Disclaimer: This article contains primer vibes and talking about clothes. Also, I once literally took pictures of all of the racks at Portobello Market so I could remember where they were. There’s an Excel spreadsheet in my travel photo folder that I swear nobody will ever need to see.
TL;DR You get the idea. First off, let me just level with you. When I first went to Portobello Market I was INCREDIBLY bad at it.
Like walked away feeling personally attacked by London’s best known vintage institution kind of bad. Okay, maybe that’s dramatic.
But trust me, I did a lot of things wrong my first time around.
It was about five years ago and I had recently graduated and moved to London, still working at my first post-college job and trying to figure out how to build out a work wardrobe that didn’t make me sob into my commuter coffee every morning. I’d read somewhere that all the cool girls got their clothes at Portobello market so I decided that meant I could wander around and immediately know what I was doing. Afternoon boyyy.
I showed up around lunchtime on a Saturday (which, as you’ll learn below, is SO late it might as well be you showing up at Madewell’s sample sale after it’s over), hadn’t given any thought beyond “find cute clothes,” got distracted by spicy meats and lived to regret it. I ended up spending way too much money on a beautiful 1970s wrap dress that fell apart the first time I had it dry cleaned. Portobello beat me up that day.
Sunburned, caffeine deprived, and clutching the sad, sloping shoulders of my disappointment back to the tube. I swore I’d never go back. But let me give you another piece of advice: once you’re stupid enough to do something more than once, you figure out how to do it better.
So I went back. Many times. And, little by little, began to understand what I’d been doing wrong and how you can–and should–shop Portobello as someone with any modicum of style awareness.
Fast forward through all of the excruciatingly unsuccessful trips and mediocre finds to today, when I’ve probably made at least fifty weekend morning pilgrimages to London’s largest vintage market and consider my Sunday shopping strategy more holistically. When I say “strategy”, I don’t mean some half-assed make-do. I woke up early to shop Portobello this morning.
I know. Who does that? But when you understand how to work Portobello Market, having first crack at London’s most prestigious vintage and thrift vendors before the crowds roll in IS your weekend.
Trust me, there is a method to my madness. Portobello Road is not your average thrift shop squeezed into a residential London borough because the owners got tired of living in their_CONDOS_. Vintage shopping at London’s hippest vintage market is a whole different ballgame.
There are cliques and politics and if you don’t know what you’re doing, you’re going to leave empty-handed while savvy women blow past you like you’re standing still. The difference between finding unique, well-priced vintage pieces and leaving with a sad, sad purse? Strategy.
And while there’s nothing wrong with a sad purse (mine is also sad), here are all of the tips and tricks I never knew I needed to have a fruitful Portobello shopping trip. Ones that will turn Portobello from a quaint London destination into literally THE cornerstone of building your capsule wardrobe. Oh, you’re welcome.
Guys, TIME is everything when shopping Portobello Market. Portobello vendors officially open their shops at 8 AM on Friday and Saturday mornings, but the VIP (“early-bird?” IDK, I didn’t say I wasn’t basic) shoppers are there before the vendors themselves sometimes. I learned the hard way that unless you want to watch (with jealousy and suspicion) as some blonde editor from Vogue walks out with THE bag, you have to be there when the vendors start trading with each other before they open to the public.
I used to sleep in Saturday and show up around 8: 15 smug in the knowledge that I had plenty of time to get down to Parlowell. Once, around my third trip or so, I showed up at the market at 8: 15 and watched in horror as some blonde girl beat me to the best vintage Hermès scarf I’ve ever seen. When I asked the man manning the stall if he had any others like it, he shook his head sadly and explained, “Early bird catches the worm, dear.” That was when I realized that if I wanted to win the Portobello Game, I was going to have to start getting up at like, SUNRISE.
So maybe 6:45 on Friday mornings it is. I hit the corner coffee shop on the way down, settle in at Portobello around 7: 15, and NEVER move my feet until I’ve made my purchases and carefully assessed my finds. Why Friday?
BECAUSE TOURISTS. Saturday morning at Portobello is horrible. Thousands of your least favorite peoples crammed into rows and rows of vintage.
Ugh, the horror. Trust me, once you’ve been there with knowledge of what you’re looking for, the Saturday crowds are not worth your time. The true insiders shop Friday morning, because little do the tourists know that most dealers restock on Saturdays after all of the professional shoppers (such as myself and, honestly, you) have picked over their collection on Friday.
Speaking of knowledgeable shopping, let’s talk LOCATION. Portobello Road is a long street and not all of it sells clothing. The first section, which starts at Notting Hill Gate and stretches towards Westbourne Grove is dedicated to antiques.
While gorgeous, flicking through rows upon rows of antique silver jewelry and Art Deco bowls isn’t going to help you much when you’re looking for that perfect vintage work wardrobe. The majority of dealers selling vintage clothes line the street between Notting Hill Gate and where Westbourne Grove intersects with Portobello. North of Westbourne is your basic, cheaper consignment stuff.
