Good Karma: School of Shop

Inner-city teens get a dose of retail reality at St. Paul’s Express Yourself Clothing.

Image credit: Express Yourself Clothing

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For young adults in the city, trying to find meaningful, safe, part-time employment can be a daunting task. Devoted to filling that gap, nonprofit Youth Express and its latest venture, Express Yourself Clothing, gives teens a chance get involved in every level of operating a small business, from development to leadership. Appealing especially to young women interested in business, Express Yourself Clothing is a gently used clothing exchange—like Buffalo Exchange or Plato’s Closet—that benefits high-school-aged youth.

“I’m learning how businesses are run,” says co-founder and soon-to-be college freshman Perquila Rogers, 18. “I love to shop, and working here lets me learn what’s in and what’s out, how to price merchandise and how to give customers good service.” Teens are employed for six-month stints and are first given a 50-hour crash course in small business management, sales, marketing and customer service before taking on shifts at the retail storefront.

The always-changing selection of clothes skews young—lots of t-shirts, shorts, dressy blouses, shoes and piles of jeans. And with 100 percent of the shop’s profits going back into the internship program, it’s just the place to take your teen (or tween) if you’re looking for an affordable, eco-friendly and altruistic shopping experience.