What You Can Learn From America’s Most Opinionated Fashion Reseller
Talking about used clothing with Luke Fracher—founder of Luke’s, a secondhand store with locations in New York City and Los Angeles—is a little like talking to Howard Ratner in Uncut Gems about rare diamonds. The 37-year-old Virginia native exudes an authentic and subtly obsessive fervor for all things secondhand. It’s the sort of passionate, frenetic energy that led him to co-open his first location of Round Two, a sneaker resale shop, in 2013, and, eventually, his own store in 2022. (Fracher’s innate hustle is perhaps underscored by his previous youthful gig as a pot dealer.) Luke’s is now the go-to for in-the-know pieces from Prada and Polo, remnants from Demna’s Balenciaga, and Chrome Hearts tchotchkes—plus an entirely irreverent social media presence to go along with it.
When it comes to shopping, Fracher relishes placing risky bids on Poshmark, such as one for what could be a legitimate Murakami x Louis Vuitton bag—or a Canal street dupe. He’s prone to wearing the same clothes for four days straight, then tossing them back into the resell ecosystem. (Currently, his go-to items are a track jacket and shorts from Balenciaga’s infamous spring/summer 2023 “mud show.”)
Despite—or, perhaps, because of—the fact that Fracher’s business is in buying and reselling unique vintage grails, he doesn’t grow attached to his clothes. Over the years, though, he has held onto some choice items, one of them being a pair of royal blue ’01 Air Jordan 1 Retros he bought in Germany after starting Round Two, and feeling justified in dropping almost $600 on a pair of kicks. “They were brand-new when I bought them, and I wore them to death,” he says, noting that his sneakerhead days are now ostensibly behind him. Now, he’s a leather slipper and loafer man who’s currently on the hunt for specific styles from The Row and Belgian Shoes. He let us in on some of his favorite picks—but, by the time you read this, he jokes, his wardrobe will probably have shifted entirely.
My signature gift:
The best gift has to be simple and something someone normally couldn’t justify buying themselves. I almost always buy Diptyque candles or excessive amounts of See’s Candies.
My wallet:
