Brittany Horn checks out some of the clothing at Plato's Closet, a resale outlet that closely monitors the teen market and its taste for "in" styles and labels.

James S. Wood / Arizona Daily Star

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When it comes to the shopping habits of label-conscious teens, criteria for buying those must-have items usually boils down to two things — a designer label and a style "wicked" enough to turn others green.

"Labels and styles are connected. There's no way to separate the two," said Shelly Lei, a 17-year-old junior at Catalina Foothills High School.

What about price and affordability?

"That's important, but most don't think about that until later," Lei said.

Enter Connie Knecht, owner of Plato's Closet, 4140 N. Oracle Road, the newest resale clothing store targeting Tucson's fashion-conscious teens and young adult shoppers. The 2,891-square-foot store opened Dec. 15 with a strong opening week and holiday sales, Knecht said.

Selling "gently used, brand-name clothing and accessories," Plato's Closet has more than 150 outlets across the country, two of them in Arizona. The first, in Chandler, opened in October 2004.

The Tucson store, at Oracle and Limberlost roads, is not far from the Tucson Mall.

Express Jeans can be had at Plato's Closet for $18, regularly selling new for about $50.

So far the two most popular and best-selling labels at the store are Abercrombie & Fitch and the Hollister brand, said manager Laura Firlik, a manager at Plato's.

Teens can also make money by selling garments to the store. Plato's pays between 30 to 40 percent of a garment's eventual sales price, Firlik said.

Tracking hot and cold

Using a computer that tracks fashion trends and labels, Plato's Closet only accepts clothing that is less than a year and a half old. Buyers also use a "trend report," which lists certain labels as "hot," "warm" or "cold," Firlik said.

"Styles change so quickly. We're getting a lot of teenagers who want to buy the current looks without paying full price," Firlik said.

Capturing the teen resale market is a growing trend, said Adele Meyer, executive director of the National Association of Resale and Thrift Shops. The association lists more than 20,000 resale, consignment and thrift shops, around the country. The U.S. Department of Commerce also shows that used-clothing sales topped $1 billion during 2004.

Within the past year, 100 new stores catering to teen shoppers, have opened around the United States. Teen clothing is one of the most popular store categories in the resale industry, Meyer said.

"People are realizing that teens have a lot of expendable dollars at their disposable. It's going to grow in the future," she said.

Minneapolis-based Winmark Corp. wants to capitalize on the trend and hopes to open a second Plato's Closet in Tucson. Winmark also operates the franchised Play It Again Sports, which has three Tucson-area locations and two other resale store chains that operate outside of Arizona.

Richard Brill, spokesman for Winmark, said Tucson is a "two-territory" city, with enough of a market to support two Plato stores.

"We appeal to people who buy the trendy name brands, people with money, and also attract people who want to save money," he said.

In a city that has seen its fair share of resale clothing shops open — and close— Plato's Closet is also competing with Buffalo Exchange, a Tucson-based chain with more than 30 "recycled clothing" stores around the country.

Kerstin Block, president of Buffalo Exchange, said Plato's Closet has a store in every market where they've opened.

"They are competing, but it's business as usual for us," Block said.

Offering a wider selection of clothing beyond "recycled mall brands," Block said, Buffalo Exchange appeals to a more esoteric crowd with funky and hip clothing tastes.

"We take a wider range of merchandise and offer vintage clothing from the '40s, '50s and '60s," Block said.

"Teenagers are a big market. But we are offering clothing for everyone," Block said.

Buffalo Exchange also differentiates itself in the way it buys clothing, giving cash at 35 percent of an item's value or offering a 50 percent in-store credit to buy from the store.

But for shoppers like Lei, who spent about $40 on a recent Wednesday afternoon at Plato's Closet, the idea of providing teen labels on the sales floor, makes it easy to shop.

"It's not hard to find stuff that looks good, because it's already out on the racks," she said. "It's all affordable and that's the best part."