Moms and Dads

Tanya Aguilar: Enough Love To Go Around

by Kevyn Gohu
January 31, 2025

Tanya Aguilar, co-owner of Clothes for Mary and Little Leonor, shares snippets of her role in the thrifting culture while raising her baby girl.

Where do pre-loved clothes go? Some become donations to those who suffer from natural calamities. Others collect dust in a closet until the season calls for their style again. But some pieces find new lives and homes through thrift store owners like Dominick and Tanya Aguilar — the minds behind Instagram thrift shops Clothes for Mary and Little Leonor. Although some of these pieces find buyers, the other unsold pieces fulfill their roles as gifts. Whether it’s for the indigenous people and their communities who live in the mountains of San Fernando, the Philippine Army, or the small families on Tanya and Dominick’s crop farm in Maramag, Bukidnon, they all find a home.

“These pieces left may not have gained a profit, but we make sure to hand them where they are most needed, which allows us to gain something as precious, in one way or another,” Tanya shares.

Tanya Aguilar, owner of Clothes for Mary and Little Leonor

The Trip To Thrift

Thrifting isn’t a rare sight but it’s something that many will find younger and aspiring fashionistas getting into. After all, who wouldn’t be thrilled by the idea that it’s possible to make one’s hobby more environment-friendly? That’s what also drew Tanya Aguilar into starting a thrift store. Already in love with the idea of dressing up and being a thrift shopper herself, she eventually had a realization amid her verge to go online shopping for clothes.

“I remember that night so vividly. It was just a random night when I thought, “No, why don’t I be a seller instead of constantly buying elsewhere?” she recalls. “That’s how Clothes for Mary started. It has always been amazing to be able to contribute in our own little way of reducing carbon footprint with the hopes of a greener earth for the next generations,” she reveals.

Taking advantage of the online shopping boom before the COVID-19 pandemic, Tanya and Domick transformed her passion for fashion then turned into a side hustle. The weekends would be devoted to managing both Clothes for Mary while the weekdays were for her 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM job as a Respiratory Therapist. But, like any business, it had to expand. Following the birth of her daughter, Maria Amalia Leonor, Clothes for Mary expanded to Little Leonor.

“It was two years after Clothes for Mary when Little Leonor started,” she shares. “It was initially a small curation of kid’s clothing. But as a new mom now, I want this new brand to be a haven to mamas alike, where we are not only limited to offer tots clothing but, a broader spectrum of Baby and Mama essentials.”

From Pre-Loved To Ready-To-Love

Thrift shop management is something many often figure would be better in a warehouse or in a separate space from home. But how does Tanya Aguilar run one as a home business in Bukidnon, especially when it’s mostly “messy and inconvenient”? When it comes to pre-loved clothes, there’s a lot of persistence involved — in both action and belief. It’s as they say, “nothing comes easy,” she shares.

“There were times when we did not have a personal vehicle yet. We would go out at night, around 8 PM to source clothing. This was our suki’s opening time for first dibs, and we’d “pakyaw” a “motorela” and almost filled it with our bags of clothes; some bus rides from Cagayan de Oro to Bukidnon on rainy evenings with sacks of used clothing,” she recalls.

Once collected and brought into their home, these clothes would undergo a thorough and deep cleaning — a technique she willingly shares with other parents who would love to get into thrifting.

“It has always been a must to launder pre-loved clothing with hot water. Most washing machines have this feature built-in nowadays,” she reveals. “But it can also be very doable to pour hot water manually when washing the garments. Don’t forget to add a nice-smelling fabric conditioner to top off the process!”

It’s because she’s so hands-on and strict with how clean the clothes are that earned Clothes for Mary and Little Leonor their fame, even with some still having the preconceived notion of thrifting — buying dirty or unwashed clothes.

“We often get questions like, ‘What fabric conditioner do you use? Ang bango!’ Or ‘The clothes are so clean and well folded’!” Tanya shares. “It’s probably why people are more open [to thrifting] now.”

However, her high standard for cleanliness serves a dual purpose — keeping customers happy and maintaining a safe and clean home for her daughter. “When we receive the clothes from our suppliers, they come in separate bags. So we keep them there to prevent the dust and dirt from spreading around,” she explains. “We do all the work in one room in the house — the shoots, the packaging, and the sorting — to minimize any possible irritants and remaining dust away from our daughter.”

Baby & Business

Although their growing business may look like they have several operating alongside them, it unfortunately isn’t the case. Both businesses, Tanya Aguilar admits, have been challenging for her and her husband, especially since they are the only two running the operations. But social media and its business tools have made managing the business more convenient especially now with the additional role of being new parents.

“We have different assigned tasks to keep the business running. Aside from modeling the clothes, I take care of the creatives such as social media postings, marketing, and handling customer transactions and relations,” she elaborates. “My husband does the product shoots, studies social media trends and whatnot while sticking to our line of sustainable fashion. He has a good hand in logistics and is in charge of keeping an eye on the performance of our ads to keep the word out.”

Redefining work and productivity

Like many working or entrepreneurial parents, Tanya Aguilar believed “doing something” or “working” as the only form of productivity. So when she had to put the business on hold, it wasn’t easy to go on break just like that. “I was already 8 months pregnant when we had to take time off. Mobility and modeling the clothes could no longer go as smoothly,” Tanya laughs. “It was the longest break I’ve had. I wasn’t used to doing nothing, or just waiting for the day to end unproductively.”

But to her little girl, Tanya was the most productive she had ever been — a realization the new mama had found comfort in. “In the midst of the long hours in bed, breastfeeding my newborn, it was when I knew more of my purpose. I was no longer living for myself this time. No longer just a creative, businesswoman, or entrepreneur — I am now a mama to a baby counting on me for food, warmth, and security.”

Peaceful Living in the Province

While managing the business and being a new mom can be quite the rollercoaster, Tanya finds peace to handle it all in their provincial life in Bukidnon. “Don’t get me wrong,” she points out. “I enjoy seeing and experiencing the rest of the world but nothing feels quite like Bukidnon — our home. The tranquil mornings, quiet evenings, simplicity, contentment, the greens, and the family. All these are here.”

The visually vast and mountainous province offers Tanya just as many opportunities to explore. It’s so simple and gratifying, she shares. “Waking up, having a cup of coffee, working for the day, going out and enjoying a few minutes to walk our dog, or going to a small cafe for a refreshment, ending the day by ticking off accomplishments and assessing my goals — these are what make my creativity thrive.”

Tanya Aguilar’s life in managing a sustainable home-based business peacefully in the province may appear idyllic. But she reminds that everything started from sweet and humble beginnings. “Building a business and a life like this will always need a big chunk of persistence, coupled with hard work, patience, and a lot of faith.”