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Meet the Millennials Proving that Young People Love Old Things
29 Plays2 years ago
This week host Benjamin Miller checks in with the intriguingly named Salt Lizard, a two-woman antiquarium at the center of hipsterdom: Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Lizzie Trinder and Rita Nehmé bring all their vocal-fried charm to bear on the shortcomings of fast furniture, what it was like doing business with reticent Millennials and Zoomers during the pandemic, and a trio of fascinating finds: Gustav Gurschner’s theatrical art nouveau floor lamp, a transferware lavabo, and the niftiest games table/console you’re likely to find this side of the Levant.
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Transcript
Introduction to Salt Lizard Antiques
00:00:10
Speaker
Hello and welcome to Curious Objects, brought to you by the magazine Antiques.
00:00:13
Speaker
I'm Ben Miller.
00:00:15
Speaker
My guests today have done something that many people would have you believe is impossible.
00:00:19
Speaker
They've started a brand new antiques business.
00:00:23
Speaker
And not only that, they're selling to new and often to young collectors.
00:00:27
Speaker
And they've done it in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which is supposed to be the world capital of millennial hypness.
00:00:33
Speaker
And to stop it all off, they themselves were brand new to the antiques business when they kicked this whole thing off a few years ago.
00:00:39
Speaker
In fact, the origin story for their business is totally unorthodox, and it's quintessentially New York.
00:00:44
Speaker
The company is called Salt Lizard.
Success in the Antiques Market
00:00:47
Speaker
And of course, we're going to talk about where that unique name comes from.
00:00:51
Speaker
And I just want to be clear, this isn't some kind of quote-unquote vintage shop that mostly sells mid-century minimalism.
00:00:57
Speaker
No, Salt Lizard is making a go of selling exactly the kinds of pieces that we've all been told no one wants anymore.
00:01:03
Speaker
In a word, old-fashioned.
00:01:06
Speaker
Yet, they are popping off on Instagram.
00:01:08
Speaker
They have a bustling street-level shopfront in Brooklyn, and just a couple years in, I think we can already say that Salt Lizard is proving the pessimists and the naysayers wrong.
00:01:18
Speaker
And so on today's episode, I want to figure out how.
00:01:21
Speaker
So I'm so excited to be talking with co-founders Rita Nieme and Lizzie Trinder.
00:01:25
Speaker
We're going to learn the secrets of success in the antiques market for millennials.
00:01:29
Speaker
What magic are they tapping into?
00:01:31
Speaker
And what does that mean for the rest of us enthusiasts, collectors, and dealers?
00:01:36
Speaker
We're going to talk about their crazy improbable origin story, how they find unique pieces that are full of character and storytelling, and how one particular piece, today's curious object, could add a unique international flavor to your home.
00:01:55
Speaker
Rita and Lizzie, welcome to the podcast.
00:01:58
Speaker
Wow, what a great intro.
00:01:59
Speaker
Thanks, Ben.
00:02:00
Speaker
We're happy to be here.
00:02:01
Speaker
The pleasure is all mine.
00:02:02
Speaker
Let's start with some rapid fire questions.
00:02:04
Speaker
Are you game?
00:02:05
Speaker
Let's do it.
Unique Objects and Eclectic Tastes
00:02:06
Speaker
What's the oldest object in your shop?
00:02:08
Speaker
So I think at the moment we have this lava bow, which is essentially like a wash basin from France.
00:02:17
Speaker
From France.
00:02:19
Speaker
1810, I believe, is the year it's from.
00:02:23
Speaker
And we just think the mahogany wood is...
00:02:26
Speaker
impeccable and the porcelain basin is transferware as well so it's just i think we got it during the height of of covid so it was just so appropriate that a wash basin came into our hands okay this is a tricky one but can you describe your personal taste in one sentence
00:02:49
Speaker
Oh boy.
00:02:51
Speaker
I would say eclectic and fun with like a little bit of a little bit of flair.
00:03:01
Speaker
You know, we like anything that's different and interesting.
00:03:05
Speaker
Anything with personality.
00:03:08
Speaker
Yeah, I think for me, it's it's.
00:03:12
Speaker
We always say we don't take it too seriously.
00:03:14
Speaker
We don't have a specific era.
00:03:17
Speaker
But, you know, I personally love a piece covered in gold.
00:03:21
Speaker
I think anything gilded is beautiful.
00:03:24
Speaker
And yeah, I think all of our furniture just has these like unique signatures of their makers that are really interesting to us.
00:03:32
Speaker
Okay.
00:03:32
Speaker
Anything covered with gold.
00:03:34
Speaker
Love the maximalism.
00:03:36
Speaker
Yeah, why not?
00:03:38
Speaker
What's the most exciting thing you've bought in the last month?
00:03:42
Speaker
Oh, that's the Gustav lamp.
