Ok...so maybe it's not THAT bad

I just got in from my third visit to Regent Park, and I have to admit, I didn't mind it so much today. The first time I went, it was night, and that was just scary because the area was completely desolate. The second time I went, it was rainy and cold and we were having trouble finding the sources we needed.

Today when I went, I was on a mission. I had an interview set up with Wes Larson from Double Take, a second-hand clothing store, for 4:30. On my walk over there the sun came out and everything didn't seem so dismal. Wes was an amazing source, and talking to him, I suddenly got that Regent Park pride that I've heard about, but never experienced. Wes, who actually lives in Mississauga, manages the store. As he described the way he runs the business and the things he would like to do, I could tell that he actually cares about the residents of the area. All of the employees of the store are from the area. There are people who work there that knew no English before starting there, let alone know how to sell clothing. Wes said that he encourages his employees to make mistakes, because then they can learn from what they did wrong. He also said that there are dozens of regular customers who come in, some almost every day, and the sales people know who they are. Some of these customers have never bought anything that Wes knows of. Some of them sit and read the second hand books for over 3 hours, and to satisfy these customers, Wes has actually considered serving them coffee, but gave up on this idea because then he would have to have a food safety inspection. This was such a surprise to me because with my retail knowledge, managers don't tend to appreciate customers who hang around and don't buy anything. Another program Wes mentioned wanting to start was a weekend program where a fashion co-coordinator comes in and helps people put together outfits to wear for job interviews and to work.

After I talked with Wes, I wandered around the store and flipped through the clothing. First of all, the clothes here don't smell of the same chemicals that clothing from Value Village does, second of all, the prices are lower, AND there are designer clothes! I first started flipping through the men's dress shirts and came across at least two Christian Dior, a Ben Sherman and a Versace Jeans shirt.

When I left, I was standing outside waiting to talk to customers and one woman, who looked fairly well off, came outside and started telling me about how she was from Vancouver and had recently moved to Toronto, and is living at a women's shelter in the city. I couldn't believe how friendly everyone was being in Regent Park today.

When I left the store, I stopped by Sharna's Fashion Braids & Wigs, just down the street. Once again, I came across very friendly people. Since my story is focusing on fashion in the Regent Park area, I thought Sharna's salon might be a good place to cover. She was very welcoming and invited me to come back on Monday as that was her only "slow" day for rest of the month pretty much, and even Monday isn't going to be THAT slow.

Anyways, my third experience in Regent was a good one, and now I've realized that it's not as scary as I once thought it was...at least not at 4:00 in the afternoon.