Two village antiques shops are closing their doors in September, leaving the owners wondering if the market for antiques, like the items themselves, has become a thing of the past. Other store owners say antiques shopping is a timeless tradition, but reconfiguring space and being creative with merchandising is becoming a necessary price of staying in business.
Low Street antiques closing
Ron Regels will be quietly shutting down his small Low Street Antiques shop Thursday, Aug. 30, after four years in business. Regels said he’s seen a consistent slowdown of foot traffic into his place, particularly over the last year.
There are a lot of reasons why I’m closing, mostly because business is bad, but it’s never really been good for me, said Regels, who previously had a store in Broadalbin. `I saw a drop-off after (the terrorist attacks of) 9/11, but I have no idea why. The last seven months have been terrible, and I haven’t even been covering my rent.`
Regels believes the size of his place, more of a shop than a store, also contributed to sagging sales.
`People go to the larger places; it’s like the mall syndrome,` said Regels. `People would walk in my doorway, look around and walk back out. It was insulting. Maybe it’s the wave of the future, that small shops are dinosaurs.`
Flourish together, flounder alone
About six years ago, the village established itself as a mecca for antiques shops, attracting several antiques businesses from the city of Saratoga Springs. The entrepreneurs found lower rental rates, quaint locations, and a small-town flavor conducive to pedestrian sidewalk traffic.
There were about eight antiques shops in the historic village, complemented by village parks, one with a natural mineral spring, the Brookside History Museum and the National Bottle Museum, eclectic restaurants like the popular Sunset CafE, and the artsy Coffee Planet, offering live music and photography exhibits. The Whistling Kettle, an upscale tea and lunch emporium with outside dining, opened a few years later on Front Street, and major renovations at the elegant, historic Medbery Inn and Spa were completed, offering a top-of-the-line tourist destination.
The antiques owners joined together to design and publish a walking map guiding shoppers from store to store, and getting word out through regional and statewide travel publications to bring shoppers to the village.
Brent Millington owns Ballston Spa Antiques, the longest tenured antiques shop in the village. Now in his 22nd year, he has also witnessed the slump in sales recently.
`The economy has caused sales to be down; gas is expensive and people are seeing foreclosures on their homes,` said Millington. `I made a delivery up to Saratoga Springs, and a couple owned a house for three years and hadn’t furnished it yet because they couldn’t afford to.`
Still, Millington believes that through cooperative marketing, all the stores can survive.
`The antiques brochure helped attract people, and the more places in business in the village, the better,` said Millington. `You want people to come to the village and walk from place to place.`
Fresh ideas for selling seasoned items
Other village-based store owners said they have seen a dip in the antiques industry, but others are prepared to ride it out and focus on ways to offer a greater variety of items to their customers.
Lesley Ann Lewis has two antiques shops in the village. Daisy Dry Goods at 28 Front St. is a small shop, while the Stone Soup Antiques Gallery at 19 Low St. is a cavernous site located in the former Tufflite factory. The factory has seen immense renovations over the last 10 years, and in December 2005, Stone Soup opened on the bottom floor with a new idea for maximizing sales on older items.
Lewis conceptualized the gallery as shared space, and it’s now a cooperative venture between about 30 dealers who display their wares and help work the sales counter.
`You definitely need to look at demographics and how to market yourself,` said Lewis. `You have to have a beautiful shop and give people a reason to recommend you to others.`
Lewis said while she believes interest in antiques isn’t lagging, purchasing them is in a bit of a rut.
`Business is not going gangbusters, but we’re doing all right,` said Lewis. `You see up and down trends; that’s the nature of the business. After the war in the 1950s, people wanted everything shiny and new, and chrome was all the rage. But there are enough collectors out there to keep antiques shops in business.`
Lewis conceded she has had to be flexible with her merchandising to keep up with the times and appeal to shoppers looking for newer items.
`I would like to offer only antiques that are from decades prior to 1900, but I have had to allow items that are vintage rather than antique, which is up to the 1950s,` said Lewis. `I’ve also added a line of gift products like candles, cards and lavender-scented items. You have to keep changing it up.`
Kaleidoscope Gifts ends 6 year run
Linda and Jim Lambert are selling out their merchandise from Kaleidoscope Gifts at 114 Milton Ave., where they’ve been selling antiques and other boutique merchandise since February 2001.
`We spent years on the road doing antiques shows and renting booth space in various antique malls,` said Linda. `We studied the area and found the village was a place where people shopped for antiques and gifts.`
But now the couple is selling out their merchandise at deeply discounted prices, and will close on Sept. 30. The Lamberts said they never had a customer base within Ballston Spa.
`We have never had the support of village shoppers,` said Jim Lambert. `People come in here and tell us ours is their favorite shop, but we’ve never seen them before.`
The couple also said the economy has caused sales to stumble.
`There’s been less and less business, and it’s spiraled down,` said Jim Lambert. `There’s no money out there for people to use where they want. There’s no money to spend.`
The Lamberts now plan to travel, hit antique festivals, and perhaps sell their stock along the way.
`It’s time to hit the road,` said Jim Lambert.
Business outlook favorable for Ballston Spa
Cliff Baum, owner of the Coffee Planet and president of the Ballston Spa Business and Professional Association, said he believes the storefronts now available will soon be filled with prosperous businesses.
`Here in the village there may be a short time of a few vacancies, but we hope to see the right kind of businesses move in,` said Baum. `People who own the vacant properties need to take time to find a good fit.`
Baum said members of the association see the store closings as isolated and not indicative to the business climate overall in downtown Ballston Spa.
`There will be times of transition, but it will be a positive thing in the end,` said Baum. `The village has turned itself around as far as attracting businesses and customers. I’m very pleased with what’s going on and what this means for the future.` “