Best of D.C. 2010

Matt Wixon started taking moving jobs as a way to supplement his income from working at Capitol Hill Books. “I found I kind of enjoyed the clarity you get with physical labor,” he says. Eventually the project grew as other employees of the bookstore joined Wixon in his enterprise. Last year Wixon made things official, purchasing his own truck and forming an LLC. All of the movers share some sort of connection to the bookstore, and many have degrees from schools like Princeton and William & Mary. Wixon says business has been so brisk he has to turn away twice as many clients as he accepts, but he wants to handle any expansion as methodically as he handles your possessions. Two days before I was scheduled to move, for example, the District received more than a foot of snow. I was certain my planning would be sacrificed along with a few days of work. Bookstore Movers got my stuff to my new place within hours. It was hardly the movers’ greatest challenge: One client told the movers they would be moving his plywood and tinfoil time machine. “We were very delicate and careful with it, so hopefully it’s still functional,” Wixon says. “That’s kind of the key to moving, is being adaptable. Snow, blocked loading docks, trick couches, you’ve got to figure out a way to deal with it. Maybe that’s part of the fun.”