A GOOD OLD-FASHIONED TASTEMAKER: Jon Schemick opened Good & Sturdy Vintage in 2012, his own curated storefront of eclectic vintage clothes and timeless miscellany.

They say the closet is an extension of the personality, but it takes a knack to turn a hobby based out of your dresser into a business. Jon Schemick opened his (closet) doors for business in 2012 under the name Good & Sturdy Vintage (218 Water St., Eau Claire), and has been a hit proprietor of his tastes ever since, stocking men’s duds and a selection of other nostalgic odds and ends.

What does “vintage” mean? It has to be more than just old, right?

Vintage cars have to be 20 years old to get collector plates so I’ve always applied that to my own definition of what vintage is.  Nowadays the word is used so broadly, I think the definition is a little murky.  Anything newer than late ’80s or early ’90s doesn’t seem very old to me so I try to keep it at that 20 year old mark.

“Once you realize there’s an outlet where you can buy all the cool stuff, it just snowballs from there. ... So, where do I get these things? Anywhere and everywhere I can.”

So how did you get started with … all this?

I have always shopped at thrift stores, since I was a kid – a teenager. I think the more you do it, the more you dial in your taste. I lived in Minneapolis and I discovered there were places that would buy from me. I would go to rag mills and literally sift through mountains of clothes.

The big Goodwill in Minneapolis, right?

Yeah, that’s the one. We used to call it Diggers. So anyway, I started buying and picking for those stores. Then eBay came around … I certainly did my share of eBay-ing. Once you realize there’s an outlet where you can buy all the cool stuff, it just snowballs from there. Sometimes things you find super cool don’t necessarily fit you, or it’s baby clothes, or some weird thing that you don’t need. But when you’re buying for everybody … you can just buy everything. So, where do I get these things? Anywhere and everywhere I can. I’ve been doing this for 18 years.

Who’s your clientele, then?

Again, I’m using the word broad, but it’s really a varied spectrum. I get everyone from high school kids – junior high, even – all the way to people in their 70s buying for themselves. I do a lot of wholesaling, too. There are bigger stores than mine on either coast. A lot of buyers from Japan too.

You have orders coming to Eau Claire all the way from Japan?

They make the trip to the United States. I’ve got guys coming in as often as once a month, sometimes once a year. On a bigger scale, you could say that interest is what pushes the vintage clothing market.

What are your plans? Do you like it here? Have you thought about stocking female clothing?

I get asked all the time about women’s clothing. I would argue there is women’s clothing in here, and I like to classify the store as unisex clothing. But it certainly is dialed to a particular style. This is the stuff I really like. This is my style.

Do you consider yourself more of a collector or seller?

Oh, I’m a seller. But collecting is just what you do. It’s part of the process. I always say I only collect what I can afford to keep.