Frenchy’s

Atlantic Canadians know that when you want to find name-brand clothes and utterly unique pieces at incredible prices, there’s only one place to go. Frenchy’s is more than a used clothing store. It’s a phenomenon.

Frenchy’s was started by Edwin Theriault, a Boston-born businessman whose mother was an Acadian Nova Scotia. His friends in Boston nicknamed him “Frenchy.” When visiting Nova Scotia in the early ‘70s, he brought a thousand-pound bale of clothing on his pickup truck to sell as rags to make some extra money. But then people started picking clothing out of the bales and buying them in droves! The rest is history.

That’s why if you’re looking for a truly epic scavenger hunt, there’s nothing better than doing a “Frenchy’s run.” Your journey starts in Yarmouth at the Glebe St. Frenchy’s, which has been in business for 35 years.

What brands do you carry?

We carry everything! Ralph Lauren, Coach, Aeropostale, American Eagle, Michael Kors... any brand that you can think of will find itself here at some point.

What’s your signature product?

Frenchy’s in general are known for what we call our “high racks.” We have a fixed price list for most of the items in our bins

and shelves, but the items on our high racks are individually priced. This is where our best-quality brand-name clothing is: it’s so gently used that it might as well be new.

This particular store is known for our purses, our jewelry and our books, as well as our high racks.

What’s the secret to Frenchy’s success?

I think Edwin Theriault said it best: “the number one goal has been to keep our customers happy and that’s accomplished by having the best quality used clothing available on the market. That’s the reason the customers keep coming back time and time again.” That, and the low prices. I’ve worked here for 10 years and I still love it.