Junk

I cant help but add to this stores terrible reviews. I could not help but comment on how bad this place is for the people who live and shop in Brooklyn. I beg you to STOP shopping at this store. It needs to go away for multiple reasons. I know for a fact where they go to buy their «junk» because I watch them bid on it every two weeks at an auction. They pay nothing for most of their stuff and thats fine if they were actually good people. The woman who runs this store is ripping you off and doesnt even do it with any respect or care. The fact there is a no discount or haggle policy is absurd as that is the whole nature of the business they are in. Also she is mean for no other reason but to be mean. I know many similar business in the area that have amazing owners that aren’t a$$holes with similar business’s. You have a choice where to spend your money and this should not be the place. I put a small list together of other great shops in Brooklyn. If youre willing to spend $ 50 on a broken wooden box you have enough money to give it to a deserving shop owner who will treat you with respect.
Holler and Squall
119 Atlantic Ave.
many stores on Atlantic that are awesome.
Brooklyn Reclamation
676 Driggs
Sharkstooth
111 Grand St.

Worst customer service I’ve ever experienced! The place literally sells JUNK, overpriced junk at that, and the manager (older lady referred to often in other reviews) has the nerve to disrespect good customers?! And over a simple question?! I was literally asking about the price of an item and she treated me like poop on a stick! Really, lady? You’re selling poop! You should be glad people are even willing to give you money for it! #Blasphemous
If you want to be a dumb ass and give your hard-​earned money to a negative person who could give two shits about you, then by all means, be my guest — but I will NEVER spend a single cent here ever again. Read the reviews, people! Sadly, my experience is COMMON.

Extremely overpriced. Nothing really interesting here and it is really disorganized and smelly. Also, the woman who works there is extremely rude. She straight up ignored me when I tried to ask her a question and was just grumpy.

The store name reveals everything. This place is filled with old junk, garbage and broken things. It’s absolutely filthy and completely over priced. A female staff member was particularly rude and unfriendly. I obviously will never return.

Fun store. Price are little high yeah but its NYC deal with it. Got some great chairs there for my backyard I reworked at a decent price for the set.

I was so excited to happen upon Junk one day. I wish I could’ve bought more, but I wouldn’t have been able to carry all the treasures I found there. Seriously, they have tons and tons of amazing stuff – art, glass/​crystal, china, records, furniture, any most anything else you’d be looking for in a thrift store. As with every thrift or antique store, there will be dirt/​dust, and you have to sort through a ton of stuff. I’ll definitely be back.

Staff: Rude
Myself: Spends money and good amounts on vintage and antiques.
I honestly doubt ill be back. I’ve been to both locations, the other now closed, not shockingly.
The balcony with art is the only thing that kept drawing me in. Seriously its beyond over priced IT IS cheaper on Etsy and ebay.
Those b! t (hing about the dust… wth do you expect?! Hell Macy’s has dust!
This stuff is generally over priced. I have seen a few pieces of furniture actually under priced, like an antique swedish cabinet for $ 100ish.
To Owner:
I get it, overhead: rent, utilities, taxes, etc. but if you are a self entitled «junk store» wouldnt it be best to push quantity? You make more money this way. (I know I am in this industry).

A lot of junk here, and it’s OVERPRICED, often in poor, dusty, broken condition. The only thing I really like to buy here is unique pieces of china, but most of it is too delicate for everyday use in the kitchen.
I must add the proprietor of this establishment (a stout middle-​aged woman with stringy gray hair) is extremely rude and b! tchy. She once yelled at my friend and I for taking a picture with a bizarre looking piece we found on the upper level, telling us to leave if we weren’t going to buy anything. We certainly would not have bought that ugly piece, but we didn’t want to even give business to her after that. Another time I came in to browse, and I thought I saw something I liked in a cardboard box. That same lady snapped at me, «Only people who work here get to unpack the boxes.» How should I know that box was in the process of being unpacked? It looked like a pile of junk, much like everything else in the store.
Rude as hell, and all her stuff sucks anyway! It’s only a matter of time before her junky shop full of overpriced junky stuff gets shuttered like the one on N. 9^th St.

