Males of Richmond unite- there is a new store in town dedicated to your classic self.
Drew Spruill has spent the last 18 months making his dream of owning a store, a reality. Finally, Yesterday’s Heroes Vintage has opened on South Addison street and Spruill couldn’t be happier. The store specializes in menswear, home wares and accessories for both men and women.
Shopping at Yesterday’s Heroes is more of an experience than just a quick shirt buying pit stop. Spruill is a man born for retail. A retail god, if you will. And shopping in his store feels simply exquisite. He truly believes he was born to work in retail.
“Retail is my destiny,” says Spruill. “As much as I’d like to design things, I’m meant to sell things. I’m meant to find cool things and give them to other people.”
Seeing is believing – Spruill’s store contains items you’ve never seen before. Ranging from quality flannel shirts, vintage key necklaces to trucker hats emblazoned with “Number 1 Dad” and everything inbetween. The variety stems from the fact Spruill has sourced his wares from diverse cities in this fair country, from Raleigh to Roanoke. He will go to “any kind of sale” from estate to garage, and isn’t afraid to pick his way through a salvage yard or two.
“I’ve gone as far as North Carolina all the way to Michigan,” says Spruill. “I’ve done Raleigh, Roanoke, DC, Jersey, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan. I’ve done West Virginia too. So, I’ve shopped a fair amount of places.”
Spruill is also passionate about ethically produced items. If you’re needing another excuse to shop, purchasing from Yesterday’s Heroes is an easy way to feel smug about being a concerned global citizen. From next year onwards, the store will stock new sweat-shop free items with a focus on unique classics you can treasure for decades.
“It’s my goal for [the store’s items] to not only be sweat shop free and be of quality,” says Spruill , “But also unique items that you’re not going to see at the mall, that you won’t be able to buy locally. I’m trying to find and source interesting goods.”
As Gay RVA previously reported, small businesses are changing the face of South Addison street. The area (which needs a name! Come on you marketing types out there, any ideas?) is becoming a new shopping and dining destination. While it won’t be rivaling Carytown just yet, Spruill believes it is an excellent alternative. “It’s like, let’s not go to Carytown, we go to Carytown all the time. Let’s go to Addison street shops,” says Spruill. “So you go to Lamplighter to get a coffee then you walk around to our shops. Eventually we’re going to have the grassy lot open..and get picnic tables so you can have a picnic in the grass.”
You heard the man! Grab a coffee, check out Drew’s expertly picked vintage goods and feel good about supporting your city.
