Thrift Queen Macy Eleni Talks Sustainable Fashion and a Possible Reality Show! (EXCLUSIVE)

Influencer Macy Eleni is doing her part to ensure sustainability and fashion always co-exist. The Dayton, Ohio, native found her passion for thrifting out of necessity, as she was raised by a single mother, but has since used her knack for finding a stylish, affordable piece to carve a unique lane as the Thrift Queen of TikTok.

Macy's robust social media following grew by sharing her latest finds like stunning designer handbags and shoes, perusing an estate sale, and finding one-of-a-kind Hollywood costumes.

Macy also uses her platform to share her thrifting knowledge further by embracing her inner teacher. Her book, Second Chances: The Ultimate Guide to Thrifting, Sustainable Style, and Expressing Your Most Authentic Self, shares "how to organize your existing wardrobe, evaluate pieces you find, and manifest your dream closet" on a budget.

Additionally, she partnered with Linktree to create a course, Tips 2 Thrift By, to give others the tools they need to master their next thrifting adventure.

In our Q&A with Macy, she discussed the need for sustainability in fashion, her viral thrifting videos, and much more!

Macy: I totally feel it. I've been thrifting since I was just raised by a single mom in Ohio, and, full transparency, it had nothing to do with sustainability and everything to do with what I could afford.

That was my access point. Since I'm so in the sustainability fashion space now, everyone kind of has these different access points. Like, they either got into it because they grew up having no money, or they were introduced to the fact that the global climate crisis is very real, and fashion is one of the biggest contributors.

So when I started thrifting, like, it was not cool. I got made fun of for it in school, and kids, like, told me my clothes smelled and all this stuff. But like, I knew deep down that what I was doing was really special, and I was kind of, like, honing this superpower of being able to create my dream wardrobe, out of what was already accessible to me and what I could and, you know, creating magic that way.

Just a couple years ago, when I started making videos, I started my TikTok first in like, 2020, it seemed like I was the only one talking about it, and shouting into a void. Brands didn't really get it yet, and people weren't really on board. And so, yeah, it's been really amazing to watch it grow so much.

Macy: Last summer, before my book came out, I decided, instead of a normal book tour, to do stops at like, my followers', vintage stores around the country and, like, throw like, little like pop ups at theirs to, like, bring business into their store, because our audiences are obviously the same, and to like, be able to sell some of my wardrobe while also doing like selling books and book signings and stuff.

So that was really fun, because I was able to like, explore all of the different like estate sales and yard sales and thrift stores and antique malls, like in these different little like facets of the country, while also getting to like support my followers businesses since, like, they're the reason I have the book in the first place.

The other day, I went to an estate sale of a girl selling her wardrobe. She didn't pass away or anything, but she was on Hannah Montana and Camp Rock. And so I went and I got a Hannah Montana script! I got like, outfits she wore on the show, on the red carpet, and at the Kids' Choice Awards. It was a fever dream of fabulousness. I can't get a Hannah Montana script on Shein!

Macy: Of course. When I started thrifting when I was younger, like, literally, I'd go into Salvation Army and everything at the most was $5, like, literally, at the most. We had a 25-cent rack. It still has a dollar rack. So we love Ohio for that!

It's been interesting to see prices rise in thrift stores. Prices are rising everywhere, including the rent of the buildings and what they're paying people and stuff. But I see the biggest price rises at corporate thrift stores, like Goodwill and Savers.

I try to shop a lot at my really local, mom-and-pop thrift stores. Even if they hike an item up a little bit, you feel like the money is going back into the community. I touch on this in the course about broadening the idea of secondhand shopping, not just going to Goodwill, but going to the yard sale next door, you know what I mean, and being able to find deals that way.

Macy: I don't see myself ever probably doing a clothing line. I'm someone who really loves used stuff, and like, for me, it's like, always gonna be about reusing. I've never been interested in being a designer, and I leave that to the people who are so fabulous at it. I am working on it, I can't say very much, but I have been, over the past two years, partnered with a production company, and we are in, like, pretty mid-to-late stages of a reality, an unscripted show based in the thrift-like competition world.

That's been my biggest dream my whole life. I remember, like, thrifting around Salvation Army when I was 16, and, like, just meeting all the incredible people. I mean, I was so blessed, like, I didn't see it at the time because I felt ashamed to be thrifting back then. But I remember, like starting to feel really lucky that I got to meet all these people from different walks of life and income brackets and ages, and like, all these people that are at the thrift store at the same place for different reasons.

And when I would meet them, I was like, 'Oh my God.' Like, this would be the best show. These are the interesting people. Like, they know fashion, like they can make magic out of nothing, and they need to be elevated, and people will really relate to this, because, you know, people have been thrifting out of necessity for so long.

This interview has been edited and shortened for clarity.