By KEVIN CHIRI
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – Pete and Judy Marshall understand what it means to live the middle class lifestyle. So now they are trying to help others in the same situation.
Pete grew up in Boston and spent over 20 years of his adult life working a handful of jobs trying to make ends meet, and earn a living since he did not have a college degree.
“I probably had five or six different businesses,” he said. “I was always a person trying to find a way to make it. I worked in nine different states and two Canadian provinces.”
Among the efforts Pete put out were to operate his own saw mill, run a cleaning business for new construction, provide clean-up for construction sites, build displays at trade shows and renovate houses. And that didn’t include several jobs working for other people in between.
Judy was raised in Ohio and was a similar middle-class worker most of her life, spending many years in the day care business as she also tried to make a living as a singer.
When the pair found each other in Kansas City nearly 10 years ago, eventually getting married, they were unable to have children of their own and adopted a son, followed by taking care of many kids as foster parents.
“That’s where we learned how difficult it is for parents today with small children,” Judy said. “We spent a lot of time in thrift stores, trying to get clothes and shoes for the kids at prices we could afford.”
And that’s what led to opening the Discount Closet thrift store in Slidell after they moved here two years ago. Located at 1133 Fremaux Ave., they are determined to provide the kind of help they needed for their own son, offering various ways for others to get excellent used items for very reasonable prices.
“We want to help people get nice things at a price that can help them,” Pete said. “Sure, we’re trying to provide a second income for ourselves, since I’m the only one working a full-time job, but we want to help others too. As Christians, we know that’s the way to do it.”
The Discount Closet opened five months ago, but is quickly building a growing clientele due to several great offers. All seniors 55-and-over, military families or foster parents receive a 10 percent discount on anything in the store, every day.
But the store also has a trade-in deal. For anyone who donates items, they receive a 10-percent discount coupon each time they bring in items from their home.
“When we get items donated to our store, we can use them to help others get really great stuff at a good price,” Judy said. “It helps everyone like that.”
The store has more clothes than anything, but everything is neatly arranged and easy to find, from children’s clothes to adults. There is currently a special on all adult shirts for only $1.95 per item, and all kids shoes are $1.75 every day. The goods in the store are only of excellent quality, said Pete.
“We throw away anything that isn’t really good,” he said. “This isn’t your normal thrift store with junk. We really have good stuff and it’s all working and very clean.”
The idea for the thrift store came when Pete was transferred here with his Folger’s job. They wanted to find the right job for Judy, but then she suggested the idea of opening a thrift store, since her mother had operated one when she was young.
“My mom taught us how to do it,” Judy said. “We would go to garage sales late in the morning after they sold most of their stuff, then buy everything they had left for a flat price. We get a lot of great stuff like that, and then we sell it for reasonable prices.”
Pete’s multitude of skills in construction helped them renovate the quaint store on Fremaux, which has closet type displays on either wall—hence the name Discount Closet.
“What do people want in thrift stores? They want a deal on anything,” Pete said with a laugh.
He said they bought out about 25 yard sales before having enough items to open the store and now they continually get good items from those donating merchandise to receive a discount on their own purchase.
“We try to be the most reasonable thrift store around,” Pete said. “And I really believe we are.”
Besides lots of clothes, the store has knick knacks, books for kids and adults, puzzles, toys, purses and more.
The couple has been married almost nine years, meeting in Kansas City since Pete’s sister is married to Judy’s brother. Ironically, the couple grew up as neighbors when they were kids in the same city in Canada.
For more information about the store, call 985-288-4585.