Meet Amy Sittman

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Amy Sittman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Amy below.

Amy, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

Ever since I was young I knew two different worlds. My folks split when I was an infant. My mothers world of music and Grateful Dead being sung to me as a lullaby. Growing up at the rainbow gathering and drum circles were an integral part of my child hood that helped shape who I am today.
On the other hand my father also raised me half way across the country in Alaska. Him being a hard working mechanic at a gold mine he installed into me a lifestyle of being self sufficient. Hunting, fishing and canning your own food was a huge part of our life. Not having to rely on grocery stores and being intentional about everyday purchases. Having two half sisters in the lower 48 and an older sister in Alaska had me questioning on where I should start my adult life.
In the beginning of my adulthood my father brought me to Alaska and as I grew up the solid workforce kept me there. I started welding in my early 20s and it helped create a lifestyle that I was proud of and I worked hard to earn.
My older sister decided she wanted to start a family there in Alaska. She fell in love with her now husband while we lived in Ketchikan and as a family we all moved to Fairbanks in 2009-2010. Shortly after we moved to Fairbanks she got married and there were children to follow. Her being my best friend we spent a lot of time together. As a stay at home mother she was looking for ways to volunteer her time and energy.
In North Pole Alaska there is a church that took on volunteers to for their “free store” which was an all donation based family free store. The free store was a good excuse to hang out and also help the community. We helped volunteer at this church for a couple years until my sister decided to open up her own free store Pleasant Valley just north of Fairbanks. When I wasn’t working my day job I enjoyed helping her where I could and spend time with my nieces. In 2019 I decided to move to the lower 48 to pursue a relationship with my now wife.
Until the end of 2023 we traveled around as I was a welding contractor. We traveled out east to NJ and NY, tried to start a life in TN but in the end we ended up back home in Sheboygan WI.
Feeling exhausted and over worked I truly wanted to work for myself. My love of thrift, vintage and helping the community came to fruition at the end of 2023 where I opened City Vintage and Thrift LLC and our monthly community Free Store.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

City Vintage and Thrift literally was an overnight decision. A good friend of mine operated a food co-op in that building for years and unfortunately they had to let the business go as competition grew.
This space was beautiful. Newly renovated and has the antique charm that many buildings have in Sheboygan. I was driving home one day and a switch flipped in my brain.
My thoughts and dreams of having this special space went from a ‘’No… that would never happen… it would be silly and irresponsible’’… to ‘’OMG… I’m gonna this’’. It was a surreal moment and I almost started to cry instantly. Later that day I got ahold of the owner of the building and he just so happened to be a friend of my mothers! He gave me two months to get my shit together before I would have to sign a lease for the store front. Starting this with no inventory… little idea of what I was doing and some help and encouragement from a few friends I was able to open City Vintage and Thrift in December of 2023. We were able to host our first community free store at the end of January 2024 thanks to our amazing community for making quality clothing donations in such a short period of time.

City Vinatage and Thift is a curated Vintage and a thrift store that focuses on quality textiles, unique patterns, up-cycling clothing and of course vintage! We love whole fabrics such as wools and cottons, silk and quality brands. We also help make people aware of the effects of micro plastics in clothing and understand the horrors of fast fashion.
Trying to explain to some people that vintage leathers and furs can be better for the environment then faux furs and polyester can be a challenge but if I can get the point across every now and then it’s worth the extra breath.

City Vintage purchases vintage and unique clothing from our local community as well as I work with a few people out of town to source clothing. There is no other pace like City Vintage and Thrift in our area so we have some great folks reach out that have had generations of family clothing sitting for years! Many times this clothing is in pristine condition and just needs a little refresh. We also have more ‘’modern’’ vintage from the 90s and Y2K which the younger generations love. We have old band tees and great old denim pants and jackets.
City Vintage and Thrift is an LLC, we simply use a portion of our profits to pay rent for not only our store front but we also use it to pay rent and utilities for our free store. We don’t get any government funding to maintain the community free store so we have a PayPal and a donation jar for those in our community who can help monetarily. The free store costs us and average of $11,000 annually and it can be scary during the slow winter months. But so far so good! In hopes we can offer this community service for years to come. The community free store offers clothing from new born on up. People simply donate their clean, gently used clothes and we (mother and volunteers) sort it and we open our doors once a month for those in need or by appointment for those who need immediate assistance.
We do of course use a portion of these clothing donations to sell if they fit the curation of our store front but we make sure 90% of all donations go back to the community for free. Sheboygan is a small community but we do have a couple resources for those that need assistance with clothing. Etc… but these resources are generally affiliated with the church. We are not. We preach equality regardless of race, gender, status, religion and we want to be a strong support system for our LGBTQ+ community as many folks in our community are turned away from churches and other organizations.
City vintage and Thrift’s store front is like a magical place that my guests can visit and enjoy. Some of the odd ball clothing will make you laugh and smile, we love clothing from around the world and some of these pieces will bring you right back to your tweens. This is where we express our creativity through decor and design. While the free store is where our heart beats. Pieces from the free store help us keep our prices affordable for the masses as we don’t have to spend an arm and a leg on purchased vintage. Helping the community is an integral part of who we are, community is everything.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I strongly believe that watching my father work his butt of to support us was a huge inspiration for me to work hard for what we want. It was hard not having him in my life all the time but he is proof that hard work pays off. He used to sell flowers on street corners with my mother and their dog. He even ate fresh road kill! He now owns 200 ares in TN with cows and ponds and fish. It’s because I worked so hard as a welder for so long that I can finally do what I love and be my own boss. Honestly even now it’s not easy, in a lot of ways it’s harder. I’m not sure what is more difficult… lifting heavy steel all day or working with the public. But in the end im happy.
My mom and wife can visit me on a daily basis and Ive made friends I never even knew existed. My mother is also a huge part of the store and helped shape who I am and why I am who I am. We never had much money growing up so thrifting was a necessity. As a teen I hated it but I’ve learned to absolutely love it and the values of recycling she has instilled into her girls. She helps me everyday with the free store. She takes time to volunteer and bring me snacks. Her hugs are the most powerful medicine that exists for me. I’m so happy my wife and I came home to start life in our home town. Work hard with passion and it will pay off.
Help who needs help. Never judge. Be kind. Be accepting. Never have expectations because they will probably turn out different then you expect. Community is everything.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

Honestly I think I feel overwhelmed all the time. If it’s not books it’s inventory, if it’s not inventory it’s cleaning, if it not cleaning it’s making sure the free store is put together, if not that I’m worrying about money.
I’m still working through new feelings of owning a small business… I cant imagine owning a large business! I’m not sure if these feelings of being overwhelmed and anxiety are my new normal? Is this anxiety? Lol. A month or so ago I was getting this crazy feeling…. I’m not sure if I was having seizures or it was stress? I went to the ER, physically I was fine but they said to see a neurologist. I’ve been fine since. I think prioritizing is important as well as list making. Trying to keep work out of your home life is important as well. It helps keep your relationships healthy. Staying positive and optimistic. Try not to dwell on the negative as that can make things spiral. I’m still trying to to navigate this everyday. So I’m not one to give advice I’m just try to do what’s right for me.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: City Vintage and Thrift
• Facebook: City Vintage & Thrift LLC