Knimble

I am just going to be straight forward and cut to the chase. Two weeks ago I went to see Star Wars at the Grand Lake theater, and to pass time we went into a few of the shops. I don’t know if Knimble is just not used to black (darker skin) customers, but this is the second time I have felt like my race played a role in the service received. I’m very well mannered, before some may jump to conclusions. I even ignored the two times I was treated rudely. Now, what brought me in the store the second time was the cute olive green jacket in the window. I quickly went inside to inquire about it. The woman made it clear as water that I was not wanted in the shop. I asked about the jacket and was told to sign a list because window items are first come first serve depending on who comes to purchase the items after receiving the email. I haven’t received an email and I wouldn’t be surprised if the woman removed my name after I left. I also asked about selling my jewelry there and she made it seem like I was either not speaking English, or asking if I could sell something they typically didn’t carry. Her frown quickly turned cheerful with the customer after me. Well, I love Oakland, and shopping local but I will not shop here and I will be telling every person of every race I know not to shop here.

I’ve been reading other reviews for a while and thought I should leave mine. I’ve been coming to Knimble regularly for a about a year now and I LOVE IT.
First, the bag check ISNT a big deal. I mean, its unfortunate that we live in a place that we have to check our bag, but its a store policy (Are we all pretending that theft in a retail store doesnt exist??). I check mine and take my phone out. Theres always someone around the bag check area, so I feel comfortable. Besides, its nice to drop my large purse somewhere while I shop around. They are sincere about it and they do enforce it. Its not like they are profiling/​targeting you (as a minority, I am often sensitive to this).
The staff is so accommodating and diverse. Everyone has their own personalities and its nice to be helped by them. The couple times that I’ve sold, I’ve had great customer service. Granted, they didnt take everything. But its resale! I’m glad they have standards! It makes me feel more comfortable buying clothes.
Their prices are pretty awesome too. I’ve found some awesome Banana Republic pieces, one dress that was $ 42 whereas it would have cost more than double that at the store. (BR is wayyyy overpriced, in my humble opinion). My boyfriend also has found some pretty decent things here!
Anyway, I just wanted to say, dont let these negative reviews scare you. Knimble is awesome and cute. And it always smells nice.

I found the pricing and the customer service a disappointment after Cotati. Arriving at shop at the 15 min. mark of closing I was greeted with a blaring announcement that the shop would close in 15 min. Same story at 10 min and then 1 min. Not terribly welcoming or customer service orientated. Felt like the doors might be locked with me inside. I fully get not wanting to pay your girls overtime but figure out a better system. I will say gal at front counter entirely pleasant but not a finger was lifted in terms of expediting shopping experience, I hung onto items i found as I shopped until I found the dressing rooms. In Oakland where you’ve got loads of competition, you might want to think about bumping up your game. Just say’n.

I really want to love this place. It’s so cute inside and everything is very orderly… which is not always a given with used clothing stores. They have sweet little gift items — nothing tremendously unique, but definitely good in a pinch. So why the two stars? The clothes! The clothing selection is just… okay. Sometimes not even okay. And generally overpriced. They DO have a large denim selection… which is great… but I wouldn’t say those prices are super competitive either. If you’re dying to shop used clothes in this area, I’d recommend going one street over to Maribel… a smaller establishment, but with better pieces (brand, condition, etc) at somewhat more reasonable prices. Mostly, I’d just go shopping outside this immediate area. So many other good consignment stores in the Bay Area!

Ew! When I went to sell some of my items they had a super long line. I didn’t mind, but when they finally got to me they needed ID. That would have been nice to know while I was waiting because now I was holding up the line to even have them look at my stuff. If they would have had it posted somewhere or told me when I got in line we could have saved about 15 minutes…
Then out of a big box of my stuff they literally were interested in 1 item. I wouldn’t have been so offended if they were picky about everything they took, but I think it depends on who is working because there were plenty of items uglier and more worn then anything I had… The shoe selection was hit or miss and some of the shoes were so dirty and disgusting. I won’t try to sell there again, and I definetly won’t shop there. A pair of pants for 44 $? I’ll go buy new ones for the same price.

I went to your Oakland store my 3^rd time and I proceed to go upstairs and the sales lady said that I would need to check my bag in. I told her it was my purse and I did not have to do it before. I felt she was being racist. I was very uneasy about the situation because it was an Armani bag and I had a large sum of money in my bag and by wallet with my credit card. I seen no sign expressing big bag policy that big bag need to be check-​in.

