OCEANSIDE, Calif. (KGTV) - Anyone browsing through 101 Marketplace in Oceanside will find an assortment of items for sale on the shelves and show floor.
The antique and consignment store opened just two weeks ago amid a business landscape struck by the pandemic. But owner, Roy Cisneros is optimistic about the future.
"If today is the worst day, tomorrow has got to be better," Cisneros said. Cisneros describes himself as naturally optimistic. That optimism has helped him get to where he is now.
"We've been homeless for two years, me, my wife, and my kids," Cisneros said.
Cisneros, a father of five, says he says it didn't take much to fall into homelessness.
"You get behind in rent, that's all it takes, really, and then you are living in hotels."
He says they hit rock bottom in 2019 when his wife and his kids had to stay in a shelter.
"We were like, 'You get in the shelters, I'll sleep in the car, we'll figure this out, we'll save some money that way,'" Cisneros said.
At one point, Cisneros worked as many as three jobs at one time to make ends meet and save up just enough.
"I had saved up a little bit of money from 2019; we purchased a little tiny trailer, we stayed in the trailer for about six months," he said.
In August, he discovered that space on 101 S Coast Highway was available and affordable. Cisneros says it was an opportunity he couldn't pass up. Though he heard of businesses struggling and closing because of the pandemic, Roy decided to bet on the days ahead.
"We took all of our savings, we sold the trailer, we got the store, and we're doing it," he said.
Cisneros says he and his family are currently still living in a hotel, but he says that could change very soon.
"If you keep trying, eventually you'll get there," he said.
Roy says they plan to give back to their community. They plan to donate some of their profits to a north county organization that helps the homeless. Cisneros says he will also take donated items to be sold, and the profits from that sale will also be donated.