00:03:44
Speaker
We got this floor lamp that's around like five feet tall, I think, 65 inches high.
00:03:52
Speaker
I don't know if you want to talk about it.
00:03:55
Speaker
It's called The Leaving, and it depicts a man.
00:03:59
Speaker
It's in bronze.
00:04:00
Speaker
It's like a sculpture in bronze that's holding a stained glass lamp at the top.
00:04:08
Speaker
And the bronze part is...
00:04:11
Speaker
a man embracing a woman with another woman at the base sort of like holding her hands up to the man and woman sort of pleading with them it looks like in a way and so you know you can obviously tell this is some sort of like scorned lover situation and you know it just it screens drama the whole thing
00:04:38
Speaker
I love a good storytelling object.
00:04:40
Speaker
Okay.
00:04:40
Speaker
What movie has the most interesting depiction of antiques?
00:04:45
Speaker
oh um i recently
Social Media and Viral Moments
00:04:48
Speaker
watched the um what's that show about it was about the killing of gianni versace um because american american horror story yeah and to me i mean i did say i love everything covered in gold but his house in the in the tv series i was just like did they shop at salt lizard this is amazing
00:05:12
Speaker
I would want in my mansion in Miami.
00:05:16
Speaker
Okay.
00:05:16
Speaker
What's your favorite museum to visit?
00:05:19
Speaker
Hands down the Met.
00:05:21
Speaker
Well, first, it's open on Mondays and that's our day off.
00:05:25
Speaker
So that's an important.
00:05:27
Speaker
And it's in New York.
00:05:28
Speaker
Museums are open on Mondays.
00:05:30
Speaker
That's very true.
00:05:32
Speaker
But I could just go and stare at the Impressionist paintings for hours.
00:05:40
Speaker
I could just stay in that section.
00:05:41
Speaker
And then obviously, you know, when you get tired of that, you can go somewhere else.
00:05:46
Speaker
There's so many different wings.
00:05:47
Speaker
So we're proud.
00:05:49
Speaker
met card carrying members excellent yeah i go there most days uh of the week actually at lunchtime and i feel like you know i've been to that museum hundreds and hundreds of times there's still entire rooms i'm sure i've never been in what's been your most viral instagram post
00:06:08
Speaker
Vanna White when you pretended to be Vanna White.
00:06:10
Speaker
Oh yeah.
00:06:12
Speaker
We had this Edwardian satin wood cheval mirror and so the mirror would actually like twist on itself so we made this reel where Lizzie pretended to be Vanna White.
00:06:28
Speaker
And she, you know, opened, opened the mirror as, as Vanna does.
00:06:32
Speaker
And I thought that was pretty cute.
00:06:36
Speaker
I think it's really funny.
00:06:40
Speaker
What's the, what's the first piece that you remember falling in love with?
00:06:46
Speaker
I was really obsessed and I was trying to keep it for a while with this Jacobean chest on stand.
00:06:55
Speaker
It's Spanish.
00:06:56
Speaker
It's like a Vaguerano piece.
00:06:59
Speaker
And I was like, I have to have this piece.
00:07:01
Speaker
And then I realized that's not how you run a business.
00:07:06
Speaker
We actually sold it to one of our neighbors in Williamsburg.
00:07:12
Speaker
I'm very happy that she's nearby.
00:07:14
Speaker
Well, you pretty quickly discovered the paradox of antique dealing.
00:07:18
Speaker
You want everything that you have.
00:07:20
Speaker
Yeah, it's always a struggle.
00:07:24
Speaker
What's a mistake you've made in the business that you regret and maybe learn something from?
00:07:32
Speaker
You know, I would say we...
00:07:37
Speaker
I don't think we regret anything.
00:07:40
Speaker
The business is like pretty, pretty new still.
00:07:43
Speaker
Right.
00:07:43
Speaker
And, and we're still learning every day.
00:07:46
Speaker
I mean, every time we talk to a customer, we're learning every, you know, every day is different in, in retail and, um,
00:07:55
Speaker
We could say that we've bought things for too much and then realized, so how are we going to sell this?
00:08:03
Speaker
But I wouldn't say it's necessarily a regret.
00:08:08
Speaker
It's just like we're still learning.
00:08:10
Speaker
Yeah.
00:08:12
Speaker
What was the last interior you saw that inspired you?
Blending Business with Personal Taste
00:08:16
Speaker
Our house.
00:08:20
Speaker
Every day our house inspires us.
00:08:22
Speaker
Inspired by yourselves.
00:08:24
Speaker
Nice.
00:08:25
Speaker
We are.
00:08:26
Speaker
We really do love our home.
00:08:27
Speaker
We're also very much homebodies.
00:08:32
Speaker
Clearly, you know, with COVID and up till now, we've kind of really changed how we live our lives, especially running a business.
