When Scott Quist’s moving company employees finished a job, they often returned to the Glassell Park offices of Real Rock ‘n’ Roll Movers with a sofa, shelf or appliance that the customer decided to leave behind or discovered did not fit into their new place. After he started selling some of these items on Craigslist, Quist’s wife suggested he open up a resale shop stocked with the unwanted furnishings. That’s what prompted Quist to take over an empty doctor’s office next to his Fletcher Drive headquarters and open Real Rock ‘n” Roll Resale*.
When a couple moves in together with two couches, one of those sofas usually ends up in Quist’s resale shop. “It’s usually the guy’s couch,” he said.
Most of the items are priced from $50 to $120, but some merchandise, such as shelves, go for as low as $10, while a green velvet couch sold for $400. Quist and his employees, many are musicians earning extra cash moving furniture, have gotten a crash course in furniture styles, features and prices. After quickly selling a midcentury-style, L-shaped couch for $180, Quist found similar couches selling online for $400. “We had no idea what we had.”
Quist and his workers still get first dibs on many items, with employees ending up with surfboards, guitars and, in one case, a collection of VHS porn. Quist recently picked up a microwave for his wife’s office and he kept a vintage student desk with a built-in inkwell and pencil tray for his son. “As soon as I saw that, I said ‘It’s mine!’”
Real Rock N Roll Resale
3400 Fletcher Drive, Glassell park
