About Us

Where did it all begin? 

Maple's journey officially began back in 2019, in Montréal, Canada. Having long been fans of vintage clothing, we finally decided to take our first step into the world of actually buying and selling vintage. Montréal, a city which is very close to our hearts, acted as the driving force and gave us inspiration to begin our humble journey.

Eager to get started, we frequented thrift stores, flea markets, antique malls and estate sales as often as possible. We would scour local online marketplaces for deals and opportunities, with that next item always on the horizon. After a few weeks of sourcing, we officially caught the thrifting itch, with the thrill of the hunt becoming almost like an addiction. Within a few months, our one bed apartment on Rue Saint-Famille was overflowing with vintage goods. This would progressively get worse until we finally moved out. 

Back in 2019, Montréal boasted a strong vintage community, which has only grown since. We met many great people in the city along the way, many willing to share their stories and experiences with us, opting to go out of their way to help in any way they could. We remain very fond of these times and stay in contact with some of the people we met during our time in Montréal.

With things finally falling into place in Montréal, with the dust starting to settle on 2019 and our feet firmly on the ground, life unfortunately had other plans for us. Unexpected news, followed by the pandemic, brought a swift end to our time in Montréal. We have since been back to visit; however, it seems our days of actually living there are now over. It feels as if a lot is owed to our Montréal days, with it being the source of many of our best memories and also the start of our vintage business. 

Having started our journey in Montréal, and on a wider scope, Canada, with trips to the States mixed in, it makes sense that our vintage selection focuses heavily on these regions of the world. We naturally gravitated towards "Americana" and "Canadiana", which today plays a strong influence in our vintage selection.

When on the other side of the Atlantic, these items seemed in abundance and much easier to source, so it made sense we sourced them. However more importantly, it came naturally to us to source them. One of the main reasons for doing what we do is sourcing and finding items we have a passion for, so it can continue to be a driving force for us in the business. 

(One of the many thrift stores we regularly frequented in Montréal)

 

Maple is born

2020 saw us settle in the UK, bringing with us all of the vintage clothing and accessories we had found during our time in Canada. From here onwards, we slowly began our transition into selling in the UK, with many teething problems to start. 

With the pandemic and economic uncertainties looming, we decided to continue to push on with our vintage business under a fresh look. It is here that Maple Leaf Vintage was born. The name, although far from the most creative, simply acts as a homage to our time in Canada. 

As time progressed, and life seemingly got in the way, we faced many ups and downs over the years. From balancing different careers with the business and making almost too many mistakes to recount, our nerve was certainly tested (wanting to quit many times.) 

However, what kept us pushing forward is the sheer enjoyment of all things vintage. Despite it being a business, needing to make money along the way, this wasn't the driving force that kept us from giving up. The world of vintage, thrifting and collecting is a hobby of ours, which has brought has many great memories over the years. Speaking to people about vintage is what came naturally to us. In tandem to this meeting, like-minded people in the industry have led to many hours of conversations and even friendships being made. As competitive and cut-throat as the industry can sometimes seem, the community around it can alleviate these issues. 

Another vital factor in our "survival" is the enjoyment closely tied to sourcing and thrifting. Since starting, the excitement of sourcing brings has never diminished. The hours spent in the unlikeliest places, finding unique and rare items, have become some of the most exciting times for us. With sourcing being closely linked to travel, two of our core hobbies become intertwined. As long as we continue to travel, we will continue to source (and vice versa). 

(A thrift store somewhere in Quebec City)

 

Where do we go from here?

At the time of writing, we're in the back end of 2025. Since 2024, we have worked on developing the website steadily. It is a constant work in progress, but something we are largely happy with so far. We have seen consistent orders from people all across the World, so it's exciting to see people shop with us, whether in Asia, Europe, North America or the UK. We are also working on growing our email list and have been rolling out a monthly newsletter each month. 

We have been selling across other selling platforms for a few years now, with varied results. As of 2025, we have seen eBay sales in a downward trajectory, whilst Vinted has been steadily rising. Meanwhile, Depop is consistently average. In our experience, no single platform is anything to write home about, which is why we crosslist to all of these platforms collectively (to test and see which generates the best results).

Aside from that, we have been pushing our attendance at markets across the UK. We have been regulars at The Frome Independent Market for five years now and will continue to trade here (being local to it). 2025 has seen us branch out more, testing other markets. We now also regularly trade at The Cheltenham Antique & Vintage Market (on the Promenade), The Tobacco Factory Market in Bristol and the Suffolks Market (also in Cheltenham). 

A big goal of ours is, of course, to open a brick-and-mortar at some point. However, with the rise of inflation and the added pressures for independent businesses, it is something we are cautious about doing. If we find the right location, we might just take the plunge. We're always keeping an eye out, so fingers remain crossed on that front.

 If you've read this far, thanks for reading our story. To those who have purchased something from us over the years, thank you for your continued support. Any support over the years has contributed to us not giving up and sticking with the business through the tough times. Enough from us. We'll be back in 2026 to update our journey!

Maple & Team x