00:08:40
Speaker
So our home is really, really sacred to us and we're roommates.
00:08:45
Speaker
So we're sitting together on this couch, you know, just...
00:08:50
Speaker
It's a refuge for us and it's beautiful and it's constantly inspiring us to get up and go help other people have apartments like ours.
00:09:03
Speaker
All right.
00:09:03
Speaker
Love to hear that.
00:09:04
Speaker
And we'll be back in just a second with Rita and Lizzie.
00:09:07
Speaker
Meanwhile, take a second just to make sure you're subscribed to the podcast in Apple Podcasts or Spotify or wherever you're listening.
00:09:13
Speaker
And we've got some great episodes coming up that you won't want to miss.
00:09:17
Speaker
And while you're at it, do me a favor and drop us a rating and maybe even a little review to let us know how we're doing and to help new listeners discover curious objects.
00:09:26
Speaker
And that can honestly just be a few words.
00:09:28
Speaker
It won't take more than a second, but it really helps to spread the message about these fascinating and important objects and stories and ideas.
00:09:35
Speaker
And if you'd like to see pictures of the pieces we're talking about today, you can find those as always at themagazineantiques.com slash podcast, or of course at saltlizardnyc.com.
00:09:46
Speaker
They're also on Instagram at saltlizardnyc, as am I, at Objective Interest.
00:09:56
Speaker
With that, let's get back to Rita, Lizzie, and Salt Lizard.
00:09:58
Speaker
So tell me, what does Salt Lizard mean?
00:10:02
Speaker
What do you mean?
00:10:03
Speaker
It's not obvious?
00:10:06
Speaker
Maybe not to me.
00:10:07
Speaker
We get this question a lot in store, but it's pretty much a blend of our nicknames.
00:10:14
Speaker
So Rita is Salt.
00:10:17
Speaker
and I Lizzie and Lizard and when we were coming up with the name we were just you know lying on the couch one day sort of brainstorming and Rita just said well what about salt lizard I think I said salt and lizard and then you said to drop the amp yeah and I was like genius
00:10:40
Speaker
And then we went to tell Lizzie's parents and a salt lizard is an actual animal and it's only found on the Galapagos.
00:10:49
Speaker
And when her parents circumnavigated the world in the 80s, they went to the Galapagos and they were like, wait, we have a photo of a salt lizard.
00:11:02
Speaker
So it just like kind of was very like, it just all fit together.
00:11:07
Speaker
And it seemed right.
00:11:10
Speaker
Yeah.
00:11:10
Speaker
And we have that photo on our website and also framed in the store of a salt lizard.
00:11:15
Speaker
Sorry, my incredible friend, Tina designed our logo and it's a lizard on a candelabra, which I think is very fitting for the, it really tied the whole name and an idea and who we are together.
00:11:32
Speaker
I love a good candelabra.
00:11:34
Speaker
That's actually what I want for is Halloween this year.
00:11:36
Speaker
That's a story for another time.
00:11:40
Speaker
The pictures, the photos have been burned.
Origins and Competition in Williamsburg
00:11:48
Speaker
So you're starting to allude to this, but I think the origin story of Salt Lizard is so fascinating.
00:11:53
Speaker
And I want you to share for listeners just how this whole thing got off the ground.
00:11:59
Speaker
So Rita and I are roommates and have been for quite some time.
00:12:04
Speaker
And during COVID, we had moved into this old brownstone in in Stuyvesant Heights in Bed-Stuy.
00:12:17
Speaker
And it was one of those those old homes that still has
00:12:20
Speaker
sink rooms in every room so these like small um completely wainscoted like floor and including ceiling rooms with these marble basins and all of them still worked and
00:12:36
Speaker
And we were just like totally in awe of this space and really wanted to work with it.
00:12:44
Speaker
So we started furnishing through, you know, like estate sales and auctions and
00:12:53
Speaker
and sort of wherever we could find, you know, cheap, cheap antiques and sort of realized that we had a knack for it.
00:13:02
Speaker
And we also worked really well together, had all the same ideas when it came to how to how we wanted to furnish the place.
00:13:15
Speaker
And as we were doing it, we were sort of like, well,
00:13:18
Speaker
You know, we are having we're we think we're pretty good at this.
00:13:22
Speaker
Why don't we see if anyone wants to like buy something that we that we've bought?
00:13:28
Speaker
So we created an Instagram account and we just sort of tried to buy.
00:13:33
Speaker
does anyone want to buy this?
00:13:34
Speaker
And people started buying things.
00:13:38
Speaker
And I think it was during that sweet spot of COVID where every Instagram was a little bit of a different beast and everyone was at home on their phones wanting to make their home space nice.
00:13:51
Speaker
And we just got in at the right moment.