Went in to sell after shopping here for two years – brought in stylish, good quality clothes and nice brands (Anthropologie, Gap, American Eagle, Banana Republic etc.). The clerk selling had huge attitude – turned her nose up at nearly everything I brought in (except 2 sweaters that were never worn) saying my clothes had «too much wear and tear.» My clothes were in much better condition then most of what I’ve seen in the store. I have never had anything but great customer service here-​had never seen this clerk before – and it will be a long time before I go back after today. I give it 2 stars because of previous better customer service – but selling today was a zero.

I’m not sure what the reasoning is behind the selection of the clothing for sale here, some things make sense but others seem terribly outdated and not in an ironic, hipster vibe sort of way. I think that if you have any new with tag items and/​or things that aren’t necessarily high end, designer branded you are safe selling here. I wouldn’t sell anything that’s high end here as you only get 30% of what it’s worth, making the sale of higher end items (that you could sell on craigslist) totally not worth it. Despite the breakup of sizes and colors (which I absolutely appreciate), you will still need to hunt through the items to find things that are worthwhile. It’s also interesting that they seem to have a sort of Anthropologie vibe going on and also offer some little housewarish items (cosmetics, knick knacks, etc) though many of those are new and pricey. I got a couple of pieces here and didn’t break the bank but I’m not going to go out of my way to return. If I was in the neighborhood, I might stop by more often but it’s not the greatest resale store I’ve ever been to.

Cute little reSale … Or resell store over at Grand Ave. by lake shore. I like that they are willing to buy clothes from you that you want to get rid of.
Must be in season and nothing older than 2 years.
Some of the stuff they have are cute. But most of the tops that I see looks like they been washed I corrected and shrunk in lengths lol.
The staff are very nice and are very detailed in explaining their resell rules. I sold 2 black dresses from forever 21 for $ 9 each.
And my friend sold one of her Hollister jacket for $ 12 or $ 13
We only get to keep 30% of what they price it for.
Since we sold our stuff together to make it simple, we left with $ 10 all together. Not much but at least it was something.

It’s a totally cute place in Oakland Lake Merritt area for buying vintage clothes, shoes, posters, house décor, all these things.
They curate very nice collection of things, and staffs are very friendly. This kind of local business should be supported by good Oakland people instead of huge corporations.

I recently had a horrible customer service experience here and will not be returning.

Note: MY review as a buyer not seller
PROS: This place is really well organized compared to most consignment stores I’ve been to in the area. They have a good mix of entry point (F21, Target brands etc.) and middle market brands. Make sure to check out the jewelry near the cash wrap. They always have really pretty earrings. I personally like that the assortment skews a bit more mature. Compared to the crossroads exchanges in Berkeley and Rockridge, which I find better for more casual weekend wear.
CONS: Some items here are priced very expensive– too close to retail, which kind of defeats the point of going to a consignment shop. Also make sure you check your items before purchase. I’ve seen more items than normal on the shelf here that were stained, ripped, had holes, defective zippers etc.
I like this place once a season to pick up a couple cute items to add to the closet, never come out with a full haul of things.

It’s hit or miss but that’s typical of stores like this which makes a shopping experience sort of exciting since you never know what you’re bound to find. The sales women are generally nice. I recently sold here and a woman (brassy blondish wavy medium length hair) actually scoffed at me after she had to repeat sign-​in directions to me more than once. I was shocked and just stared for a minute. I mean come on, you’re all selling used clothes.

As a consistent curator of my own closet (and recently inspired to minimize the amount of clothes I own and maximize potential of new pieces I choose to bring in), Knimble is the main-​stay for my perusing, purchasing, and selling pleasure.
Their look (think «fashionable day at the farmer’s market meets ModCloth meets what’s in style) meshes extremely well with mine, which is only one reason I’m addicted. Other reasons include: extremely nice staff, really simply buying process (and they usually buy at a slightly higher price than Crossroads), and a great «gift» section perfect for last minute birthday gifting (or adding to my personal blank book collection…).
I’d say my only complaint is that I wish there were more clothes (not that there aren’t a lot, I just would love to see their collect grow even more). That said, I love the open-​space atmosphere as it feels a lot cleaner than other stores where clothes and shoes and people are all crammed together.

I have shopped at The Crossroads for years, so I was excited to find out there was a similar store walking distance from my home. I’ve been in a multitude of times, almost always looking to shop, and a couple times to trade.
I have to say that I’ve pretty much given up on this store. The selection is quite boring, with no real rhyme or reason on how they select their clothes. Most of it seems like it comes from a 60-​plus woman’s closet, and one with not so great taste. It’s no wonder that most of the time the store is practically devoid of customers.
There are a couple of nice salesgirls there, but overall I find the staff a bit creepy, standoffish, and most weirdly, a bit uppity. Why? This is a second hand store with not so great inexpensive and low end moderate clothing. I know the buyers are directly responsible for this; it’s like they’ve never read a fashion magazine, or even know anything about fashion period. The pricing is always about ten dollars too high.
Finding one single thing out of every five visits or so has become a waste of time for me. Maybe I’ll go back one day when there is an entirely new staff.

