March 11-17, 2004
mixpicks
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For Buffalo Exchange's regular Philadelphia customers, who've been making the Walnut Street branch the next stop for their treasured, slightly worn apparel since its opening in 2000, it may come as a surprise that the company's history is almost as long as that of its amassed vintage slingbacks and velvet jackets. This year is Buffalo Exchange's 30th anniversary, and those decades have borne out the premise on which it was founded: That the more fashion has subdivided, the more accessories and garments are used (and reused) to create a particular look rather than simply worn every day.
To celebrate, Kerstin and Spencer Block, the couple who founded the company in Tucson, Ariz., will visit the franchise store in Philadelphia this Saturday. The "Trailer Tour," as it's billed, will have a distinctly Southwestern feel -- let's not forget, our store, run by Leslie Weinstein, is the only East Coast one the only one east of Houston, in fact. The Blocks are bringing the Buffalo Exchange trailer, a 16-foot 1997 Scamp painted with stark desert motifs, and competitive rounds of Mexican loteria will decide the winners of anniversary T-shirts, trading bags and keycards offering discounts of $3 on every $30 spent at the store this year. But the real treat will be to meet the founders themselves -- and perhaps glean some valuable tips on how to grow through the next three decades in polka dots and shrugs.
Buffalo Exchange 30th Anniversary Trailer Tour, Sat., March 13, noon-7 p.m., Buffalo Exchange, 1109 Walnut St., 215-627-4647, www.buffaloexchange.com
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