Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Abernathey, Anne Leahy, and Nancy Mokszycki.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Tattered Tiques got started in antiques and vintage over 18 years ago. I lived in Iowa for a few years and going from fast pasted Chicago, to Iowa, I found myself needing a hobby. My husband started taking me to farm auctions on the weekends and I got hooked! As my mom and dad would come out to visit, we would spend all day at the farm auctions and started accumulating antiques. When I moved back to Chicago, we started selling at local antique and flea markets. It didn’t take long for my sister to join us. She eventually talked us into opening a shop. By then we had already begun to acquire quite a following and it was the perfect next step. This year, we celebrated our 6 year anniversary in Lake Barrington. My mom and sister and I are co-owners, and we have our Aunt helping us out each week in running the shop. We also bring our cousin in to help us out with big events and certain weekends. We take great pride in being a family and woman owned business!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I have to say we’ve had things go rather smoothly for us alone the way. However, juggling responsibilities of home and business are not always easy. My sister and I have 7 kids between us, so finding time to get away and hunt for new inventory is our biggest challenge. A large part of our business is centered around our painted furniture. Finding time each week to paint new pieces can sometimes be difficult. We’ve managed to make it work over the years, and is the main reason for our limited open dates and hours each week. It is important to us to keep things fresh and have an ever changing inventory. Not being open every weekend allows us to paint, pick, and redecorate the shop. It also gives us much needed time to spend with family! Our customers are very understanding. So much so, that we think it creates an excitement for opening weekends. Everyone wants to see what’s new from our picking trips….and get first dibs!
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Tattered Tiques story. Tell us more about the business.
The biggest part of our business is focused on our antiques and vintage items. Whether it be antiques and vintage or farm and industrial, we go out of our way to seek out new inventory each week. We now travel on off weekends in search of goods for the next opening. Most often our travels take us throughout the Midwest to Iowa, Indiana, Wisconsin and Southern Illinois for large auctions and flea markets. However we also plan a yearly trip to Kentucky and Tennessee for the World’s Longest Yard Sale. There we stock up on Southern Style wares, which are harder to find up in the Chicago area. What we are most proud of is our customer service. We pride ourselves in our relationships with our customers, and many of them have become our good friends. We go out of our way to help them feel comfortable in using the paints we sell, or in decisions with decorating their homes. Many of our customers come in every week to see us and chat….which we just love! Early on, we decided to carry our 2 paint lines, Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, and Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint. We are proud distributers for each paint, and they help set us apart from other shops like ours. Each month we offer classes on how to use these time saving paints. They are perfect for the home diy’er. Though our warehouse is filled with antique, vintage, farm, industrial, and handmade goods, they are all alongside painted antique furniture and plenty of home goods too. We even have a full line of t-shirts to choose from for all those “Vintage Girl’s” and Guys’ out there. We host a few large events a year, including a Holiday Open House in November, and a Spring Open House in March. These events draw in large crowds each year, as our customer’s get excited to see what we have to offer for the upcoming season. Each month we offer new products, both new and antique to our current inventory. We keep our customers informed of our travels and new inventory, through Facebook and Instagram. We are also a little different from other shops, in that we aren’t open every weekend. We are what you’d call a Pop-Up Shop. While our dates change monthly, we try and be open at least three weekends a month, Thursday’s thru Saturday’s 10-3pm, as well as, every Tuesday 9-12, or by appointment. We also offer shipping to those who follow us from afar. We always look forward to offering new and creative inventory, classes and events.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Part of the success of Tattered Tiques is because it is a family run business. This can sometimes be hard for businesses, but it seems to of worked to our advantage. Because we are a close family, and seem to all share the same love of antiques, we are able to make it work. We also have the advantage of the popularity of the antiques industry to thank as well. The antiques and vintage industry is so popular now, with the help of shows like HGTV’s Fixer Upper. This show has also helped bring attention to Farmhouse Style furnishings, which we were selling before they were even popular. Not many shops offer farmhouse goods, or have examples of how to style them in your own home. We offer both. Our warehouse walls are filled with inspiration! One other aspect we have been lucky with, is our paint lines. Both Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, and Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint are only offered in small, exclusive shops like ours. We started selling the paint right from the beginning of their popularity. This initially helped with our advertising, and still to this day, brings new customers in each week.
Pricing:
- Classes offered range from $65 to $105
- Painted antique dressers $250-$400
- Vintage items on average under $50
- Prices are extremely competitive
- Paint lines $22 to $35
- Free events
Contact Info:
- Address: Tattered Tiques
22029 Pepper Road Unit 2
Lake Barrington, IL 60010 - Website: http://www.tatteredtiques.com
- Phone: 224-633-9750
- Email: tatteredtiques@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tatteredtiques/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Tattered-Tiques-209837635708178/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/JTattered
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/tattered-tiques-barrington
Image Credit:
Julie Abernathey
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
