A new vintage clothing store, The Vintage Twin, will be opening its doors to customers on Friday at 617 E, University, located next to the Zaragon Place apartment building.

Owner of The Vintage Twin Samantha Elias said the store offers a range of items, including clothing for men and women, accessories, art and home goods. She estimated that 75 percent of the inventory is under $36.

“We have everything,” Elias said. “From evening gowns to fur coats, you name it. The objective here is to make handpicked vintage more accessible.”

Elias said almost the entire inventory is more than 20 years old, and it is either handpicked, remodeled or an original design. She said she chooses pieces anywhere from locally sourced thrift stores in Michigan to pieces from New York and Europe.

"To get the clothing for the store, I go shopping, and then I'll bring it back here and remodel it myself."

As a University of Michigan undergraduate student, Elias took her passion for vintage clothing and her Stephen M. Ross School of Business education and decided to become a young entrepreneur.

She started The Vintage Twin in her home state of New York with her twin sister and friend in August 2009. After having a few trunk shows and launching an online store, Elias said she wanted to open a real store in Ann Arbor.

“The prices of rent here are feasible, and I played with the numbers,” Elias said. “And the clientele I’ve been building over the last year and half is concentrated in this area of campus.”

Elias said she hopes to attract new customers to The Vintage Twin with the unique service-based shopping experience.

“I don’t have employees — I have stylists,” Elias said. “A customer can come in and tell us what they’re looking for; we will gather the clothing for them, and they can try it on. My stylists have been trained, and they will always be on their feet looking through racks for customers.”

Elias said that opening The Vintage Twin has allowed her to bring something to Ann Arbor that she has always been passionate about.

“Since I was old enough to walk around Manhattan by myself, I would scour the city for vintage stores,” Elias said. “They don’t make things like they did years ago. There’s a quality of everything in the store that is so much greater than anything else you’ll find in clothing stores.”

Lizzy Alfs is a freelance reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach the business desk at business@annarbor.com or 734-623-2586.