Today we’d like to introduce you to Betsy Nathan.
Betsy, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I moved to Beijing in the mid-1990s to study Mandarin. There, I met a Chinese furniture dealer who took me under his wing and acquainted me with his world of form, joinery, and history. He also introduced me to a network of people who shared similar interests.
For the last 20 years, I’ve stayed connected to him, his family and my network. Working with different dealers over time, I came to understand authentic lacquer, hardwood and softwood furniture. My appreciation for the craft of brilliant carpenters who worked centuries ago never stops growing.
I traveled all over Asia, searching for examples that spoke to me. Pieces from Shanxi Province were particularly interesting. I was fascinated by the lifestyle of the sophisticated literati in Shanxi during the 18th and 19th centuries. They were in positions of wealth that allowed them to commission beautiful things. They were the patrons of architects and artists. They lived in courtyard homes with 18-foot ceilings. They painted with ink in their art studios, as they contemplated poetry and unusual specimens from nature. They experimented with different lifestyles—living with few but marvelous things. They also spent extended time in parks with other like-minded people, playing drinking games, having thoughtful conversations, and living creatively.
I brought my collection and these ideas home with me. In 1997, I decided to open a place in Chicago, where I could share these beautiful things with my friends. Our first space was in a loft in Bucktown; it was an exciting place to develop our identity. We opened a satellite in Winnetka in 2000, and then moved to Fulton Market in 2015.
Over the last 20 years, we incorporated contemporary art and some contemporary furniture design into the mix. I’ve always appreciated craft, and the soul that exists within something that’s handmade, and it’s exciting to see artists reviving those ideas today. The 18th and 19th century furniture also brings another level of depth and dimension to modern interiors. It amazes me how fresh these historical pieces feel today. The mix has a deeper meaning because of the dialogue between time periods and cultures.
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?
Juggling work as my four boys have been growing up has been a challenge. When they were little, it was a real push and pull. Now that they’re older, they’re part of my team and actually add great insight on the ecommerce front.
We’ve made a tremendous shift in the way we work with our clients in the last five years. At the beginning, everything was face to face. Before digital photography, we used to hand clients Polaroids, so they could remember the pieces they were interested in.
Because we’re so high-touch and service-oriented, it’s been a big challenge to translate our point of view into an online language. It’s also been incredibly powerful and fulfilling to build a solid team that’s helped with this.
Shipping is a constant adventure. Just last Friday, a major designer needed a pair of 19th century chairs to arrive in Hawaii within a week. We’ve developed our own version of modern trade routes to fulfill rush orders and special requests. It’s important that our clients know they can rely on us. It’s really our sense of service, and our personal approach, that’s differentiated us in the online world.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
At PAGODA RED, we believe in extraordinary things and extraordinary people. We love introducing people to objects that carry lifetimes of stories within them. It’s a joy to match a designer, artist or architect with something they’ve never seen before that truly brings unexpected delight.
I consider myself lucky to spend my days surrounded by beautiful things, and I think of myself as a steward of these pieces. They’ve lived much longer than I have, and it’s my responsibility to care for them and find the right homes for them.
We’re also known for shining a light on undiscovered artists and artifacts. Everything we sell is handmade, and beautiful in its imperfection. We take pride in bringing the past into the present, honoring history and integrating it into the way we live now.
What were you like growing up?
Until a year ago, my mother, Ann Nathan, had a contemporary art gallery in Chicago, which she opened in the mid-1980s. She is now 92 and has always been a visionary.
She and my father raised me and my three siblings amidst their very personal collection of outsider art, contemporary masters, found objects and iconic furniture. I’m the youngest and trailed along with her as a child. I remember visiting the folk artist Howard Finster at his home in Georgia, and taking road trips to see furniture makers in Wisconsin. My parents hosted parties at our house with the Chicago art crowd including Roger Brown, Karl Wirsum and Don Baum in the 1970s. We sent my old Osh-Kosh overalls to Red Grooms in New York for his daughter, Saskia, who was a few years younger than me. My mom instilled a great sense of curiosity in me, and also taught me to quietly observe, look and listen. My dad travelled all over the world for his business so our home was always open to people from different places doing all kinds of interesting things
I love the outdoors. My older brothers and sisters went on long adventures to the mountains in Nepal and Tibetan settlements in the hill towns in Northern India while I was in high school. I think it was their travels that lit up my interest in Asia.
Contact Info:
- Address: 400 N Morgan Chicago, 911 Greenbay Road Winnetka
- Website: www.pagodared.com
- Phone: 773.235.1188
- Email: bnathan@pagodared.com
- Instagram: pagodared
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/pagodared/
- Twitter: twitter.com/pagodared
Image Credit:
The Blue and White Shot: Credit Richard Shay
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