Last updated on September 8th, 2017 at 07:26 pm

Retro clothing has been on the fashion radar since probably even before idea of fashion became part of anyone’s vocabulary . That “everything old is new again” is something few would question. Yet, with every reiteration of an “old” idea, the new things become a little different. It’s not necessarily a bad thing if things like fit, material or accessibility are improved. But having a watered down version of something that doesn’t capture or respect the true zeitgeist of the era the retro clothing fan wants to go back to is something no real retrohead wants. For hardcore retro aficionados, this could be a big problem.

Unfortunately for those fans, because actual vintage by nature are rarer all the time, it’s very difficult to come across genuine vintage pieces or contemporary versions that truly captures the true spirit of the age the discerning retro fan desires.

Husband and wife team and proprietors of retro-americana clothing store “Cats Like Us” Andrew and Julie Ann Davis know better than anyone else that the clothes that exemplify the enduring classic styles associated rockabilly, pin-up girls, and hot-rod culture are actually difficult to find in some parts of the country. This eventually culminated in the opening of Cats Like Us.

“Western New York doesn’t really have any rockabilly/retro clothing shops except for us.” says Andrew, owner and go-to guy for marketing for Cats Like Us. “We have long been fans of vintage and retro clothing culture, and had the opportunity to attend the Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender in Las Vegas — basically the Lollapolloza of the rockabilly / pin-up / classic car culture world. We had such a great time that on the plane home we started talking about starting our own store to bring those fashions to Western New York. After doing some research and realizing there are no other similar stores in Western New York, we pursued the idea and made it a reality.”

There is a huge continuing interest for retro clothing. Go to any thrift store though, and you will see the problem isn’t that there isn’t enough vintage clothing to go around- there is. There just aren’t enough of them in the right sizes. To complicate things further, clothing sizes have shifted since the 1940s, making the currently available vintage clothes an iffy fit for the modern rockabilly, greaser, or pin-up gal.

Good thing Julie Ann, the other half of Cats Like Us, knows the problem well. “Julie Ann has always loved and collected vintage clothing, but it’s hard to find it in good condition and the sizing was much smaller in the 1940s-50s-60s. The solution: retro clothes. They are classic styles in modern fabrics that stretch and can be found in XS-XXXL.”

They also credit a few other things for their success, including a forward-thinking e-commerce system . “Technically our modern e-commerce website is head and shoulders above the competition in terms of ease of use and friendly shopping, which earns us many repeat customers” says Andrew. Julie Ann’s eye for design gets credit as well. “She’s really good at choosing styles that look great on many different body types.”

He continues “People who appreciate quality and recognize real value for the money are buying our products. The clothing we carry is stylish and extremely well made, with quality fabrics and metal zippers.”

Andrew and Julie Ann are clearly a couple that appreciates efficiency, style, getting the most out of what you pay for, as well as the little things few others think about. Shouldn’t be a surprise then that UPrinting and Cats Like Us have been partners ever since the beginning, supplying business cards and hang tags for the fledgling enterprise.

“UPrinting has gone beyond satisfying our needs. Besides quick turnaround and some of the most competitive pricing in the industry, they have a real eye for detail. When one of our business cards had an error, it was caught by their preproduction team and ended up saving us money…Having the highest quality printed materials makes us look only that much more professional. One of the biggest compliments we get all the time is when customers ask us where our other stores are located. They think since we look so professional that we are a franchise!”

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