00:13:56
Speaker
It was also, it was a time where people were buying on Instagram.
00:14:01
Speaker
It wasn't crazy to do that.
00:14:03
Speaker
There were so many people working from home, selling handmade things, even handmade masks at the time.
00:14:11
Speaker
And so there was this kind of weird trust in people on Instagram.
00:14:16
Speaker
And when we had bought a few things on Instagram,
00:14:19
Speaker
So it was, yeah, I don't think it would have worked before then.
00:14:23
Speaker
Or after.
00:14:24
Speaker
I don't think it would work now, to be honest.
00:14:27
Speaker
So, yeah, I think we just, it was like the perfect moment in time for us in which all of these things sort of aligned and,
00:14:36
Speaker
And we were able to get this start.
00:14:40
Speaker
And, you know, then Instagram led to a website.
00:14:45
Speaker
And then, you know, the website led to, well, we need somewhere for people to see stuff.
00:14:53
Speaker
So, like, let's get a story.
00:14:55
Speaker
And then, you know, a couple of years later, here we are.
00:14:58
Speaker
Here we are.
00:15:01
Speaker
So who do you think of you?
00:15:02
Speaker
You've described your business as a little bit different from anything else out there, but I wonder who you think of as being your competition, whether that's, you know, Ikea or West Elm or First Dibs or someone else.
00:15:16
Speaker
Who are you competing with?
00:15:18
Speaker
Oh, my goodness.
00:15:18
Speaker
Those are such huge names.
00:15:21
Speaker
I feel like, you know, we're such as maybe because our Instagram presence is large.
00:15:26
Speaker
People assume that it's more than two people.
00:15:29
Speaker
But we're still very much the only two employees.
00:15:34
Speaker
Yeah.
00:15:36
Speaker
Yeah, I think with Ikea and West End, like we kind of, you know, know that switching a customer who buys fast furniture to buy, you know, some ornate like
00:15:51
Speaker
antique piece is a little bit, it's a little bit hard to do.
00:15:57
Speaker
And because of our, our manpower as a, as a two person team, you know, we, we think more like our competition is like other local vintage and antique stores, especially those that sort of target millennials the way we do.
00:16:16
Speaker
I mean, we are millennials, but that's right.
00:16:19
Speaker
Yeah.
00:16:22
Speaker
I think it's a blessing that we found a place in Williamsburg because there are a few other furniture stores around us.
00:16:31
Speaker
But I think that we all have such a different style that it's been to all of our benefit that we're all in one area.
00:16:41
Speaker
And I think people come
00:16:44
Speaker
And they're like, okay, like what, where else can I go from here?
00:16:47
Speaker
And you know, there's Dobbin Street, there's Home Union, there's other places.
00:16:51
Speaker
And it feels like you can just furniture shop
00:16:55
Speaker
all day in one area.
00:16:58
Speaker
And that's like a good thing.
00:17:00
Speaker
And that's a good thing.
00:17:01
Speaker
We don't all your bases.
00:17:02
Speaker
We don't view that as a bad thing at all.
00:17:05
Speaker
It's like good to have these other small businesses selling furniture around.
00:17:11
Speaker
You know, there's enough to go around.
00:17:13
Speaker
There's enough for everyone.
00:17:15
Speaker
Yeah.
00:17:15
Speaker
A rising tide lifts all boats.
00:17:17
Speaker
Absolutely.
00:17:18
Speaker
Yes.
Antiques vs. Modern Fast Furniture
00:17:20
Speaker
I sometimes think of my competition in the antiques business as being Netflix.
00:17:27
Speaker
Oh, in the sense that like what I'm fighting for is attention.
00:17:31
Speaker
Yeah.
00:17:31
Speaker
And time and effort and energy energy.
00:17:36
Speaker
Um, and so like you, you know, I would love to see,
00:17:41
Speaker
more and more and more quote unquote competition from other dealers.
00:17:45
Speaker
That would be fantastic news.
00:17:48
Speaker
And that's part of what's interesting about you guys, you know, bringing this new shop into existence out of nothing.
00:17:55
Speaker
So suddenly on the timescale of the antiques world,
00:18:01
Speaker
And so I guess I wonder, you mentioned that it's difficult to convert people from buying fast furniture to buying the kind of thing that you sell.
00:18:12
Speaker
But let's be honest, we've all bought fast furniture at one stage or another.
00:18:18
Speaker
And somebody at some point, for you guys, for me, for a lot of people listening to the podcast, somebody at some point
00:18:25
Speaker
said something or showed us something or we experienced something that made us think twice about that and maybe take a different approach.
00:18:34
Speaker
And I feel like that's a big part of what you guys are doing, at least it's what I see from you on Instagram, is that idea of just like, hey, step back for a second, take a second look at this, think about it from a slightly different angle.
