ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - Riffing on a line from the classic movie “Field of Dreams,” if you offer free used clothing, they will come.

And they did. 

Eighty Elk Grove residents cleaned out their closets and brought bags full of garments they could not wear, didn’t care for or no longer needed to Americana Vintage on Saturday, Jan. 3 from, 1-3 p.m. for a large crowd of happy browsing customers to pick through. 

The unique idea was the brainchild of Elias Rieland, the new owner of Americana Vintage. His shop opened just four months ago and features reasonably priced vintage clothing for men and women, home design items, furniture and collectibles. 

This event was an opportunity for Rieland, an Elk Grove native and Cosumnes Oaks High School graduate, to meet people in the community and show them what kind of merchandise there is in his store for purchase. Lindsay Ashton of Adobe Vintage co-hosted the event.

Rieland said his journey into vintage retail wasn’t planned. 

“During the height of Covid, I graduated from a Washington, D.C., business school,” Rieland wrote in an email. “Like most people during that time, I faced a challenge finding work. To make money, I refurbished furniture, staged and sold it.”

Upon his return to the Sacramento area, he participated in pop-up markets. He founded the Americana Vintage Market in Old Town Plaza, which has become an annual event for the last five years. 

It will be held again under the new name, Thrift-a-thon on March 22.

“After several years of organizing markets and popping up at various events, I decided to take a leap of faith and pursue my dream full-time,” Rieland wrote. “After all, today is the youngest I’ll ever be, and as they say, fortune favors the bold.”

Rieland said he collects goods and clothing from many sources. 

“We take donations, I attend estate sales and garage sales to find quality items,” Rieland wrote “We will be setting up a buy-sell-trade program soon.”

The store offers clothing in a variety of sizes. Vintage clothing has become a fashion trend among young people, and to reach them, Rieland uses platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and Depop.

Any clothing left over from the clothes swap will be donated to local charities or given to the homeless. 

Visitors were greeted at the door by J.B. Beasley of Beasley & Sons Bakery. Her table was filled with tempting treats for guests like uniquely decorated cupcakes and gourmet cookies chockful of chocolate chips.

“My son, Mitchell, and I started our business two years ago in my own home, but now we have a commercial location and specialize in making a variety of French macarons,” Beasley said. “Catering for events large or small is building our business and bringing people together to enjoy beautifully crafted sweets.”

In an orderly process, donators were directed to racks for hanging clothes and separate tables to place tops, pants, skirts, shoes and miscellaneous. 

The excitement of finding a solid item or two was evident by the wide smiles and buzz of conversation. Many shoppers exited with bags as big as the ones they brought in.

 The most common question as shoppers left?

“When will you do this again?” Rieland wrote.

Check out the store location at 9615 E. Stockton Blvd. or go to: americanavintagecalif.com.