My best advice? Learn from my mistakes. When I first started shopping Portobello I either began too far north if I was looking for antiques or tried to visit every stall!
By the time I got to where the good vintage was I was already worn out from everything BUT the clothing vendors. You’ll waste your entire day doing this and your feet will hate you. Save yourself the pain.
Start shopping at the vendors who focus primarily on vintage clothing. There are big-name dealers like One of a Kind, Pellicano, you get the idea. They’ll usually have incredible pieces because they’re all basically museum curators with an eye for vintage luxe.
BUT they’re also probably overpriced. Instead, get to know the smaller vendors who focus more on clothing. There’s this awesome vintage accessory dealer tucked away in one of the covered arcades a few stalls south of Westbourne who I’ve scored literally some of the best silk scarves and costume jewelry from.
They won’t be openly displayed at his reach to the public because he knows enough about vintage to understand his stuff doesn’t belong hiding under a glass case with grandma’s china like some of the other dealers. HOLY CATS ARE WE TALKING ABOUT VENDORS YET? Well vendors and these magical little getaway spots that are called covered arcades.
If you’ve never been to Portobello before you need to know that there are little stretchs of indoor markets that run perpendicular to Portobello Road itself. These are PURE GOLD. Not only are there consistently great vendors who set up shop in these mini markets every week (I found my favorite vintage blazer tucked away in a tiny stall at the back of Admiral Vernon Arcade on my first visit there.
The gentleman probably hasn’t sold it yet.) they also beat out the traffic of your day-to-day shopping routine. Once you find a really good vendor, you can hit them up every week and develop a little relationship. Hey, they might start looking out for pieces they think you’ll like!
Ok, so let’s say you’ve conquered your fear of waking up before noon on a weekend and learned your geography. Now it’s time to form a game plan. You have twelve hours, people.
I like to take a first lap before I actually start shopping. Nothing fancy, I just walk the entirety of the vintage section(and all three of the arcades?) noting any vendors that catch my eye as I pass them. Once I make my loop, I double back and start actually looking at clothes,layler on following dealers and browsing through what’s new and what’s not.
This is KEY if you don’t want to end up buying the first thing that tickles your fancy then wander past dozens of booths only to realize there was THAT sitting in booth number three. And you just spent way too much money on THREE things when you could’ve had THAT as well. Unless THAT is literally sitting there, in your face screaming “buy me!” In which case?
Buy that bitch. About THAT. What are you looking for?
Well that depends on what you want, but I’m willing to bet there are a few staple items you’ve been dying to find at thrift shops and haven’t had any luck. Like gorgeous vintage silk scarves. I have multiples from Pucci to Dior that I probably wouldn’t spend more than $20 for at a high end department store but range between $15 and $40 at Portobello because the vendors don’t know what they have.
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Same goes for designer handbags. A real leather Hermes Birkin bag popped up while I was window shopping last summer (and was still there because obvi no one noticed) and was probably worth thousands, but was only priced at £80 (about $100 USD). Tip?
Have some idea what you’re looking for BEFORE you go, research the pattern you love from Hermes so you recognize it when you see it. Portobello is massive and you WILL miss things if you aren’t diligent. Another one of my favorite finds at Portobello?
Leather jackets. THE vintage leather jacket game at Portobello is STRONG. I own an authentic 1960s cropped moto jacket in the most gorgeous chocolate brown leather that I paid less for than I would’ve Zara.
It’s quality leather. You know it when you see it. It feels soft, it’s heavy, and it smells like leather.
Not chemicals. Speaking of leather, good jewelry is another forte of Portobello. I’ve honed in on my love of Art Deco pins and large chunky jewelry from the 1970s and Portobello never fails to disappoint.
It takes practice to know what you’re looking at, but once you do? The high-end dealers at Portobello will know their stuff inside and out and price things accordingly, but venture away from those flashes of brand-name glamour and you can score some serious vintage jewels. PRO TIP: TAKE CLASS BEFORE YOU GO.
I’m not joking. Vintage resale shopping is a skill-set that needs to be learned, especially if you want to actually score some high-end vintage instead of grandmas hand-me-downs from the 1940s. Hit up Pinterest orInstagram and learn about what you like before you go searching for it.
The right clothing vendor will be able to help you hone in on what you want, but if you don’t even know what decade particularjeans were made in HOW WILL YOU EVER KNOW IF YOU GOT A GOOD DEAL? There’s no set rule on how to haggle at Portobello Market. Hell, some vendors don’t even haggle.
My rule of thumb is ONLY haggle if the price is unreasonable. These aren’t pushy strangers at a garage sale, most of the dealers at Portobello know their stuff and price their items based on what THEY think they’re worth. My suggestion is to ask for their best price instead of low-balling them.
Ask “What’s the best price you can do on this?” instead of immediately offering half of what they’re asking. It’s much easier for them to counter that with a price they’re willing to accept rather than feel like you’re disrespecting their knowledge. Don’t be afraid to build relationships with the dealers, either.
