Patricia Ziegler

The surplus stores were selling things for the lower prices.

And I figured that we could actually sell the same pieces for a lot more if we added style.

I was such an anti-war person because it was the Vietnam War period and my friends were getting drafted.

So I didn't really have a warm feeling about military surplus.

We want to see the world.

And so we quit.

But then freelancing, you know, can get a little tough.

But then Mel got another freelance assignment in Australia.

And when he came back and he was wearing this British Burma jacket.

And I noticed it right away, not because it looked military.

It looked really safari rugged.

And at a certain point, we said, this is our business.

We've got to find more of these jackets.

Surplus is kind of a secret world.

You have to find the dealer.

And we did, of course, Mel being a journalist, researched a lot.

We had $1,500 left in our bank account between the two of us.

So this was a substantial investment.

I put one on Mel with the sleeves rolled up and the collar turned up, and I put on one with tight jeans and belted it, and we sold.

Over 100.