Um. I honestly don’t understand why half of these people are so salty. Get a grip. Antique shops are dusty, sometimes expensive and rightly so, and moreover, we’re in the middle of New York! If you want someone to kiss your ass, go to Texas or something. BOTH locations are jam packed with the most awesome furniture, art, tchotchkes and knick knacks you never knew you wanted. As a freelance interior decorator, I find this place to be… a diamond in the rough! Chill out, enjoy the hunt and find a better way to channel your negative energy than to waste your time talking about things you know nothing about and will likely never understand. And yes, I’ve encountered the staff. They are well versed in their trade, have a no-​nonsense approach, a keen eye for the rare and interesting. and they just simply choose to cater to their ACTUAL customers/​client base. Lose your sense of entitlement and try to enjoy. chances are, you probably will!

Why? Why? Why?
I want to like you so much. I really do, but these prices are offensive!
I could hire a personal craftsman from France to whittle me the same exact antique style items for probably less than what these guys are charging.
If some of these junk items were restored in someway or at least in some sort of presentable condition I could understand the prices… but, come on, guys… come on…
For the record, I hate giving businesses only one star, but I have been in this place 3 times now and I see no reason to give more than one… The stuff here really is ‘JUNK’ so, I hope the prices get adjusted accordingly… Also, the service is always bad or uncomfortable.

This place is awful. The guys working there are always rude. They go to estate sales get the good stuff and sell it elsewhere and sell the rest of the crap at the store. Don’t waste your time.

Complete assholes.
Incredibly rude.
No redeeming qualities.
If the owner is reading this get a new staff.

Junk wins the How Quick Can A Business Creep Customers Out contest with their chair covered in various baby doll parts.
It also displays substantial balls in that they offer old beer cans for $ 3 apiece.
The name is quite apt.

I would never have thought it necessary for me to write a Unilocal review of this place, but I actually looked up the shop on here after walking out of their Union Ave. store. The people working there were outwardly negative to me for absolutely no reason whatsoever. The older woman took a pair of earrings that I was holding in my hand while browsing and said she would keep them up front for me, sized me up and with a tone that implied that I was trying to be sneaky steal them. Then, when I went to check out, the younger guy working the counter in the midst of wrapping up some glasses I’d also purchased said to me, «Are you a famous person or something?» I told him no and he said he thought I might be because I was still wearing my sunglasses — because certainly, nobody has ever worn sunglasses indoors when quickly popping into a shop while out on a sunny day — and I told him it was just more comfortable to keep them on. He said he thought I might be trying to pull a fast one on them so that’s why he was asking. Seriously, no sarcasm. I faked a laugh and headed out.
I’ve never been treated this way in a store before and thought I must have done something else that I was unaware of, which is when I decided to look them on Unilocal.Seems like it’s just the way they are, which is too bad. There were some fun knick-​knacks in there but I’ll probably only return if there is something very specific I’m looking for — otherwise, not worth it to show up on a whim for the BS from their staff.

This place is kind of a love hate for me as I’m sure it is for most people. I will say that the place is called JUNK therefore I’m already expecting it to be more dumpy than the average thrift/​antique store.
The loft that holds all of the pictures and frames is really scary. There was broken glass everywhere from who knows when and pictures were not stored well enough against the wall, where a few fell over without me touching anything. An employee did come up there to turn on some lights while I was browsing and merely stepped over the glass without cleaning it up. Guys, that’s a lawsuit waiting to happen! I love to dig and don’t mind the dust and dirt, but broken glass all over the floor of your establishment is just asking for someone to sue you.
And the other reviews are right, they do have so much stuff that is broken where it’s not even worth half the value they price it at. If I go to any store, no matter if its second hand or not, and show them something is broken, they will always give a discount. Wouldn’t you want to get rid of the busted stuff if someone wants to take it off your hands?
I ended up buying some fairly breakable things and I had to ask them to wrap it and place it in a bag because he thought I was just going to walk off down the streets with them in my hands. Really? Make this an automatic service and the customers will appreciate the store so much more.
I gave this place 3 stars because my experience wasn’t terrible, the place is obviously full of Junk so no complaint there, and you can find some interesting things if you don’t mind getting dirty and have time to sift. But it’s overpriced, the no haggling policy is ridiculous and the broken glass very scary. Visit at your own risk.

