Kaahreena Ochoco, owner of Per Diem Consignment in The Dalles, looks through racks of clothing in her store, located in the basement of StudioFit at 402 E. Second St.
Kaahreena Ochoco, owner of Per Diem Consignment in The Dalles, looks through racks of clothing in her store, located in the basement of StudioFit at 402 E. Second St.
When Kaahreena Ochoco was in high school in San Diego 10 years ago, she found that more and more, she wanted to have her own money so she could go hang out with friends. Her parents wanted her to focus on school, rather than getting a part-time job, so she found herself brainstorming other ways to make a quick buck. Little did she know, what started out as a side hustle would someday become her career.
“I was like, ‘You know, I have all these clothes, I don’t wear all of them, I’m going to try to sell them,’” Ochoco said. “I posted them on Instagram originally and I would just say ‘This shirt, $5, meet me at lunch.’ And people would come in, we’d meet up during lunch and I’d have a whole bag and my backpack full of clothes. I’d just be dishing out all these clothes and making money that way.”
After a while, Ochoco learned how to ship items so she could get them to people attending other high schools in San Diego. Then, a few years after high school, she started selling online on Poshmark.
In 2019, Ochoco moved to The Dalles, mainly because her fiance’s grandparents are from The Dalles and they wanted to be closer to family. Additionally, she wanted to raise her daughter, now 5 years old, somewhere smaller and quieter.
Kaahreena Ochoco, owner of Per Diem Consignment in The Dalles, looks through racks of clothing in her store, located in the basement of StudioFit at 402 E. Second St.
Alana Lackner Photos
While living in The Dalles, Ochoco was taking classes at StudioFit downtown. She was still running her business, but was doing so out of her home.
“One of the owners, Hannah Mapes, knew that I was reselling,” Ochoco said. “She knew that I was doing consignment but I was running everything out of my house. So she kind of offered me this space (in the basement) because they weren’t really utilizing it for anything. She offered it to me to start this up and see what I could do, and I’m so fortunate, so thankful for that, because I’ve been able to grow it quite a bit.”
Though Ochoco still sells online through Poshmark and her own website, she now also has an in-person space. It’s a lot different than what she’s used to, she said, but so far she really enjoys it.
“It’s been really fun. I’ve been able to meet a lot of people in the community and make more connections,” Ochoco said. “Coming out of the pandemic where we had no connections and no relationships whatsoever, it’s been really nice to kind of get out there and build my business, build my brand, and also just meet some really cool people.”
Kaahreena Ochoco, owner of Per Diem Consignment in The Dalles, looks through racks of clothing in her store, located in the basement of StudioFit at 402 E. Second St.
Alana Lackner Photos
As a consignment shop, a lot of the things Per Diem sells are used rather than brand new, which allows people to get things at a better price. A lot of people bring things in for Ochoco to sell, but she also buys things wholesale and finds them thrifting, a lifelong passion of hers.
“I’ve been thrifting since I was a kid, like I remember my parents bringing me to the thrift store and I would play around and play with the toys while my parents shopped,” she said. “It’s just kind of cool to think that those are some of my earliest memories and now I’m still in that realm of like secondhand clothing, secondhand items. It’s great.”
Per Diem can be found in the basement of StudioFit, located 402 E. Second St. in The Dalles. StudioFit is open 10 a.m. through 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and 10 a.m. through 3 p.m. Saturday.
For more information on Per Diem and to see what they have available online, visit perdiemthrifts.com.
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