The Hidden Secret Consignment Boutique Opens

The Hidden Secret Consignment Boutique opened on Friday, March 1.

The shop at 2758 East College Ave. is the brainchild of Milton Hall and Roderick Franklin, was sparked by their realization that existing consignment shops had limited selections in terms of offerings for men and that in general, those shops were more geared toward serving female customers, not single dads or single parents on limited incomes.

Decatur Patch asked Hall what sparked the idea for him and Franklin to open their shop:

Q. What inspired you to go into business for yourselves?

A. It was a vision birthed out of a single father’s desire to give his family top quality brands at a fraction of the cost.

Q. Why did you pick Decatur/Avondale Estates as the location?

A. When I, a local educator, and my business partner, Roderick Franklin, an auditor for John Deere Inc., began making plans to open a consignment store in the Atlanta Metropolitan area, we tried to check out the competition with the hopes of not seeing them as competitors but as alternative venues for struggling single-parents and parents with limited income to shop. We found that most of the consignment shops catered more toward women shoppers while the men’s shopping section was limited. Data has traditionally supported that women shop more and their clothes are manufactured at cheaper prices than that of
men. The Hidden Secret vows to show that men, too like to shop for quality brands for pennies on the dollar.

Q. Every piece of clothing has a story. What's the most interesting story you've learned regarding an article of clothing you've come across?

A. Each piece of clothing bears a secret. That secret happens to be that It still possesses value and worth. More importantly, it desires to a blessing to a new owner at a price that can be afforded and that secret can only be discovered at The Hidden Secret Consignment Boutique.