Visitors to Downtown Bryan looking for something out-of-the-ordinary can find a host of resale and antique stores waiting to be explored.
Downtown Bryan is a popular stop for residents of Bryan-College Station, with everything from boutiques to unique restaurants to the old-fashioned Queen Theater. There are also numerous resale and antique stores scattered throughout the downtown area.
One of these stores, Corner of Time Antiques Mall, has 4,800 square feet of available retail space, giving the mall plenty of room to house the items its clients put up for sale. Owner Buck Buchanan said the clients who sell from the building find their products in a variety of ways.
“They go to estate sales, they buy online, they go to state auctions [and] they stop in other places as they’re traveling,” Buchanan said.
Robin Kenney, one owner of Bird’s Nest Gift and Antiques, said she and her family members find their merchandise personally.
“We find our merchandise at estate sales, yard sales [and] flea markets,” Kenney said. “We find treasures, bring them back, clean them up and hopefully [are] able to resell them for a small profit.”
Buying pre-owned furniture has become popular with younger crowds who are more focused on sustainability and finding unique items. Kenney said mid-20 to 40-year-olds are specifically buying antique furniture en masse.
“They’re buying furniture that’s good quality wood, and they’re appreciating it because they can’t go to a furniture store and buy that,” Kenney said. “[If you have] an antique piece that’s already been here for 100 years [and] you take care of it, it’s going to be here for another 100 years.”
Esther Sustaita, the owner of Sweet Repeat Resale, said the college students that shop at her store tend to be more interested in vintage clothes.
“College kids started asking me for vintage clothes, and so I went into my attic… and brought my clothes from college and high school,” Sustaita said. “It was such a hit that I’ve continued to bring them out.”
The stores themselves can have as much history as the items for sale inside. Buchanan said he renovated Corner of Time Antiques Mall in 2003 to reflect the time period when it was originally built.
“We took the store back to 1909,” Buchanan said. “With the exception of the front doors, awning and ceiling fans, everything is original to the building.”
While each business owner runs their store differently, each said they enjoy their work. For Buchanan, he said his main motivation is a longing for knowledge of each piece’s background.
“The different types of pieces of history I’ve been able to either see, hold in my hand, explore [or] research,” Buchanan said. “I’ve held several documents signed by Sam Houston in my hands.”
Sustaita said running her store gives her the opportunity to positively influence her customers’ lives.
 “I really love making people happy,” Sustaita said. “When you bring something to someone that they wouldn’t be able to afford or just don’t want to pay that much for, [it] really brings a lot of happiness to them. That makes my heart swell.”