The Urban Rambler shops for underpants at Brocki-Land

Text: Beni Frenkel

Zurich is known for expensive Bahnhofstrasse and elegant Storchengasse… but fortunately, it also has Steinstrasse. This is the home of the shop where things have – at least – two lives.

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I buy my clothes from a second-hand store. But not just any old second-hand store – I go to the huge Brocki-Land at Steinstrasse 68. It’s located in an underground car park, and right at the far end you’ll find around 100,000 items of clothing, all sorted by colour – green, blue, red, etc.

And now I’m going to disgust many of you by admitting I even buy my underpants at Brocki-Land. Of course, I wash them first – twice – at 90 degrees. After that you can’t see any traces of their previous owner.

It’s a tad long for me – especially in the sleeves. All you can see is my fingertips poking out the ends. But hey, it’s a Giorgio Armani suit.

Once when I was in Brocki-Land I found a beautiful Armani suit. Giorgio Armani! I snapped it up for just 5 francs. It’s a tad long for me – especially in the sleeves. All you can see is my fingertips poking out the ends. But hey, it’s a Giorgio Armani suit.

I always wear this fine suit for interviews. When I’m sitting down, I look really elegant, but when I stand up this baggy brown suit looks a bit daft. That’s why I always try to do interviews sitting down.

Of course, my white shirts also come from Brocki-Land. Sometimes I think about who wore the shirt before me. Was he a nice guy? Did he hit his wife, his kids, or maybe the dog? Fortunately, I don’t really care. Once I bought a shirt with the letters I.R. embroidered on the breast pocket. Unfortunately, the monogram really stands out – Mr I.R. clearly had a good opinion of himself.

Needless to say, I don’t wear this shirt in public. But I do wear the size 42 shoes I got from Brocki-Land. And if I find some shoes I really like, I even squeeze my feet into size 40s. After all, they only cost 5 francs!

Second-hand stores should be left to the winos and fat women in comfy sweatpants.

I once worked out how much money I save in a year by shopping at Brocki-Land, and it’s a lot. Sometimes I feel a bit bad and tell myself I actually earn enough money to shop at H&M or C&A. Second-hand stores should be left to the winos and fat women in comfy sweatpants.

But I don’t beat myself up for long. Instead, I tell myself that I’m doing the right thing. And when I’m gone, Zurich’s Brocki-Land can look forward to inheriting my wardrobe. Especially the Armani suit!

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