Johnston said. “We hired the store with only seven employees then lost two so we were down to five. The AC wasn’t working and there just wasn’t a lot of customer flow.”

She had her work cut out for her but, with the help of her partners and her knowledge from being a former Plato’s Closet store manager in Colorado, Johnston began the task of rebranding the Valdosta store and turning it into a place that locals would want to shop.

Plato’s Closet is a resale shop that gives cash on the spot for gently used teen and young adult style clothing and accessories that are name brand and trendy styles from the last 12 to 18 months. 

The store gives the customer one third of what the store will sell the item for and no appointment is necessary for selling clothes.

Customers interested in shopping can find deals up to 70 percent off mall retail prices for items in the store and clothing can be found for teen and young adult girls, guys and plus sizes are available.

Another aspect of the store is that designer accessories can be found at a fraction of the cost with no fear of fakes. As Johnston explained, every manager goes through an authentication process for designer items.

The ability to find clothes for a deal and sell unwanted clothes makes Plato’s Closet popular in college towns, which is what originally brought the store to Valdosta.

Johnston relaunched Plato’s Closet after a huge remodel in April with a grand re-opening event and said it’s been “full speed ahead” ever since.

“I am excited to be here in Valdosta and that the community is giving us another try,” Johnston said. “We have come a long way and now have 22 staff members. Our online reviews are going through the roof and our customer count has tripled. We are excited that people are noticing us again.”

Plato’s Closet is located at 1591 Baytree Road and is open 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon-6 p.m. Sunday. The store also has an active Instagram page that frequently posts outfits and keeps followers updated about upcoming sales. It can be found at platosclosetvaldosta. 

For those interested in selling, Johnston said the store is currently looking for plus sizes, athletic wear such as Nike, high-waisted skinny jeans and shorts, short-sleeved cropped tops, designer handbags and shoes such as Nikes, Vans, Converse and Toms.