Collegiate Times

Virginia Tech senior apparel, housing and resource management major Nancy Ballhagen in her section at the YMCA thrift store.

Singing, dancing, sewing, studying and working. Nancy Ballhagen is far more than a triple threat.

A fifth-year apparel design and merchandising management major at Virginia Tech, Ballhagen is a member of the Delta Omicron Professional Music Fraternity, president of the Swing Dance Club, and she is taking a full course load to graduate in December. She does this all while maintaining a full-time job at the YMCA Thrift Store.

"It's really stressful, but I need the money," explained Ballhagen, who pays for her own tuition and healthcare. "I looked at my class schedule and was like, 'When can I possibly work and still go to class?' I literally walk straight from class to the bus stop and go to the Y and work until close everyday, six days a week."

In search of a summer job a year ago, Ballhagen started working for the YMCA Thrift Store as a cashier and almost immediately began applying the merchandising skills she learned from her classes to challenge the stuffy, outdated reputation associated with thrift stores.

"I noticed they had this section of the store called the Thrift Chic Boutique," Ballhagen recounted. "It was kind of abandoned for awhile, so I asked my manager if I could work on it."

Thrilled, her manager gave her total creative control. With each section, Ballhagen always attempts to have a theme by saving up vintage clothes, wedding dresses or designer items to match the season.

Stocked with a wealth of brand-new, vintage and designer clothes, the Thrift Chic Boutique is now more reminiscent of a consignment shop than a thrift store. Still, it maintains the affordable prices the YMCA is known for. "It's still really cheap," said Ballhagen, who prices the items herself. "It just gives the items a little bit more value."

Ballhagen's involvement has resulted in measurable success, driving Thrift Chic sales up by over 25 percent. "Before Nancy came in, the prices were a bit on the high side," said Brian Anderson, assistant manager of the YMCA Thrift Store. "There was really no consistency. Things were set up nicely, but I don't think they were representing what we were trying to do. Nancy basically revamped it, starting from scratch."

Not only did Ballhagen rework the pricing structure, but she also put in extra effort by "taking the time to pick out articles, divide them into time periods such as the '60s, '70s and '80s and address certain times of the year," Anderson explained. "It wasn't just the pricing she was doing well, but the presentation.

"I've seen days where 12 to 15 items are sold when it used to be maybe one a week," Anderson said. "She is a very intelligent lady and has great ideas, and we've kind of just let her take the lead and go." Her most recent initiative was in the form of the quarterly "Y Refashion? The YMCA at Virginia Tech Recycling Contest," which challenged customers to use items they purchased at the YMCA to create a new, unique creation.

"It's a way to get people to recognize that they can make something ugly into something beautiful and also give them an opportunity to do something green and creative at the same time," explained Ballhagen, who works with a lot of vintage materials herself.

Reconstructing clothing ensures "you get something completely unique, and, at the same time, you're saving something that would have otherwise been thrown away and recycling textiles that take a lot of energy in a lower energy way," she said. "Even if it looks like its something kind of dated, I give it a chance and see if there is a way to make things more updated."

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