Business Spotlight: The LUCKY JUNK Combo Platter

Submitted by Janet McCarthy

To quote a college girlfriend..."Life is not just one thing or the other...it's a combination of events that bring us to where we are today," Lucky Junk shop owner Janet McCarthy said. That was the moment in college when we coined the phrase, "Combo Platter" and have used it ever since, she said.

My Combo Platter can be explained as a 20 plus year professional marketing career in the health care industry focusing on senior housing/senior services + my family’s inherited creative genes = LUCKY JUNK, McCarthy said.

In a nutshell, I LOVE seniors and I LOVE their stuff! So my Combo Platter led me (very innocently) to having a Vintage Yard Sale at my home several years ago.

I have for MANY years hit flea markets, vintage-garage-estate sales...loving every minute and developing wonderful friendships along the way. I am blessed to have an artsy husband, family and girlfriends to tag along! I SO enjoy the creative discussions, fabulous displays, artwork, repurposing...and the thrill of the hunt! I hadn't hit the hoarder stage YET with all of my great finds...but was getting "itchy" for new items...and was ready to say good-bye to the old and bring in more OLD!

And so, our first (and I truly thought only) Vintage Yard Sale was born! But, alas I was SO wrong! The customers, friends and neighbors that came to that first sale were so over-the-top supportive, complimentary and shopper-wild...we thought we had become some sort of Vintage celebs overnight! They asked for more sales...and the LUCKY JUNK journey began!

What is your business best known for?

Vintage (shabby, chippy, industrial, French, farmhouse) handmade items, old & new goods.

How can people contact your business?

Phone, email, website, Facebook, blog, Pinterest, Etsy. Lucky Junk Shop's Facebook page is here.

What is your business website address?

http://www.luckyjunkshop.com

Does your business offer a special deals card or program?

With purchase you receive a LUCKY Wooden Nickel for a discount on your next purchase.

What's something interesting about your business your customers might not know?

 In addition to being open the second and fourth FULL weekends (Thursday, Friday, Saturday) of every month, Lucky Junk will also be hosting decorating/painting classes starting in the Spring!

Why did you choose the town you did to open your business?

I have four generations from Arlington Heights.  My great-grandparents settled here when it was all dirt roads.  My grandfather, Ed Sander, built and owned Beverly Lanes Bowling Alley.  My grandmother was a member of the second graduating class from Arlington High School.  I am honored to carry on the long family history here of residents and now business owner.