I’ve picked up some of my favorite vendors in the past few years that I always chat with when I see them and frequently they’ll pull things aside for me if they think I’ll like it OR show me things before they officially start selling them. Relationships don’t happen overnight, sure, but if you treat the vendors like humans (give them your phone number so they remember who you are! ), ask them about what they’re selling, show interest in their offerings, you’ll find your own favorites in no time. What you wear shopping isn’t nearly as important as what you wear walking around after you’ve bought all of your clothes.
Comfortable shoes are a MUST. You’re going to be doing LOTS of walking, and while there’s plenty of benches outside if you need to take a break, there’s literally nowhere to sit inside the covered arcades. I normally wear loafers or flat boots and just go with it.
As for everything else? Simple is nice. Most of the serious vintage enthusiasts I know keep their street-style relatively neutral.
Part of me suspects they jack up your price just because you look like you work in the fashion industry? But there’s also a part of me that hates admitting that so yeah. To each their own, but when I go shopping at Portobello, I normally wear: comfortable shoes, tons of layers because it can get stuffy in the arcades and breezy outside, a crossbody bag so I don’t have to worry about losing my arms, and something with pockets.
You absolutely NEED pockets at Portobello. Trust me. And bring a big fold-up tote bag to put your purchases in, because after awhile your arms will feel like jello from lugging around your vintage purchases and you CAN NOT shop with two full hands free bags.
Also, a small tape measure. Seriously. Sizes are all bullshit with vintage and rarely will the tag actually match up with how it fits.
A size 10 from the 1970s may run small, large, or true compared to modern sizing depending on who made it. And a jeweler’s loupe to actually see the detail on jewelry. I mean, if you’re like me and occasionally buy $300 blouses, you’re gonna want to be damn sure it’s authentic before you give up your credit card, amiright?
Speaking of which, if you’re wondering whether you should pay with cash or card, know that most vendors prefer cash (makes transactions quicker for them) but more and more accept cards every year. That being said, with high-end items I always recommend paying with a card. You have less protection against fraud with cash, obvi.
Pro tip? DON’T DO SATURDAY AFTERNOONS. The market is literally flooded with tourists by noon on Saturdays so if you want a functional vintage shopping experience head earlier rather than later.
Or just go Friday. Don’t be that person. Speaking of which, Porterbello Road is best during the spring and fall.
Summer will have the best selection because all of the vendors save their GOOD stuff for the high-season, but you’ll also have to deal with thousands of tourists. Winter is less crowded but you may not find anything to wow you. Spring and Fall are your friends.
Unless it’s raining, in which case, bonus, you’ll have the best shopping experience because let’s face it, who wants to walk around in the rain? Another thing I like to keep in mind when shopping vintage is how WILL I WEAR THIS? A lot of times you can find INCREDIBLE vintage pieces that are museum-worthy, but there’s no way in hell you’d actually wear it outside of a museum yourself.
The chicest women I know mix vintage pieces INTO their wardrobe, they don’t dress in vintage ensembles. Yes, that 1950s dress is gorgeous. But will you wear it more than once or twice?
Maybe that less flashy, still awesome-looking 1970s silk blouse is a better investment. In fact, my best vintage finds have always been INCREDIBLY versatile pieces that I can dress up or down. That 1960s camel coat I mentioned before?
Perfect with jeans for date night or an oversized sweater for running errands. Those cufflinks add a pop of flair to ANY collared shirt I own. Silk scarves are also a great thing to invest in, because you can add a burst of color or a vintage touch to an otherwise boring outfit.
Side note: Buying quality vintage is ALSO a great investment these days. Like, legitimately. Yes, clothing quality has gone down across the board as new, making it more important than ever to buy things that WILL last you.
But certain items of vintage clothing HAVE been known toappreciate in valueas the years go by. And yes, I am considering opening up a vintage shop myself at this point… One of my favorite things about shopping at Portobello before the summer crowds get too crazy is watching the professional buyers come through.
There’s one guy I always see who works for a showroom in Tokyo and he MUST make ten trips through the market every Saturday morning.
I’ve seen him walk past entire stalls, eyes locked on one specific section, only to grab up handfuls of clothing and leave WITHOUT looking at any of it. He’s that confident in his taste.
Social media has also impacted Portobello in many ways. Most vendors these days have some sort of Instagram presence, which means you’ll probably see their “Instagram closet” items languishing on their website instead of at Portobello. That being said, there are still tons of gems to be had if you know what you’re looking for.
I found the aforementioned 1960s leather jacket while the vendor was updating HIS online store. He had no idea what brand it actually was, which meant I scored the steal of the century. Okay, you ready for my actual strategy?
Hit up the vendors ONLY found at Portobello between 8-9AM, do your quick lap around the market beginning at Notting Hill Gate and working your way towards Westbourne before the crowds get crazy and the serious weekend braws show up to make your purchases. Stop at a coffee shop at around 10 to refuel and when your fellow early birds start wandering through, you’ve earned the right to browse at your leisure. Oh, and RUN if you see THAT.