00:18:52
Speaker
And maybe you'll find something super appealing and super satisfying in this world of antique buying and collecting that had not been on your mind before.
00:19:04
Speaker
I think you're completely right.
00:19:06
Speaker
And having Instagram, as much as it's a struggle sometimes to constantly be making
00:19:14
Speaker
I think it humanizes, maybe not humanizes, but it just makes it a little bit less stuffy and serious that we're being silly.
00:19:23
Speaker
We're talking about this furniture.
00:19:25
Speaker
Just come and see it.
00:19:26
Speaker
And I think that that experience of seeing the furniture and talking to people has changed a lot.
00:19:36
Speaker
how people buy things or at least the customers that have come in.
00:19:41
Speaker
But yeah, maybe our competition is really that like,
00:19:47
Speaker
buying something without having the experience of seeing it, without having the experience of talking to someone who actually sourced it.
00:19:56
Speaker
You know, our competition is like this, like removed buying process where you just buy online and it's shipped within two days, maybe.
00:20:04
Speaker
Right.
00:20:04
Speaker
Yeah.
00:20:05
Speaker
Like for us, we're, you know, some people are like, oh, can I get this delivered tomorrow?
00:20:09
Speaker
And it's like, well, no.
00:20:11
Speaker
Yeah.
00:20:13
Speaker
That's not how it works.
00:20:15
Speaker
Maybe in like five days you can have it.
00:20:18
Speaker
Like there's some limitations.
00:20:21
Speaker
Yeah, but I think young people have maybe gotten the wrong idea about how to buy things or what's comfortable for them.
00:20:30
Speaker
And maybe the hardest thing is to be like, you don't need to just buy.
00:20:34
Speaker
not talk to anyone i mean it's like it's like me i can't like pick up the phone if it's a if it's number i don't know and so maybe bringing back that personal um experience and just talking to people and i think we're pretty friendly has been has been a way to to reach younger folks and and make them come in and
00:20:55
Speaker
And you don't have to buy something.
00:20:56
Speaker
Sometimes just coming into the store and spending some time there really is a real pleasure for people.
00:21:03
Speaker
People come in and spend time and just look at pieces.
00:21:06
Speaker
It's like a little museum.
00:21:13
Speaker
When did making plans get this complicated?
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Speaker
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00:21:39
Speaker
So if I walk into an apartment that somebody has decorated with pieces that they got from you, from Salt Lizard, how is that experience going to be different from walking into an apartment that somebody has decorated with fast furniture from West Elm or whatever?
00:21:58
Speaker
Well, I think you especially would know the difference.
00:22:03
Speaker
I think you would have a bit more to talk about, perhaps.
00:22:06
Speaker
Or at least I would hope so.
00:22:08
Speaker
You know, you'd be drawn to something and be like, where did you get that?
00:22:13
Speaker
What's the story behind that?
00:22:16
Speaker
Like, yeah, that looks interesting.
00:22:19
Speaker
I think that's sort of...
00:22:21
Speaker
always the goal with stuff that we're selling and people are interested in our store, it's like, huh, what is that?
00:22:31
Speaker
Tell me a little bit more about that.
00:22:33
Speaker
Where did you get that?
00:22:34
Speaker
Where's that from?
00:22:35
Speaker
How old is it?
00:22:37
Speaker
Oh, that does what?
00:22:39
Speaker
A lot of time we have furniture that converts into something else, transformer style.
00:22:46
Speaker
That's true.
00:22:50
Speaker
And I think people people get a lot of joy from from stuff like that.
00:22:55
Speaker
So, yeah.
00:22:57
Speaker
So speaking of which, you have this piece that I alluded to earlier, this really interesting games table from the Levant.
00:23:06
Speaker
And I wonder if you could tell listeners what that looks like and then a little about why you bought it.
00:23:13
Speaker
Sure.
00:23:14
Speaker
So we tend to get a lot of games tables in general.
00:23:18
Speaker
We find that people really love them and some of them are more ornate than others.
00:23:24
Speaker
The one we have currently is Mother of Pearl.
00:23:30
Speaker
So it has all of these Mother of Pearl decoration throughout and it's a backgammon table, but also
00:23:37
Speaker
converts into a cards table and also a chess board and it can just be a console if you don't want if you don't want any of that it it
00:23:47
Speaker
folds up into just a little console you could put to the side to the side and um i mean some are from all over the world but this one in particular is from the levant it's either lebanese or syrian and we've had a few of them before i i am lebanese so i obviously go for a lot of middle eastern pieces
00:24:09
Speaker
They just I just think they're so beautiful.
00:24:12
Speaker
And in general, Middle Eastern or Islamic art and architecture is just really fascinating to me and, you know, tells a story on its own.
00:24:22
Speaker
So I think this games table and it's done really well on Instagram as well.
00:24:26
Speaker
It's just it's really eye catching.
