The Attic Door: A Place to Find Hidden Treasure

Household items are to your right, clothing to your left and jewelry in the middle at . The second level of the store is reserved for clothing and shoes. Purses take over the corner. Everything has its place.

“It’s funny,” owner Christy Johnson said. “sometimes we will have customers who will just come in and look at the clothes. Others will just look at the household items. So it’s a nice mix.” 

Clothing, furniture, household appliances, books, picture frames and jewelry are among the items that can be found inside the Oak Park Avenue consignment shop.

Calumet City resident Pauline Washington has been shopping at the store since they opened.

“I’m thrifty and I save a ton of money by shopping here,” Washington said. “I also love the layout”

Having a background in fashion merchandising and interior design, Johnson used her skills to organize the store. Johnson’s mother-in-law owned a consignment store in Connecticut before returning to Tinley Park.

“My mother-in-law found this great building that was vacant and opening a consignment business seemed like a good mix for us,” Johnson said.

She combined her education with her mother-in-law’s experience and a new consignment store opened in Tinley Park. The Attic Door sits at 17424 Oak Park Avenue in Tinley Park’s Historic District.

“We couldn’t have found a better location,” Johnson said. “It’s beautiful here and we get a lot of traffic.”

While a lot of businesses are feeling the effects of the economy, The Attic Door is flourishing, Johnson said.

“We have had a steady base of customers but we also see a lot of new customers, I’m sure due to the economy,” she said.

How to Consign

Consigning is a good way to help others as well as earn some extra cash, she said.

The process starts with an appointment. Once the items are accepted, they are kept in the store for 60 days. Two automatic reductions of 20 percent take place during that time. The client gets 40 percent of whatever the item was sold for. For furniture or any items over $100, clients get 50 percent.

“It’s better than having a garage sale,” said a Tinley Park retiree who did not want her name used. “I had a lot of clothes and shoes that I didn’t need anymore once I retired. A friend told me about The Attic Door and I gave them a try.”

“They make me feel comfortable here,” she said. “They do a good job.”

“I think our customers are so loyal because we care about what we take in,” Johnson said. “We are very conscious about our customers and what their likes and dislikes are.”

Being in touch with every customer is the special touch that Johnson uses to set her store a part.

“The best part of my job is the customers. I love hearing their stories. I had a customer from Hawaii and we’d talk about her transition from there to here. It’s so nice to be connected to our customers” Johnson said. “And it’s great to see what comes in everyday. We get the most awesome things. The household stuff is amazing. It’s hard to walk out of here myself without a bag in my hand.” 

Surprise Values

One of the perks of owning and working in the store for Johnson is having access to a variety of merchandise. But there was one item in particular that had a history even she didn’t know about. 

After helping her mother clean out her jewelry box, Johnson put some of the pieces in the store. A woman wanted to buy one of the rings that were priced at $9. She asked Johnson about the inscription inside the ring and Johnson had to take a closer look.

“So I got out my magnifying glass and I’m looking at it and I told the customer that the ring was my mom’s and I think I need to ask her what it is.”

The inscription was Johnson’s great aunt and uncle’s initials along with their 1932 November wedding date.

“I couldn’t sell that ring,” Johnson said. “As it turns out the ring is platinum and worth $500.”

Johnson now wears the ring with her wedding band.

“The sentimental value is worth so much more,” she said.

That wasn’t the first time an item in The Attic Door was more valuable than its sticker price.

A lady purchased a jacket during a ladies night event that was being hosted at the store. When she went home she found $1100 in the pocket. The honest woman called the store and brought the jacket back the next day. Johnson called the client who was consigning the jacket and returned the money.

“She absolutely could not believe that she’d left money in the pocket” Johnson said.

However, the same lady did it again later, Johnson said.

“Another jacket came in with $400 in it. Her father-in-law had brought the item in and I checked it and said, ‘OMG, she did it again.’”