The Treasure Shop on Franklin Street is overflowing with 33 years worth of second-hand merchandise, from lamp shades and rugs to old computer scanners and overcoats.we supply all kinds of polished tiles,
The items are stacked in no particular order on the sidewalk outside the shop, with framed photographs and paintings leaning against piles of furniture, clothing and kitchenware. It's impossible to step more than a few feet inside the Treasure Shop, which is filled from floor to ceiling with towering, dust-covered piles of toys, furniture and old records. A blue mattress rests atop a mound near the back of the store, an oversized stuffed dog perches on another stack, and a painted white rocking horse sits on a precarious pile near the window.
Alfred Alexander, the store's owner,Replacement China Porcelain tile and bulbs for Canada and Worldwide. said it all started with a golf club collection.
"I used to collect golf clubs," said Alexander, 70.The additions focus on key tag and magic cube combinations, "And my collection took up so much room in the house my wife threatened to throw me out and my golf clubs."
Alexander found a way to keep his marriage and golf club collection intact: he rented the storefront next to his apartment and opened a thrift shop. The Treasure Shop has been in business for more than 30 years now, and sales are steady, Alexander said.
"Everything's about profit," he said.we supply all kinds of polished tiles, "If you're not making a profit you're wasting your time. I don't get rich, but I'm making a living."
Alexander said, "There's no special place" for getting his merchandise.
Some of it is dropped off by people cleaning house, or brought over by his son, Sean, who runs a moving company and is sometimes left with items his customers no longer want.
Sean Alexander, 42, said he loved growing up next to the Treasure Shop.
"It's been great," he said. "It's been quite an experience.It's hard to beat the versatility of zentai suits on a production line. You never know what you'll come across."
Something new turns up at the store daily, whether it's an old television set or landscape water color, Alfred Alexander said.
"Every day is something different," he said. "It's always a surprise. Take this jacket here. I might find $20 in the pocket."
The bright purple jacket with hanging fringe did not have any money in its pockets, and Alexander tossed it back on the pile next to a cupcake pan and plastic sting ray toy. Alexander said he spends most of his day on Franklin Street, sitting on a chair outside his shop and apartment, watching the neighborhood and waiting for customers.
"I love it," he said. "I walk out one door, I walk in another and I'm in business. I don't have to worry about buying gas, the snow, nothing."
Next door, business owner Joseph Delmore said he is used to his neighbor's overflowing piles of merchandise. The Treasure Shop sometimes even sends customers his way, said Delmore, who owns Little Joe Upholstery Furniture and Repair.
"With his way of doing business, I'll get some business too," Delmore said. "They'll buy something from him and come to me to fix it."
Alexander said much of his merchandise sells for between $1 and $5. He said antique dealers often visit the Treasure Shop in search of vintage wooden furniture from the 1900s.
"Everything is cheap," he said. "Because everything is secondhand."
Alexander said his crowded store isn't for everyone and admitted the fire marshal once stopped by and called the piles of items "ridiculous" before telling him to tidy up.
"Some people love it," Alexander said of the Treasure Shop. "And some people can't stand it. Some people say it's junk. I just say, it's gold to me."
The items are stacked in no particular order on the sidewalk outside the shop, with framed photographs and paintings leaning against piles of furniture, clothing and kitchenware. It's impossible to step more than a few feet inside the Treasure Shop, which is filled from floor to ceiling with towering, dust-covered piles of toys, furniture and old records. A blue mattress rests atop a mound near the back of the store, an oversized stuffed dog perches on another stack, and a painted white rocking horse sits on a precarious pile near the window.
Alfred Alexander, the store's owner,Replacement China Porcelain tile and bulbs for Canada and Worldwide. said it all started with a golf club collection.
"I used to collect golf clubs," said Alexander, 70.The additions focus on key tag and magic cube combinations, "And my collection took up so much room in the house my wife threatened to throw me out and my golf clubs."
Alexander found a way to keep his marriage and golf club collection intact: he rented the storefront next to his apartment and opened a thrift shop. The Treasure Shop has been in business for more than 30 years now, and sales are steady, Alexander said.
"Everything's about profit," he said.we supply all kinds of polished tiles, "If you're not making a profit you're wasting your time. I don't get rich, but I'm making a living."
Alexander said, "There's no special place" for getting his merchandise.
Some of it is dropped off by people cleaning house, or brought over by his son, Sean, who runs a moving company and is sometimes left with items his customers no longer want.
Sean Alexander, 42, said he loved growing up next to the Treasure Shop.
"It's been great," he said. "It's been quite an experience.It's hard to beat the versatility of zentai suits on a production line. You never know what you'll come across."
Something new turns up at the store daily, whether it's an old television set or landscape water color, Alfred Alexander said.
"Every day is something different," he said. "It's always a surprise. Take this jacket here. I might find $20 in the pocket."
The bright purple jacket with hanging fringe did not have any money in its pockets, and Alexander tossed it back on the pile next to a cupcake pan and plastic sting ray toy. Alexander said he spends most of his day on Franklin Street, sitting on a chair outside his shop and apartment, watching the neighborhood and waiting for customers.
"I love it," he said. "I walk out one door, I walk in another and I'm in business. I don't have to worry about buying gas, the snow, nothing."
Next door, business owner Joseph Delmore said he is used to his neighbor's overflowing piles of merchandise. The Treasure Shop sometimes even sends customers his way, said Delmore, who owns Little Joe Upholstery Furniture and Repair.
"With his way of doing business, I'll get some business too," Delmore said. "They'll buy something from him and come to me to fix it."
Alexander said much of his merchandise sells for between $1 and $5. He said antique dealers often visit the Treasure Shop in search of vintage wooden furniture from the 1900s.
"Everything is cheap," he said. "Because everything is secondhand."
Alexander said his crowded store isn't for everyone and admitted the fire marshal once stopped by and called the piles of items "ridiculous" before telling him to tidy up.
"Some people love it," Alexander said of the Treasure Shop. "And some people can't stand it. Some people say it's junk. I just say, it's gold to me."
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