I just signed up to receive the newsletter for McDrew Sales, an estate sale company in Kenilworth. For $3 you get a mailing for each upcoming sale plus private ones that won't be advertised to the public.
I met the founder, Pat McDrew, when I drove by and spontaneously stopped at a sale her company was doing. It was in a Victorian house the owners were selling in Evanston. Pat is an energetic 80 year old woman--I think she said she's been in business for 25 years--with a sense of humor that's both quick and kind. I became an instant fan as I talked with the workers and shopper and wandered around to discover the interesting things across every threshold. Loved the chandelier in the bathroom and the older kitchen that looked like it came from the board of the Clue game.
What I really liked about this sale was the way it was conducted--everything labeled, everything priced, no drawers to paw through and make you feel more voyeur than customer.
To go along with this way of doing business is McDrew's newsletter. It comes in the mail to invite you to the next sale. The flyer starts with a thoughtful description designed to give you a mental visual (since there's not graphics on the page) of the next sale and set the scene for what you might be looking to fall in love with.
"Move back in time to the halcyon joyful days of the jazz-infused 20's when hobbled skirts were liberated, flowing locks bobbed in marcelled coif and Rudy Valee crooned..." starts this week's mailing. It goes on to invite you to "The sale residence (that was) built in that romanciticized decade stands in mediterranean splendor patiently awaiting discover of its past glories."
At the bottom of the page is a personal handwritten note. Think fast-- when was the last time you received one of those except in response to a wedding gift?
Here's the contact info for McDew if you'd like to be part of its community. Pat said one of the employees was working on a website, but I think they're doing fine without it, a remarkable and refreshing contrast to our digital existence.
McDrew Sales
PO Box 225
Kenilworth IL 60043
847-251-8283
This week's sale is at 232 Essex Road, Kenilworth. It's on for Friday 9/2 from 9:30 to 2 and Saturday 9/3, from 9:00 - 2:30. The next sale for McDrew is Sept 10-11 at 402 Willow Road in Winnetka, same hours.
Filed under: Estate sales
