Mar 8, 2020 By Harry Funk staff Writer hfunk@thealmanac.Net 3 min read

For those who keep an eye out for estate sales, a kindred spirit may exist in Debra Meixell.

“I actually furnished my whole house that way,” the Upper St. Clair resident said. “People would come into my home and ask, ‘Oh, my gosh. Where did you get that?’ And I’d say, ‘I bought it used.'”

Her interests in that regard led her to open her own business, Serendipity Lane, 12 years ago in a small space on Painters Run Road. For the past 10 years, she has operated out of a much more voluminous location on Brightwood Road in Bethel Park.

That’s 5,000 square feet of inventory, and she has until April 30 to move it, one way or another.

“My customers will want to know where I’m moving, and I don’t know,” she said. “I don’t know if I can find another place.”

Whatever the case, the end of her lease marks the end of a major chapter in Meixell’s life, during which she has accumulated a variety of items to go with the decors of a variety of homes.

“I just love furniture and decorating, and decided to open the store. My husband thought it wasn’t a good idea,” she said about Jack, who subsequently changed his mind. “I was going through names and names to call this store, and ‘Serendipity’ was one of them. The day the guy called me for the lease, when I came home, that movie was on TV.”

Her reference is to Pete Chelsom’s 2001 romantic comedy starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale.

In 2010, Serendipity Lane made the move to Bethel Park.

“We were driving down this road and saw a big ‘for rent.’ I called, and she said, ‘Let me show you the building,'” Meixell said, recalling her thoughts. “Oh, my gosh. This is huge. I’ll never fill this building.”

The healthy customers base she built at the previous location solved that issue for her, and as 2019 drew to the close, her space was packed with items from higher-end furniture to vintage mementos.

“You think something’s not going to sell, and it sells before something you think would sell immediately,” she said about what she carries. “So I don’t know anymore. I honestly don’t know. It’s whatever catches somebody’s eye.”

As customers have learned about the change in her lease situation, they’ve offered plenty of support.

“I’m sad, because you meet a lot of people and become friends with a lot of people,” Meixell said. “I’m going to miss that.”