4 high-value vintage brands that you must be sure to pick this winter

In the world of vintage thrift fashion, the allure of certain vintage brands and articles holds a special place in the eyes of collectors and style aficionados. Be it a result of the brands’ superior quality, legacy, or style significance, they ultimately bring in good money via reselling.

As an extension to our list, here are 4 valuable vintage brands that you must be sure to scavenge on your next trip to the thrift store to make some buck.

List of vintage brands

1 Adolphe Lafont

This is a legacy French workwear vintage brand. With its origins dating back to 1844, it was the first of its kind to be registered in the country. Its most valued product line is its ‘Craftsmen’ category which includes its work jackets, work pants, and work overalls. Alongside, it is also regarded to be the inventor of the first carpenter pants, which is crazy!

Since this vintage brand’s history goes so far back, you are likely to come across its workwear articles from across the ages with various styles of tags. The following is a typical Adolph Lafont tag.

While its style and width would vary from decade to decade, the essential red theme of this vintage brand is going to stay the same. The newer tags are going to be lesser in width and more minimalistic while the older ones are generally going to be prominently wider labels stitched onto the apparel.

While all kinds of genuine workwear finds have value in the retail space, the most valuable of the Lafont articles is the highly desirable French moleskin workwear. Contrary to what the name suggests, it is not made from moleskin! French moleskin is manufactured using two layers of really tightly woven dense cotton fabric. On the outer side, due to the tight weaves, it gives a satin or velvet-like impression (like that of moleskin, hence the name) but is exponentially stronger. In fact, its use dates back to the pre-denim era when this fabric was the go-to for durable workwear garments. As a result, these French moleskin jackets sell easily for upwards of a few hundred dollars (if not more) to ancient workwear collectors often on the lookout for these.

2 Woolrich

Woolrich is another legacy vintage brand. Set up in America in the early 1800s, its clothing lines were originally focused on catering to working outdoorsmen and hunters. , it also manufactured and provided blankets to US soldiers during World War I. In its contemporary history, however, it has begun to focus more on outerwear for recreational buyers following which its clothing has consequently been subjected to a decline in quality and ruggedness. As a result, you are going to observe a lesser quantity and demand of new Woolrich pieces on thrift marketplaces as compared to its older articles.

The most valuable of this vintage brand’s product line are its hunter jackets which sell for around $100 in the resale market, depending on what you find and from which era it is. Its lumberjack flannel shirts/buffalo check plaid shirts are also considered to be valuable, going for around $40 on average and relatively easy to find. If you find an older piece or one with more vibrant prints, you might be able to sell them for more. Aztec prints on any sort of vintage clothing are rare finds and hold high value in the vintage resale market. Its genuine wool blankets can also be sold easily for over $100.

Naturally, the older the article, the higher the value. The easiest way to date a Woolrich find is using its tag. This article provides a useful guide for this.

3 Burberry (or Burberrys’)

We tend to come across many vintage brands specializing in one particular category of clothing, which pops up in our mind instantly when we think of it: exquisite polos when we think of Polo Ralph Lauren, the iconic Detroit jacket when we think of Carhartt, or the buffalo checkered lumberjack shirts when we think of Woolrich. However, if there was ever a brand to completely own a style of clothing so hard to have their brand completely synonymous with it, Burberry is it, with their legendary trench coats. Fun fact: these were at the very beginning worn by British soldiers in the war’s trenches during World War 1, which is where this apparel gets its name.

Burberry is a legacy vintage brand from the UK with its origins dating back to 1856. Much like all other things British, this vintage brand exudes elegance *wink*. Its trench coats are famous worldwide and tend to sell like hotcakes on every thrift platform. These are usually going to have the distinguished Burberry’s checks on the inside archetypal of the brand, and you can sell them from anywhere between $100-$500 depending on the condition, on average. Alongside, this vintage brand has many other product categories even though its trench coats are what it is most famous for. Be it bomber jackets, hunting wear, button-down shirts, or puffers, you can get good money for any authentic Burberry apparel.

A vintage Burberry tag typically will have the above Equestrian Knight in some form. In the post-2018 newer labels, however, they have completely removed this symbol. This is a useful guide to date Burberry tags.

4 Lee

in the vintage retail space, Lee is one of the most popular brands among collectors given not only the aesthetic charm of its articles but also its influence on American fashion through the 20^th century. This is why you will see that even though its present-day price point is lesser as compared to other brands like Diesel and even Levi’s, its genuine vintage articles still end up fetching a really high price. It is another legacy company with its origins dating back to 1889. It is mostly known for its denimwear but fun fact: before venturing into the garments space in the early 20th century, Lee was primarily focused on selling groceries and dry goods.

There are many revered product lines of this company over the many years of its history. It began with producing its famous coveralls (which they referred to as Lee Union-Alls) which you can see go for around $1000+ if it’s pre-1950s. The company also became popular with the cowboy culture back then with their Cowboy Pants, Lee Riders, and the Lee Rider Jacket. Its Storm Rider Jacket is also valuable in the retail space. In the 1960s and 1970s, Lee started focusing more on introducing product lines like bell-bottom jeans and other new styles that were in fashion during those days.

If you do a quick eBay search, you will notice that the value of Lee’s vintage spreads out across a vast range. Post-1970s depending on the article you find, you can sell it for around a hundred dollars or upwards of a few hundred. As you venture into pure pre-1950s and into this vintage brand’s iconic product lines which gave it its popularity to begin with, their value can easily climb in the $1000s. Above you can see some of the graphics that you can expect to find on vintage deadstock Lees. Like any other brand, the easiest way to date Lee apparel is by their tags. Any tag having the words “sanforized” and “union made” on a Lee apparel likely indicates that it is a highly valuable true vintage piece. Here is a guide you can use.

If you wish to check out these styles, you can just visit Lee’s official website. Like Levi’s, Lee also pays tribute to some of its iconic vintage lines by continuing to sell them to this day.

Conclusion

As a vintage admirer, when you come across the above vintage brands, it is going to be tough deciding whether to sell it or add it to your collection. Still, a desirable dilemma to be in. If you stumble on any of this treasure and need some help pinning down a price to sell it at, eBay comparisons are your friend. Happy thrifting!$$