The Home Front: The Finisher

Prized Possessions: Architect Andrew Raimist: 11 of My Favorite Buildings in St. Louis

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Habitat for Humanity's warehouse sells everything plus the kitchen sink

By Katie Pelech
Photography by Ashley Heifner

In these days of rampant remodeling, when the Holy Grail is a ceiling molding imported from Italy and a hooded gas range is de rigueur for homeowners determined to live up to the promise of their honed granite countertops, the remnants of buildings past have become a distasteful afterthought for many.

But not for all. Those discarded tile backsplashes (so last year) and sliding doors (I wanted French) are being put to good use at the ReStore, a used home supply store opened in St. Louis in 1997 by parent organization, Habitat for Humanity. The store’s staff and volunteers collect construction materials donated by local businesses and individuals, and price all salvageable items at minute fractions of their original cost. The collection of goods available on any given day vacillates tremendously, but typically includes windows, doors, paint, lumber, hardware, wiring, appliances and light fixtures. As their website notes, “We have everything but the kitchen sink. Oh wait, we have that too.”

The ReStores of today are a far cry from the haphazard collection of discarded wood and window panes that sprang up in the original store in 1992, a former laundry processing facility in Austin, Texas. The ReStore now has over 500 sites nationwide. They’ve attracted the support of many prominent contractors and hardware stores, ensuring the hourly delivery of barely used—even new—goods. The ReStore in St. Louis often receives donations of discontinued items from construction supply companies and custom-made items that clients have decided against.

Employee Roy Bland loves watching visitors discover brand-new items they may never have had the ability to afford at traditional retail outlets. He gestures to two floor-to-ceiling custom windows that he received when the downtown loft owner who ordered them opted out of the design plan. The original invoice taped to the windows notes their price as $950 apiece. Bland has marked each at $350.  He doubts they’ll last a week. 

“Word spreads like wild fire,” he chuckles. Indeed, the ReStore boasts a devoted troop of regulars who drop in sporadically in an attempt to nab the best finds (hint: Tuesday afternoons are “hoppin’”). “A lot of people just stop here before they go to Home Depot,” says Bland. He explains that they often receive shipments of discontinued hardware or other items from the big box hardware stores, which they sell for less than a third of their original price.

But the ReStore offers more than a sweet deal. The U.S. EPA estimates that the country produces approximately 136 million tons of construction and demolition waste annually—about 30 percent of total solid waste nationally. Currently, only 20 to 30 percent of that waste is recycled. The ReStore aims to change these dismal numbers through their efforts, which include a meticulous deconstruction program in which volunteers hand-demolish buildings and cart back as much as 90 percent of the materials for reuse. It’s good for the environment, good for the soul and, since donations are tax deductible, good for the bank account. Everyone wins.