Midland Liquidators

If you need a tarp, this is the place people in Langley tend to send you. Midland Liquidators sells them in camping, roofing, vehicle and industrial weights. It also carries storage canopies, and the parts to fix the one you already have.

How it got here

• 1984: Ken McAllister and his father, Bill, open the first Midland at 1789 Kingsway in Vancouver, selling liquidation stock.
• October 2005: a fire destroys that store. By December they’ve reopened down the road at 1234 Kingsway.
• 2014: thirty years in, the family opens a second store on the Langley Bypass.
• Today: Bill’s grandsons are part of the business, which makes three generations.

The liquidation roots still show. Alongside the regular stock there are one-off buys that change from visit to visit, and the website marks which store has each deal. Look for the Langley label.

The regular stock

Hand tools and drill bits, work gloves and safety gear, painting supplies, rope, ladders, and a wall of moving gear: blankets, dollies, replacement wheels and casters. Prices on the site start low. A 100-foot chalk line set was $9.98 and a moving blanket $7.98 when we checked. Reviewers say the staff give practical advice on the trade stuff, and that it’s a good spot to find the odd item the big-box stores don’t carry.

The family also supports Youth Unlimited’s young-parent programs in Surrey and Mission Possible in Vancouver, where the partnership has included paid work for program participants.

Open Monday to Friday 8:30 to 5 and Saturday 9 to 5. Closed Sundays and statutory holidays. Call 604-534-0415 or email [email protected].