Closet Case provides “unique experience” for everyone
And funds LGBTQ+ youth programs and resources in Charleston area
The pride flags, pins and stickers shone brightly in the store’s front window despite the lack of light in the sky. A few seconds of “Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood could be heard between the swings of the front door opening. It was calm, quiet even.
In late 2021 when then-high schooler Mabel Hurd first glanced through the big window of Closet Case Thrift Store, she felt a bolt of anxiety rush up her back. Her hands warmed up quickly in the cold November late afternoon. The lightning in the distance flashed and scared Hurd into the thrift store for safety.
Hurd didn’t have any money, but she had heard about the thrift store through a close friend who she trusted.
Hurd was greeted by one of the workers of the store, who would later be identified as Jonatan Guerrero Ramirez, the director of the thrift store. Because of Guerrero Ramirez, Hurd left the thrift store with more than just a few pieces of clothing. She had finally felt heard.
“I would like to go back sometime now that I have new tastes and I’m much further in my transition now,” Hurd said.
Hurd’s tale wasn’t the first time Guerrero Ramirez has impacted the youth who walk through the door of Closet Case. It’s practically a routine for Guerrero Ramirez, who has seen the impact on both the LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ communities from the thrift store, as it’s the only thrift shop in the area with this inclusion.
“I can’t tell you the times, how many times like a straight guy who has been very not confident about trying a new style or new color on themselves,” Guerrero Ramirez said. “Like how we've been able to be that kind of safe space for them to be like, you know, you never try this style before. This fit of jeans, and you feel very comfortable with that.”
According to Guerrero Ramirez, the thrift store provides a “unique experience, unlike any other store” by supplying LGBTQ+ resources year-round. Gender-affirming items like chest binders and tuck kits are kept in stock to give the LGBTQ+ youth access to items akin to their gender identity. The thrift store dispenses the items at no charge for youth- defined as 24 or younger- who reside in South Carolina.
The thrift store is part of the We Are Family organization, South Carolina’s second oldest LGBTQ+ organization providing Charleston area youth with resources and services.
While the thrift store’s purpose is to provide both the LGBTQ+ youth with resources and fund the We Are Family programs, it is also a thrift store for everyone. The store is split into a masculine and feminine sections instead of the socially-accepted women’s and men’s sections. The items sold are often more affordable, like a nice blazer costing $10.
A MoneyTree of We Are Family
Described as a “program within itself” by Cora Webb, the program director of We Are Family, Closet Case also funds the rest of We Are Family’s programs, like the Mental Health Assistance, Queer Prom, Trans Love Fund or the South Carolina Name Change programs. The thrift store “program” also supplies the revenue to fund its program of free gender-affirming items.
The thrift store sold 11,935 items and made $71,325 in revenue from June 2022 to June 2023, overtaking the previous financial year by selling 524 more items and earning $3,565 more in revenue. It also provided 188 gender-affirming items to customers.
This financial year, some revenue from the store will go towards a new location to house We Are Family offices and Closet Case Thrift Store.
In We Are Family’s Crystal Ball
The new space isn’t the only change on the We Are Family’s agenda. The organization is changing mindsets, according to Guerrero Ramirez.
One of the changes was a Gay-Straight Alliance leadership camp. The Gay-Straight Alliance leadership camp was something that Webb had advocated for, and they got during August 2023.
“We were together for four days going around Charleston and had people come in and do presentations,” Webb said. “It was six youth. It was a small camp- which is good because starting off, you want it to be more intimate.”
The camp allowed youth in the area to be connected with people like them and to be more involved in the Charleston community alongside their new friends. Youth like Connor felt loved during the camp.
“I want more of those,” Webb said.
With the growth of We Are Family, Guerrero Ramirez also wants to promote and build Closet Case out to often forgotten and ignored communities.
“One of our big things is to expand into rural areas,” Guerrero Ramirez said. “Maybe like an Airstream, a pop up, or mobile thrift store will be something super cute. Not just like to give people that experience in a rural area, but getting resources out to folks in rural areas.”
Although the desire to distribute resources in rural areas is a work-in-progress, We Are Family wants to try and achieve it within the next five years.
“Within the next five years, I think our goal is to have a bigger outreach for people,” Guerrero Ramirez said. “We’re doing amazing work and we’re telling the story of who we are, not just as an organization but who we are impacting our youth.”
WE ARE all (in the) FAMILY
With We Are Family’s growth, the programs not only impact the youth, but the staff as well.
For Webb, the Social Support Groups gifted them with a new passion.
“We have people who drop into the space over the years, but we also have regulars who grow up in the space over the years,” Webb said. “And so I do think that’s a treasured feeling of watching someone, someone developing themselves in the way that they see fit in the space and watching people blossom. I really like that.”
The programs grew through both the outreach of We Are Family and the exclusive experience of Closet Case Thrift Store.
“All of the relationships that we’ve had with folks, not just you know, folks who love to thrift, but also who have taken our programs and been part of our programs now,” Guerrero Ramirez said. “People who've turned from shoppers, and they told people about our mission at We Are Family. And now their family members or they know somebody who now uses our program. Thanks to them just coming by and coming stopping.”
Kyaia Villegas is the editor-in-chief of The Palmetto. They created this website as a way to continue doing journalism. Their main focuses are sports and LGBTQ+ issues, both nationally and in South Carolina. If you have a comment or tip for Kyaia, feel free to contact them on social media or through email.
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