海角大神

Diesel jeans for $10. Converse hi-tops for $8 a pair. iPads for $250.

Status-conscious but cash-strapped Goma hosts a robust trade in everything secondhand. My first days there, I gawked at the parade of designer and brand names 鈥� Versace, Chanel, Gucci, Ray Ban, Adidas, Lacoste 鈥� crossing my path on the roads of broken-up volcanic rock and dirt. 聽

Out on a聽Saturday聽night, my Gap jeans and no-name T-shirt felt provincial among the well-tailored blazers 鈥� with silk handkerchiefs in the chest pockets 鈥� and towering stilettos, the designer labels often stealthily visible. To pay for a round of drinks my fixer pulled out聽dollars 鈥撀燼s much a local currency as the Congolese franc 鈥� from the Gucci waist belt he often wore.

Within Africa, the two Congos 鈥� Kinshasa and Brazzaville 鈥� are known for their exquisite fashion sense and their love for brands. And although Kinshasa is king when it comes to vintage designer finds, Goma聽is no slouch. This city of 1.3 million, overrun by rebels two years ago and thousands of miles from a port or manufacturing point, has no shopping mall or big box store. But it鈥檚 secondhand markets make聽it easy to look good.

This is the country of聽sapeurs聽鈥� dandies who don sharp get-ups daily despite the poverty, oppression, and conflict often surrounding them. Being a member of the so-called聽Soci茅t茅 des Ambianceurs et des Personnes 脡legantes (SAPE), will earn you a combination of rolled eyes and a yelp of glee. The organization uses dressing well as an act of defiance against difficult circumstances 鈥� in Eastern Congo that would be the cycle of violence and never-ending dependence on humanitarian aid for basic needs.

Yet tease a well-dressed man in Goma by calling him a sapeur, and he鈥檒l act horrified 鈥� but be pleased he looks sharp enough to earn聽the聽name.

Everyone from fashion-conscious 20-somethings to mothers of three can be found pawing through mounds of clothing at the single-item stalls of Virunga Market, Goma鈥檚 largest secondhand market. Dealers bring in thousands of kilograms of used clothing every month, transported from聽the ports at Mombasa and Dar es Salaam,聽piling it high in warehouses where shop owners buy it by the 45-kilogram package.

The size of the secondhand economy demands order and hierarchy. In this manufacturing-deficient country, customs revenue makes up 45 percent of Congo鈥檚 national budget, and the government is intent on making sure the secondhand items don鈥檛 escape taxation.聽And although they seem completely informal, the various markets have associations, rules for joining, and leadership that make decisions and try to prevent stolen goods from entering the market.

Used socks, too

At Virunga market, you will find a maze of stalls selling everything from the infamously ubiquitous T-shirts left over from sororities鈥� charity 5ks to Steve Madden high heels. And on every street, you鈥檒l find a hawker selling a couple dozen pants, shirts, and jackets hanging from a nearby corrugated metal wall.

Even Goma residents with disposable income say they prefer used pants with a good name over the new, no-name options or knockoffs.聽鈥淚t鈥檚 only politicians and NGOs who use brand new stuff,鈥� says George, an adviser to North Kivu Province鈥檚 economic minister who declined to give his last name. He estimates that 70 to 80 percent of the population 鈥� himself included 鈥� wear mostly secondhand items. This wealthy government official wiggles his feet and lifts up his pants leg, pointing to his聽socks. Used.

鈥淥ne thing is for sure, secondhand clothes is a top business. It鈥檚 always moving quickly,鈥� he says. 鈥淚n a few days or a week, [a dealer] will tell you he finished already鈥� selling his most recent import of used clothes. New clothes don鈥檛 move nearly as quickly.

Nyangi Mulonda Innocent, the head of one of the secondhand clothing cooperatives in Goma and a jeans seller, says his most popular brands are Versace, Calvin Klein, and Levi's. They all sell for $10 a pop.

鈥淓verywhere in the world, people like labels, people like brands,鈥� he says, adding that the Chinese knock-offs fall apart, the colors running on first wash.

Secondhand, but uniquely you

And they also pride themselves on originality. If you buy a T-shirt in one of Goma鈥檚 few formal stores (patronized mostly by United Nations peacekeepers, high-up politicians, and international NGO workers, according to the owner of a store called Gucci Fashion), you risk running into someone wearing the same thing, says Dunat Iseso, one of Goma鈥檚 seven traders of used clothes.

鈥淗ere in secondhand [stores], if you鈥檙e lucky you get a nice shirt and it will be just for you,鈥� he says, leaning on one of the shrink-wrapped bundles of clothing bearing labels like 鈥渟wim trunks鈥� or 鈥渏ogging pants.鈥� Sometimes you also find brand-new items packed in with the rest, he marvels.

Sandra Ngalula, who buys bundles from Mr. Iseso and sells them out of her home to neighborhood women, assents.

鈥淪econdhand you get something that belongs only to you,鈥� she says. 聽

When asked if you can dress well relying only on secondhand clothes, she gestures to her dark skinny jeans, tank top, denim button-down, and strappy sandals. All secondhand.聽

鈥淛ust imagine when I鈥檓 smart!鈥� she says.聽

This story was reported with support from the International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF).聽