I did not even have a Unilocal account, and made one just so I could come here and post about the RUDEST and WORST customer service experience I’ve ever had. I have spent serious money in this store, probably would have considered my favorite in Brooklyn. I pop in there all the time and almost always spend money on merchandise.
This afternoon I was looking around when my mother, who is in poor health and lives three thousand miles away, called me. I took the call and stood in the front of the store, right below the stairs and entrance. I was chatting, not loudly, with my mom on my headphones when I noticed the man behind the dest (some big, burly guy with a beanie who I had never seen before) was trying to get my attention. When I took out my headphones to see what he wanted he said in the RUDEST tone «can you not have that conversation in here?» I have never in my life been treated with such disrespect, completely humiliated by this man behind his desk. In an appropriate customer service situation, one would approach the customer face to face and politely ask «miss, would you mind stepping outside for a moment while you finish your call, I would really appreciate it».
It baffles me why misanthropic assholes choose to work in the customer service industry, and treat loyal customers like dirt. I hope this man realizes that his words carry weight, and that this, once loyal, customer will NEVER be spending another dime in JUNK. Maybe he’ll be happy to know that the service lives up to the name of the store.

The name «Junk» itself basically describes the cluttered ambience of this big gem. Anybody could easily mistakenly walk into this antique/​vintage store, for an indoor junk yard. You will find anything from vintage doorknobs, to window panels and gaudy dish wear. The whole second floor is FILLED with old paintings, photographs, and empty picture frames.
I guarantee, you will not leave having looked that every piece that this place contains.

I am surprised that so many bad reviews here. I was here Sunday afternoon and very pleased what I had found.

Shout out to everyone who wrote stories about the crazy owner, especially Jessee E. Here’s another story about that lady. She’s a real marvel.
I go to junk a lot. I like junk. I’ve been a loyal customer for a couple years. They have some cool over priced junk.
I love old magazines and illustrations, and today JUNK had a huge stack of old magazines. There were so many I was trying to narrow down my favorites, taking shitty iPhone pics of the cool ones.
The woman came over and wedged herself between my girlfriend and I, and said, «You want me to take these up to the register for you?» She said this in such a way that reminds one of stale hot air whining out of a pinched party balloon. I said, «not yet, I’m still not sure»
She then took the magazine that I was looking at, put it on another stack, and started piling magazines on top of it and said, in the same shrill tone, «Ok well I’m just going to take pictures of these with my phone and then walk out without paying for any of them then… oh wait, THAT’S YOU.» When she said «you», she cocked her head to the side and pointed her finger at me. It resembled a Real Housewife anamorphing into a toad.
Actually that’s probably a good way to navigate this lady. Just approach her like she’s the drunkest, meanest, emptiest reality star you know. She’s always prodding, the smallest thing will set her off, and she loves it. (I saw her blow up similarly at other people while in the store.)
Anyway, I said, «well, that was passive aggressive. Sorry, I didn’t see any signs that say not to. But I see where you’re coming from, how many magazines should I buy to be fair?»
Surprisingly, she ignored my peace offering and grumbled, «well I don’t have to put signs up for everything you can and can’t do»
The thing is, they kind of do have signs for everything you can and can’t do. «Don’t touch», «smile you’re on camera» and just plain «don’t steal.“Earlier, I saw her sort of racistly yell at someone for «not understanding the sign.» So the omission of «don’t take pictures of the magazines was reassuring to me that it was okay.
As she scuttled away leering at both my girlfriend and I, my girlfriend tried to diffuse the tension by saying, «Maybe we should chill out a little bit, I think he’s just excited about the pictures.»
«Yeah! I like this store a lot! «I said.
There was no response.
In traditional crab fashion, she walked backward into her office, never breaking eye contact. Even as her office door swung closed; those eyes, those eyes.
[end]
I know that lady (Elyne B.) reads these so first off, sorry for roasting you a little bit in that story. But it would hurt to maybe think about treating people a little nicer. It might start harming your business. You’re probably going to come at me with, theft rates, the effectiveness of intimidation, people can shop somewhere else, etc. whatever.
here’s my one request:
If you’re going to continue being a classic grouch, you should at least start saying «scram.»
That’d be so funny.

«One man’s junk is another man’s…» you know the rest!
I love browsing here and I do always see plenty of treasures. Some areas are easier to spot the treasures, while other areas are so cluttered and piled up (like the frames and artwork on the second level), I don’t even want to bother rummaging through it.
I do think they’re overpriced for a second-​hand store. I don’t really care how «vintage» or «antique» anything is if it’s not kept as pristine as possible or treated better once obtained.
If you act like a junk store, you should be priced like a junk store.