00:24:30
Speaker
And, you know, where have you seen something like that before?
00:24:33
Speaker
It's just so, so different.
00:24:36
Speaker
So how do you actually imagine that piece fitting into a customer's
Durability and Customization of Antiques
00:24:40
Speaker
home?
00:24:40
Speaker
Are they going to use it to play games?
00:24:42
Speaker
Yeah, that's so funny.
00:24:43
Speaker
Absolutely.
00:24:44
Speaker
A customer came in the other day and was just so impressed.
00:24:47
Speaker
And she's like, surely you can't use this.
00:24:50
Speaker
And, you know, I if you walk along the streets of Beirut, everyone's playing backgammon on these tables.
00:24:56
Speaker
It's actually, you know,
00:24:59
Speaker
it's up to you how how you want to use it or not use it if you feel like it's it's too nice to be used then you know that's your prerogative but i think because it can be folded up and stowed to the side you know you can bring it out during games night you could just have it as a conversation piece um it's it's entirely up to to the owner really yeah
00:25:23
Speaker
Do you get that a lot from your customers, the sort of fear of using these things that are so old and beautiful?
00:25:32
Speaker
Sometimes.
00:25:33
Speaker
It really depends on the customer.
00:25:37
Speaker
But I think a lot of antiquers or people who have a lot of these pieces understand how sturdy they are.
00:25:47
Speaker
And we have rugs all over the store, for example, and people sometimes come in and are scared to step on the rugs.
00:25:53
Speaker
And I always say, you know, these rugs can handle it.
00:25:57
Speaker
Antiques are made to kind of withstand time.
00:26:01
Speaker
A certain amount of, you know, where they've lasted this long.
00:26:06
Speaker
They'll last for fun.
00:26:08
Speaker
Exactly.
00:26:09
Speaker
So I feel like
00:26:11
Speaker
We always have some sort of attachment to something we spent an X amount of dollars on.
00:26:17
Speaker
But at the end of the day, you know, we're all adults and can can use something without breaking it.
00:26:23
Speaker
Yeah.
00:26:23
Speaker
And also with these with these pieces.
00:26:26
Speaker
you know especially for us at home like if something were to to chip or break these are pieces that you can fix it's not like you know the fast furniture if it falls apart it falls apart like we all had a piece of ikea furniture disintegrate in front of us or something like that at some point right um and i think that's the beauty of
00:26:49
Speaker
of antiques and older pieces is that they're just made different.
00:26:55
Speaker
And so sometimes, you know, we can tell customers, you know, you don't have to be scared of this just because it looks a certain way.
00:27:02
Speaker
It doesn't have to be intimidating.
00:27:06
Speaker
Like you can touch it, you can use it.
00:27:09
Speaker
Yeah.
00:27:10
Speaker
And then also it can ideally reflect your own personal interest and taste as opposed to, you know, the marketing priorities of whatever the big mega corporations are interested
Sourcing and Customer Loyalty
00:27:22
Speaker
in this season.
00:27:22
Speaker
Exactly.
00:27:24
Speaker
Where do you actually go to buy this material?
00:27:28
Speaker
Wherever our van can take us.
00:27:31
Speaker
We have like a three hour radius that we drive and, you know, we've we've obviously built relationships and stuff over over the years that we've been doing this now.
00:27:42
Speaker
And so we have our.
00:27:43
Speaker
We have our contacts, you know, where we get our stuff to sell.
00:27:50
Speaker
And then we'll... So you're buying from what?
00:27:53
Speaker
From pickers, from estate sales, from shops in the Hudson Valley?
00:27:57
Speaker
We do a little bit of everything.
00:27:59
Speaker
We sort of don't limit ourselves, you know, auctions or estate sales or, you know, little places here and there.
00:28:08
Speaker
Any dealers that we have relationships with.
00:28:14
Speaker
So how much time do you actually spend on the road?
00:28:17
Speaker
So usually either Monday or Tuesday is a whole day on the road.
00:28:24
Speaker
And then there's some mornings where one of us will go.
00:28:29
Speaker
We have storage in Long Island and also one in New Jersey.
00:28:35
Speaker
And so if we need to refill the store, one of us will go and yeah.
00:28:41
Speaker
get pieces that are carryable by one person.
00:28:43
Speaker
Yeah.
00:28:45
Speaker
Like to say.
00:28:48
Speaker
But yeah, I,
00:28:50
Speaker
There's always a pickup.
00:28:53
Speaker
Yeah, every week we're out somewhere doing something different, which is also why we love what we do, right?
00:29:03
Speaker
We get to see different parts of the East Coast and, you know.
00:29:10
Speaker
Meet some interesting characters.
00:29:12
Speaker
Meet some interesting folks, yeah.
00:29:15
Speaker
And find...
