Retro Paradise

Small shop located more or less adjacent to the main bus terminal/​transit center, across the street from the catalyst.
For every day fashion this isn’t really the place. If you need some club gear, or something flashy for a party this place is your friend. Lots of retro items but it’s also heavy on stockings, wigs, costume jewelry, accessories, etc.
Some major deals on the sales racks just inside both entrances, and there can be some killer deals on ladies shoes. Seriously great deals, like 75 percent off of full length leather boots. The clearance section is located along the back wall, no returns on clearance items, and what you see is what you get. If your size isn’t on shelf, that means they don’t have it. Mind you that’s only for the clearence wall. The regular shoe sections offers many shoe size choices.
Due to the sales I feel it’s always worth a browse if you’re in the area.

I recently had a terrible experience with this store. So, background story. I am going to a rave and decided to stop in this store to buy some cute accessories – and they had exactly what I wanted – red cupid wings that comes with a bow and arrow. I thought, how cute and bought the pack, after the 10% student discount it was roughly 26 dollars – a bit steep but I was happy to pay for the convince & appreciated the student discount.
Well, it was raining, so I stuffed the pack into my bag and went home. When I got home, my housemate notched there were wings and a bow in the package but no arrow (the arrow has a heart at the end and nothing in the bag had a heart on it, so they saw it immediately)! So less than 40 minutes (the time it takes to bus and walk to my house) I called the store and told them what happened. The same cashier who checked me out answered and told me that they can replace it for me, I asked if I could come later in the week because I didn’t want to bus back after just getting home and she said it was no problem.
So, two days later I go to the store and the same worker was there. She couldn’t help me because I didn’t bring my items with me – thinking I could just pick up an arrow – and I understood and said I would return. I went back today, with the package (unopened I might add) and the worker said I missed the manager by 10 minutes and that she would call him and ask what she should do. She calls him and he says that she can’t give me a new item – she told him that the package was unopened – and then she proceeds to tell me she can’t do anything to help me.
I’m very upset. In what way would I benefit from this situation – I get two arrows instead of one? How does that help me in any way. The items I purchased are not top of the line items, the wings are cardboard pieces with glued on feathers and not even the whole thing is covered by feather. I will attach a photo showing the unopened package with missing arrow. There is seriously no reason why I would lie to just get an extra arrow – the package was unopened so it’s not like I took it out anyways!
Terrible experience with this place, it disappoints me because I really thought this would be my one stop shop for every event I intend to go to in the near future~guess I’ll just order online still instead of supporting local businesses that doesn’t understand basic customer service!

Amazing clothes! Great prices. Tons of fun just to pop in here!

The shop was clean, the gal knew what she was talking about (kinda…) and they had an okay assortment of retro dresses…
Oh wait… I should say «retro inspired dresses.»
I am a short gal, and when I am looking for a retro dress, I am looking for something that is about knee length and appropriate. I found a couple dresses to try on. Out of the three I tried on (which was basically one of each style… since they have the same styles in multiple colors/​patterns, and that is about it)… I found these were WAY too short. The skirts fell mid-​thigh on me, and that was shocking, seeing as I am pretty short.
It was disappointing. I liked the way they looked on me, except that it needed to be at least another 4 – 5 inches longer. I ended up spending more money, happily, across the way at Cognito instead.

I went in a couple months ago with my friends and found a really cute shirt i went to buy it and after paying he gave me a 10% off my next purchase. I quickly realized i had gotten the wrong size and asked if i could exchange it and he was so nice about it and told me «i am so glad you noticed before you left!» my friend then bought a dress and I asked if we could use the 10% on that since we arent from santa cruz and he made an exception. And told my friend how wonderful she looked in the dress.
Super pleasant service. The guy seemed to really enjoy what he does and I always enjoy that.
:)

Well, I used to recommend this place to people looking for cool kitchy stuff but this experience has completely changed my opinion of this store. They have always been «attentive» but today I was the only customer in the place and the poor trainee was forced to harass and badger me at the owner’s insistence. I finally stopped shopping because it was so uncomfortable to try and shop when every time I picked something up I was pounced upon. I said as much at the register and the owner tried to tell me that he had to implement new «security measures». Seems like instead of people stealing his business, he just decided to lose it by making everyone who enters the stop feel like a suspect. Funny part, I wasnt even carrying a purse! Never going back.

I came here with the boy when we were just walking around downtown Santa Cruz because I saw the cute dresses! I just had to try them on. The sales people are pretty nice&helpful, and they have some really awesome stuff! I ended up leaving with 2 dresses T_​_​T. The prices are a bit on the high side, but I’m really pleased with the dresses I bought; you can just feel the quality, and I know I wouldn’t be able to find dresses like them anywhere else! So I can’t really complain.
I’ll definitely be back :)

Truly fantastic. Beautiful selection of clothes. I got a bunch of vintage button down shirts from the 70s for about $ 16 each. This is sooooo much cheaper than most vintage stores. Owner told me that vintage stores in San Francisco often buy his clothes and then sell them in SF for three times the price.

