Hidden gems await discovery
Inside an unassuming exterior in a mixed-use warehouse district in Westfield lie one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture and décor from throughout the world and across centuries of time, just waiting to be discovered.
Pearl City Antiques occupies an 1800-square-foot space containing neatly organized chests of drawers, tables, chairs—even an Edwardian parlor set with intricate inlay and mustard colored velvet upholstery—each of which has a story to tell. Chairs sit atop hand-built wooden risers, making the space feel chock full but easily navigable, like a ship.
Perhaps that’s not a coincidence. Navy veteran Greg Messier helped steer a visitor through the aisles, pointing out treasures along the way. His personal favorite, a becketed (rope handled) blue-painted maritime chest from early 1800s Maine, features a till for the owner’s money, and inked illustrations of figures within. “Everything the sailor owned in the world was in this chest,” he said with reverence.
Another stunner: a Napoleonic era French Boulle floor clock with ornate brass work over tortoise shell. Greg intends to bring it to a clock repair shop in West Hartford to get it working again. However, the prospect of transporting it there, he said half-jokingly, is terrifying.
Figuring out shipping to a nationwide client base is a new part of their business spearheaded by Greg’s wife and business partner Jessi. While the showroom opened only in October, Greg and Jessi have been buying and selling antiques for several years out of their home. Recent participants in the Westfield Business Blueprint program, a joint project of the City of Westfield and the Franklin County CDC, Greg and Jessi earned a small grant to purchase studio photography equipment to better market their wares and signage for their store and truck. The Blueprint cohort met once a week for 8 weeks. The program includes two one-on-one sessions with each coach, along with workshops on legal, financial, and marketing topics. Participants also receive assistance and support on how best to utilize the grant funds — whether it's to strengthen their business infrastructure, purchase equipment to streamline processes or expand services, or invest in website development and marketing.
“What we got the grant money for was fundamental to the business,” Greg said.
The Business Blueprint cohort has grown into a community. Jessi bought items from her classmates as holiday gifts: baked items from PMA Provisions (Derek Roberts, pma.provisions at gmail.com) and Cajun food from Crescent City Food Truck. They also consigning an antique sewing machine for Sushis Thrift, and plan to use Double Stitch Shop for any upholstery needs. For their upcoming 25th anniversary, they are planning a photo shoot with Crystal Miller Photography.
"It was an awesome cohort," said Jack Clemente, a Franklin County CDC consultant who co-leads the program with consultants Dee Dice and Kasey Corsello. "They were so engaged and created something greater than the sum of its parts."
Recent customers at Pearl City Antiques, which is named for Jessi's hometown of Pearl City, Hawaii, include designers looking for unique pieces for their clients, and themselves. In Greg and Jessi’s own house, everything has a price tag on it. It’s one of the perks of being an antique dealer, Jessi joked.
The couple hits furniture auctions once or twice a week. Greg calls the inventory eclectic. “We buy what we like.” As if to illustrate, a Korean black lacquer and abalone shell inlaid chest sits beside a mid-century modern chest. Nearby, Greg opens the hidden desk to a butler’s secretary from 1850s America that has visible ink stains. “It has that history that you can see,” he enthused. “I love that.”
At Pearl City Antiques, every piece tells a story.