00:29:17
Speaker
really cool pieces we've never seen before.
00:29:21
Speaker
So we're out there every week doing that.
00:29:25
Speaker
Do you have customers who have sort of decked out their whole house or their whole apartment in Salt Wizard?
00:29:32
Speaker
We get like diehards.
00:29:35
Speaker
If someone buys a couple of things and they're happy with it, like they'll furnish their whole house with us type thing.
00:29:42
Speaker
And so when we find like a customer that gets it, they like really get it.
00:29:49
Speaker
Yeah.
00:29:49
Speaker
And then, you know, there are others in between and stuff like that.
00:29:56
Speaker
It makes such a difference that we we've gotten to a level where we know our customers.
00:30:01
Speaker
And that's, you know, some people might prefer to just be online and not not speak to anyone.
00:30:07
Speaker
But I think our return customers actually come in person.
00:30:10
Speaker
Yeah.
00:30:12
Speaker
And, you know, call us ahead of time.
00:30:14
Speaker
And so there's some real friendships, I think.
00:30:17
Speaker
Yeah.
00:30:19
Speaker
So I remember another thing that happened during COVID, which was I saw all of these videos of people, quote unquote, restoring old pieces of furniture.
00:30:29
Speaker
And sometimes these were, you know, qualified professional restorers who really knew how to handle a piece and bring it back to its intended purpose.
00:30:41
Speaker
appearance in its full glory.
00:30:43
Speaker
Other times it was people buying, you know, often it was beautiful old wood furniture and then painting it over and turning it white, which obviously for many of us, that's painful to watch.
00:31:00
Speaker
But I wonder what your view is on, you know, repairing and restoring and repurposing old pieces.
00:31:07
Speaker
Yeah.
00:31:08
Speaker
We're very pro.
00:31:10
Speaker
I mean, I think, like you said, it's still it's kind of a dying business to be a reupholster or someone who fixes or specializes in restoration of antique furniture.
00:31:24
Speaker
There's not that many people left, but they'll be around.
00:31:30
Speaker
But I think if you do a good job, I mean, again, you've given an entirely new life to a piece.
00:31:38
Speaker
especially repulsory.
00:31:39
Speaker
If you have a good frame for a chair or sofa, we're very pro getting some fabric and make it your own.
00:31:47
Speaker
Make it your own.
00:31:48
Speaker
Yeah.
00:31:49
Speaker
As far as painting it, I've seen those videos.
00:31:54
Speaker
I actually, there was one video I saw where it was a gold piece and they stripped the gilding and I got so sad.
00:32:01
Speaker
Oh, that must have been so painful for you.
00:32:05
Speaker
Like, oh no.
00:32:08
Speaker
So, but to each their own.
00:32:10
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:10
Speaker
And if it's going to keep something out of a landfill, you know, as long as you're not destroying some, you know, priceless work of art piece, I would say, you know,
00:32:27
Speaker
Go for it.
00:32:29
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:30
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:32
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:35
Speaker
That's awesome.
00:32:35
Speaker
I love, you know, in silver, I see that all the time.
00:32:37
Speaker
Of course, people are always melting things down.
00:32:40
Speaker
Right.
00:32:41
Speaker
Sometimes that's a terrible mistake and it's very painful to hear about.
00:32:45
Speaker
And other times you think, well, nothing really of value is lost here.
00:32:49
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:50
Speaker
Okay, so you're both, I think it's fair to say you're generalists.
Exploring Wedgewood and Market Challenges
00:32:55
Speaker
Your shop handles all kinds of different material.
00:32:58
Speaker
But I'm curious whether you ever find yourself taking a deep dive into some specific category.
00:33:06
Speaker
Maybe you come across an object that just enchants you and you want to learn everything about that category, that form.
00:33:13
Speaker
Do you dive down rabbit holes like that?
00:33:16
Speaker
Oh, for sure.
00:33:17
Speaker
Well, I would say that everything that we sell, we research, right?
00:33:26
Speaker
And so we're always learning new things about new places and where something comes from and artists and all of that.
00:33:38
Speaker
Um, and then like specifically like Rita, you, you're, I'm into Wedgwood, um, stoneware at the moment.
00:33:48
Speaker
Yeah.
00:33:49
Speaker
A lot of Wedgwood, um, Jasperware for me, I think the, especially the Wedgwood blue is, um,
00:33:59
Speaker
I don't know if you've ever seen it, but it's just very calming color.
00:34:03
Speaker
The fact that the actual like tone of the blue and the mattingness of how it's made and how it's made is just so it's so intricate.
00:34:12
Speaker
And we actually got in a collection of.
00:34:17
Speaker
There are these Jasperware Wedgwood catchers, but someone converted them into lighters.
00:34:24
Speaker
So we got like these 30 Wedgwood lighters.