They have really cute stuff. But they are not very customer friendly. I bought a skirt for a friend and The skirt was a little small on her and so we asked to exchange it for the next size up and they wouldnt let us… I couldn’t believe this! It had been LESS than 24 hours since I bought the Skirt. I didn’t want a refund, Just the exact same skirt in a bigger size. Personally thought that this was unfair and Im not sure they will receive much more of my business

Good for a one-​time visit, but disappointing if you expect to come back a few months later and find something new. My first time shopping here, at the beginning of summer, I was so excited by all the cute pin-​up style dresses and cardigans, but I came back six months later in the fall only to find that not only were the clothes that I had bought over the summer still being carried in the store, but there were no more than a couple new additions, including in the vintage section
Such a let down, since I would just loooove to have a quality vintage reproduction shop somewhere in the Santa Cruz area :(

One of my faves! They have everything here. They have even added some cute party dresses for like $ 40 bucks.
I recently got a fro wig and it was like $ 25 bucks. My boyfriend who’s not a small guy, was able to find a shirt for his costume.
The store is small and you have to be patient to find the gems.
Don’t tell anyone but I actually shop here, like regularly. :)

I went into this story yesterday at about 4:30PM and was met with a very strange employee. I didn’t get her name, but she had long light colored hair, and was totally disconnected and buried in something she was either reading or writing.
I picked two corsets to try on, walked up to her at the counter, asked her if I could «try these on» while I lifted corsets to show her, but this freak of an employee never even looked up! She just mumbled, «sure».
I tried one on and popped back out to ask my friend his opinion with my dress over the corset. I didn’t see him so I asked her if she knew where my friend went (he is Native American). She said she didn’t know (duh…of course not, you are too busy looking down!). I asked her if I could just pop my head out to see if he was waiting outside. She said «sure» like she didn’t care.
I found him and asked him to come in so he could see the corset, but before doing that I asked for her permission again because I know that men are not allowed in women’s dressing rooms in most stores. I worked retail, I know. I was being polite by asking. Besides there where no other women back there and all I was going to do is pull down the top of my dress so he could see the corset, that’s all. no big deal. I wanted her to know that I was not some teenager who was going to try to make out with some dude in her dressing room. I am a 32 year old adult Hispanic women and a nice person — My friend, Native American with a long black pony tail — also a mature adult.
From this point on, she handled things very badly. As we were both approaching the dressing room, she yelled at us both, «wait are you trying on a corset»…I was thinking… hello? remember I told you so? I said,“yeah, it’s underneath my dress, I just want to show my friend.“
Then I asked her AGAIN, if it was alright to let my friend pop his head in to see the corset in the dressing room. To which, she responded very rudely, «you have to pay $ 2.00 to try on corsets, there are signs everywhere» and she pointed to them and looked at me and my friend in the most condescending, rude, RACIST manner.
I was furious, we were both confused. My friend explained, «She just wants me to see the corset». I said «WHAT?» and she got angry and repeated, «you have to pay $ 2.00 dollars» while pointing and waving her finger at the signs again. This time she was standing in front of the counter about 4 feet from us. I didn’t say «WHAT?» because I didn’t want to pay $ 2.00! I said «WHAT» because I didn’t understand why in the hell this girl was telling me this when it was totally a non issue!
I was furious! Did she think that I didn’t want to pay $ 2.00 measly dollars? Did she not hear what I had been asking her repeatedly? Why was she acting this way — was it because I was Latina and he was Native American? I yelled right back, «Don’t tell me how much it costs to try on a corset, that’s not what I asked you. Do you think I care? Do you think I cannot pay $ 2.00 dollars?»
I went in to the dressing room and let my friend take a quick peak. He approved. While I was in there getting dressed again, I could here the same sales girl yelling something… «we don’t have to sell her anything, we have the right to refuse». I was growing more and more furious with this white, racist, brat!
When I exited the dressing room and walked up to the register there was a different girl standing there (Ariel I think). While she was ringing me up, I asked my friend where the other one went, he didn’t know. I continued speaking to him, telling me how angry I was and how I thought that other sales girl was a racist and that I heard her say something about refusing me service. The nerve!
Here co-​worker asked «Do you think my co-​worker is racist?» To which I responded, «well…yes, she couldn’t even look in my eye when I was asking her questions.» Luckily Ariel is a much smarter and polite person than her ignorant co-​worker because she was able to diffuse my anger and calm me down by explaining that it was probably a misunderstanding and that it was beautiful day and that I should just enjoy it and let it go. I am grateful for her zen like approach and it was exactly what I needed. She was awesome! And I did score an AMAZING purple corset for under $ 100 with good, strong, boning! ;)
But…if I was the manager there, I would want to know what happened and that is why I am reporting my experience here.
You see, I don’t think it was a misunderstanding. This was clearly a case of a horrible employee who needs to get a talking to about this. I don’t want to think the worst of people. I don’t want to believe that the girl was racist. Really. But, someone ought to tell her to wake up and pay more attention at her job. Had she had the decency to look at me just once, this probably would not have happened. I will always believe she was a racist because of this and that makes me sad.
Ariel saved the sale, and the other one earned this Unilocal review.

Great shop with an awesome selection of fun things to wear, reminds me of a shop you’d find on the Upper Haight.

This place has the biggest variety of leggings, stockings, and fishnets to meet your every desire or outfit.
This store is really cute with a large selection of vintage dresses which I love to sort through. The shoes are also very unique. Prices aren’t always the cheapest but if you scavenge through enough you’ll find something worthwhile.
I think that the store has a no refund policy so make sure the clothes FIT before you buy them!

I stumbled across Retro Paradise trying to find a Halloween costume and ended up with a super cute, vintage apron to wear while I’m cooking. The prices aren’t super low, and they don’t have the largest selection but the buy back Halloween costumes and other vintage clothes. Their staff is also super down to earth and friendly. I’ll definitely be coming back here.

Of all the vintage stores I visited in Santa Cruz, Retro Paradise was my favorite. Not because it was the largest or because it had the best items, but because it was friendly and unpretentious, two qualities that are essential for a successful business. There was a mixture of old and new, and I might have bought this super cute new-​bohemian dress that I tried on if my ample bust hadn’t put me in between sizes.
Apparently women from other decades had small breasts and even smaller feet, which often causes me to feel more disproportionate when I’m vintage shopping than the almost completely average modern mademoiselle I am. Dimension-​wise, that is. Seriously, ladies, don’t be so down on yourselves if you want your cups to runneth over.