Originally published in the Dispatch on June 3, 2026

“I love your Issey Miyake.”

That’s exactly how Matt Acevedo introduced himself to me late last summer. During that same sitting, he also clocked my friend's very rare baguette, the designer of which I've since forgotten — though he most certainly has not.

And now the only man ever to recognize my “if you know you know” geometric bag is opening a clothing store of his own.

Acevedo and his girlfriend, Noel Piontek, gave me a sneak peek of their new “curated thrift” shop, Stirrup. It’s so welcoming that I may or may not have hidden out there when I was supposed to be somewhere else…

“‘Curated thrift’ is probably our technical term,” he says, since not everything in their store is old enough to technically be vintage. “It’s mostly Ralph Lauren, L.L. Bean, and vintage Saratoga horse — a lot of American brands.”

A clue about the couple’s style: they call the blue Ralph Lauren Polo bear their mascot.

"We take this very seriously,” he continues. “But we don't take ourselves seriously. I want people to be here and have fun and hang out and buy some cool sh*t. That's really all it's about."

Their back-of-the-room collection features fun collector’s Saratoga pieces — in the future, there will be vintage band tees, cartoon tees, car tees. The rest of the ever-changing racks are curated by the couple to match the seasons.

"I hate a stale store, especially in thrift,” says Acevedo. “It sucks when you go and see the same stuff every week. What's the point of going back?"

The new shop, located in the former Flores Art Gallery at 19 Maple, will be open Thursday through Sunday starting next week.