00:34:27
Speaker
And I think, you know, speaking of the millennials, they were, I think a lot of Brooklyn bought these lighters.
00:34:35
Speaker
They're like, well, how do we fix them?
00:34:37
Speaker
So I just, you know, would send them a YouTube video of how to replace the wick and the foot and the little, you know,
00:34:47
Speaker
the little wheel and you know, you just have now a working lighter.
00:34:52
Speaker
It's just so much more impressive to have a hedgewood lighter than your, than your Bic lighter.
00:34:57
Speaker
I think.
00:34:58
Speaker
Yeah.
00:34:59
Speaker
That's awesome.
00:34:59
Speaker
That's how you get the millennial market.
00:35:03
Speaker
Okay.
00:35:04
Speaker
So smoke, yeah.
00:35:05
Speaker
Smoking paraphernalia.
00:35:07
Speaker
Yeah.
00:35:08
Speaker
It's in.
00:35:09
Speaker
I wonder why you think it is that there aren't more shops around like yours.
00:35:16
Speaker
I think like we mentioned before, there are so many huge conglomerates of these fast furniture businesses.
00:35:25
Speaker
And especially in New York where we are, I mean, we've moved so often that you just end up not trusting your purchases or you don't trust that like you'll be here for another year in this apartment.
00:35:40
Speaker
So why invest when you might be moving?
00:35:43
Speaker
And I think
00:35:45
Speaker
to us, what really changed everything was the fact that we were forced to be at home for so long.
00:35:51
Speaker
And we were like, actually, this home needs needs to be a space where we are calm, where we are looking at things that are interesting instead of just having the essentials, just having a dining room table and some chairs.
00:36:07
Speaker
And so
00:36:11
Speaker
You know, maybe now there'll be more shops like ours, I hope so.
00:36:16
Speaker
But there definitely aren't that many local furniture shops, at least to me, I don't think there's enough.
Future Plans for Salt Lizard
00:36:22
Speaker
So thinking about the future of Salt Lizard, I wonder if you would ever want to specialize once you've found that one category of piece that really sings to you where you keep going down that rabbit hole over and over again,
00:36:40
Speaker
Or, you know, or maybe if you have ambitions to increase your price point or on the other hand, maybe to sort of expand outward, open new stores, where do you see Salt Lizard going from here?
00:36:53
Speaker
I mean, I would say that we're we're always dreaming, right?
00:36:57
Speaker
We're always dreaming of what could be next, what what's next for us.
00:37:01
Speaker
But at the moment, we're we're very much in the like, let's make what we're doing work and let's make it like really work.
00:37:10
Speaker
And then and then we'll see we'll see what exactly is next.
00:37:15
Speaker
But, you know, in terms of of specializing in something in particular, I think,
00:37:24
Speaker
Our store sells all sorts of things that, you know, we've handpicked because they bring us great joy and we think they could bring other people great joy.
00:37:37
Speaker
And that variety is sort of part of our personality.
00:37:49
Speaker
So I don't think we'll ever specialize just because that's sort of who we are.
00:37:53
Speaker
We like to see things we've never seen before.
00:37:57
Speaker
We want to show other people things they've never seen before that cross a whole bunch of different eras and...
00:38:07
Speaker
And cultures.
00:38:08
Speaker
Cultures, yes, absolutely.
00:38:11
Speaker
And so that fundamentally, I don't think will ever change for us.
00:38:16
Speaker
But yeah, I mean, we're excited to see to see where this goes to and see what our next step will be once, you know, where we're we're ready for that.
00:38:31
Speaker
Stay tuned.
00:38:32
Speaker
Yeah, stay tuned.
00:38:33
Speaker
Okay, stay tuned.
00:38:35
Speaker
And meanwhile, check out their website, check out their Instagram and go visit the shop.
00:38:41
Speaker
It's a fun place, I have to say.
00:38:42
Speaker
I feel like every time I turn a corner, I'm seeing something surprising and new and interesting.
00:38:48
Speaker
Thank you.
00:38:50
Speaker
Lizzie and Rita, thanks so much.
00:38:51
Speaker
This has been a lot of fun.
00:38:53
Speaker
Thank you.
00:38:56
Speaker
Today's episode was edited and produced by Sammy Delati with social media and web support from Sarah Bellotta.
00:39:02
Speaker
Sierra Holt is our digital media and editorial associate.
00:39:06
Speaker
Our music is by Trap Rabbit.
00:39:08
Speaker
And I'm Ben Miller.
00:39:28
Speaker
When you walk into a Burlington, you're walking into amazing prices and great gifts.
00:39:33
Speaker
That's main character energy.
00:39:36
Speaker
Because at Burlington, the holiday savings aren't the only things turning heads.
00:39:40
Speaker
Discover quality finds and perfect presents for everyone on your