This place isn’t that great. The women’s selection is pretty boring– not a lot of variety and no gems when I went.
The prices are maybe $ 2-​$ 3 more than what I should be paying for used clothes.
I do like the décor of the place though– it’s good for window shopping and browsing.
The customer service was hit or miss– the first two younger women were very pleasant and helpful. Then some older blonde woman came upstairs and just had a really bad attitude. She had a stuck up demeanor and made us feel very un-​welcomed and uncomfortable. We left immediately after.
Overall this place was disappointing.

I have visited Knimble several times. As Nique F. mentions, you will see lower end designers (Forever 21, Gap, Target brands) here. On the other hand, I saw a intricate beaded halter vest for $ 26 (on a mannequin) that would have been significantly higher at other stores. Meanwhile, their Scrabble pillows are over $ 30 per pillow, which look cool in the display but makes want to go to Ikea (plain white decorative pillows $ 6).
I am most impressed by their men’s section: Button down shirts, pants, belts, shoes. My better looking, far more interested in clothes half — within 10 minutes of browing — found 2 designer shirts (Faconnable & Ted Baker with French cuffs) in very good to excellent condition for $ 48 & $ 58 each. The manager told me they aim for prices equivalent to ¹⁄₃ of retail value.
I myself found a jean jacket (nicely broken in and in good condition) within 10 minutes for $ 16.50.
Upstairs organized according to size and style. downstairs NOT organized, but that’s where the new stuff is. Definitely go upstairs.
Unlike Main Street Rags, Maribel’s or Cross Roads, I do not expect to find euphoria, but I will keep visiting and keep my eyes open. Amy C. mentioned she found a pair of 7 For All Mankind designer jeans no hemming needed for $ 25, so great finds ARE possible. [I got mine for $ 35 from Maribel’s 3 years ago.]
Plus, nice that J can actually shop here as well, instead of standing outside and surfing on his phone.

I do quite a lot of second hand shopping and in comparison (as a second hand clothes shop) this place is just O.K. Don’t get me wrong, its a great little spot, they have lots of cool little gifty trinkets and souvenirs, the atmosphere is lovely and welcoming, the stuff is friendly, its nicely lit and fun looking, however… the quality of clothes here just don’t cut it.
I’ve walked in here quite a few times, just because it looks so cute and the ambiance is great, but i can’t say i’ve ever walked out with much.
I did at some point buy a necklace here, but that was before they reorganized, and now i feel that their selection has diminished. A lot of what you can find here is stuff from cheap brands like h&m, forever 21, maybe some occasional thing form ASOS or gap or some other big box store and the prices are IMO too high for those brands. I rarely see clothes of brands that are better quality of good fabrics, such as good cotton or silk or brands like DVF, or Ella Moss or Tahari, etc.
Maybe i’m just spoiled by the choices Bay Area offers as far as used clothing, but even though i live close by this store, if i need to go shopping i’d rather make the trip to Crossroads over at Market & Church in SF.
Maybe when the clothes selection improves, i’ll be back.
Nice for gifts though! If i need a cute lotion or mug or a notebook, ill definitely come to Knimble.

Knimble is a bright, well-​organized store with gently-​used clothes for men and women. I usually hate shopping, but Knimble helpfully sorts their clothes by type (i.e. tops, jeans, skirts, dresses), size and color so browsing is a breeze. On my most recent trip, I scored a pair of 7 for All Man Kind jeans for $ 25 that fit me perfectly which is basically a miracle since I am about the same height as Robert Reich.
TIP: The good stuff is upstairs!

After browsing the not-​so-​inspiring first floor offerings (lots of Forever 21, Xhiliration, and Mossimo tags), I was about to lose hope. But then, I spotted a sign that beckoned me upstairs for «tons more clothes!» Obviously, I had to investigate…
Aha! This is where they keep all the good stuff. The second floor space is huge, sun-​lit, well organized by size & then color, with a large section for shoes and some accessories too. There’s luxurious dressing rooms both upstairs and down, making the shopping experience all too easy.
I found a handful of items to take home: a Cynthia Rowley dress for $ 32, mesh knit top for $ 9, and Banana Republic tank for $ 12. Naturally, I sold them some of my clothes to offset the cost, and got $ 30 in shopping credit. The selling process was breezy, and they gave me decent money for my stuff (stuff which is doing me no good at home anyway, so some extra cash is much appreciated!)
I’m usually a Crossroads girl, but the staff here at Knimble are a billion times more polite and pleasant. Huge plus! I will be back to participate in this healthy fashion ecosystem: recycle, re-​sell, re-​buy!