From garage to retail: Irmo home store revamps used furniture

From garage to retail: Irmo home store revamps used furniture

Beth Poore was simply repainting some of her own furniture in her garage and posting it online, then a friend suggested she have her own store. The next thing she knew, she was filling up the former home of Jo-Lin’s Bridal Shop on St. Andrews Road in Irmo with furniture and home accessories. 

“I had painted my own furniture and put it on Facebook,” Poore told the Chronicle. “Others asked me to paint [furniture] for them and [my friend] said you need a store.”

She started the process of getting her business, Poore House Furnishings, underway in October last year and said she’s had steady revenue so far, adding that able to pay the bills from sales alone in her first month. 

The home furnishings store is actually a second job for Poore, who works full time as immunization outreach and health education coordinator for the state Department of Health and Environmental Control. She said she has no intention of leaving her main gig just yet, though she hopes the shop will eventually become her primary job, as it’s her passion.

Poore takes in wood furniture pieces from people along with ones she discovers on Facebook Marketplace or other stores. The furniture has to be solid wood, not particle board, for her to refurbish it.

People can also find other pieces of furniture such as couches and chairs which she simply cleans. She doesn’t reupholster those pieces but she admits she has to be somewhat picky about pieces as she’s not going to resell worn pieces. 

In addition to furniture, she also sells house wares that people give her as well as pieces made by local crafters. For instance, she showed off some wooden stands or props sold to her by a local maker.

Poore said her store offers goods at a variety of price points, ranging from a set of plates for $10 to furniture pieces around $1,300.

The store is stacked with pieces in the front showroom as well as pieces she has yet to repurpose in her warehouse in the back. 

Walking through the store, clients may notice old flooring reminiscent of a skating rink, and in fact, Poore said, it was a skating rink many years ago.

When redoing furniture to resell or to customize for clients, she said the process can take a couple to a few months depending on what needs to be done. Poore has to choose the color or stain, figure out hardware and apply her own talent and time to restyling something, she explained. 

She repurposes pieces that “people don’t know what to do with.”

While it takes time, it’s pure fun for her, she said.

“It’s fun to take things that look one way and make it look different,” Poore enthused. 

She also puts her passion into craft classes, which have ranged from making shell ornaments, cookie decorating, calligraphy and even birthday parties. 

Depending on what the class is about and what it entails, the classroom can hold up to 20 people. If the project takes up more space, then there’s definitely less people in the room.

Poore’s store is located at 7565 St. Andrews Rd and is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and by appointment.


irmo business,


lexington county furniture store,


columbia home furnishings,


beth poore