Southwood Antiques was established in 2017 for antique aficionados by owners Gary J. Raffia, Richard Caravello, & Margo Ross.

Photographed by Jasmine Jones

The Southwood Antiques and Marketplace is a new and up and coming business located right in Enfield, Connecticut. Owners Gary J. Raffia, Richard Caravello, & Margo Ross established the antique store in 2017 for antique aficionados. If the name Raffia sounds familiar it’s because The Southwood Antiques and Marketplace is located right off of Raffia Road, in the heart of the Raffia mini shopping plaza.

Southwood Antiques is a place where different collectors come together with their unique or rare finds and rent space from the owners. Each booth is unique and has a wide range of items that are just waiting to be snagged up by experienced and inexperienced collectors alike. If you are looking for a rare find or simply want to purchase items that are a “blast from the past”, then Southwood Antiques is definitely a place you want to visit.

Aislin caught up with the owners as well as some of the booth owners to speak to them about the various items in their booths, along with their experience as antique collectors.

Two of the owners of Southwood Antiques, Richard Caravello (left) and Gary J. Raffia (right).

What made you start Southward Antiques and Marketplace? How did you choose this location?

GARY: Well, I own the shopping complex so that’s why we chose this location. It’s just like a hobby for me, having a bunch of people do this is kind of exciting. Getting the opportunity to move some of our stuff and, you know, look around, see what other people have. It’s interesting! You get a lot of different personalities.

RICHARD: It brings back a lot of memories.

GARY: Every booth is more of the person’s taste.

RICHARD: I did it because I love this kind of stuff. I get a lot of the antiques by cleaning out a lot of houses. So it’s a variety and we repurpose the items. It keeps them out of the trash because a lot of people just throw this stuff away. People clean their houses and a lot of this stuff usually doesn’t get saved.

Is this your first business, or do you have any others?

GARY: I own a tobacco farm with my family. I’ve had businesses in the past, but nothing like this. Like I said, this is more of a hobby for me.

RICHARD: I own a landscaping business, so this is like a hobby for me as well. I like to see things get used, someone’s junk is somebody else’s treasure.

GARY: In his line of work, he gets a lot of interesting things, [referring to Richard] as do I. Once the word is out that you’re doing this people kind of just come to you.

What do you think is the biggest threat to a small business in America today?

GARY: The biggest challenges, more or less? Trying to compete with the big businesses, and trying to compete with internet sales. Well, the internet sales kind of help this business, only because you can market on the internet when you have unique products so to speak. These people try to run retail businesses, a brick and mortar, but with Amazon and internet sales they’re just getting killed. I wouldn’t say competition is a challenge in this business because it’s about having what you got. If you have something that’s different or unique you’re going to move it.

RICHARD: Yeah, and you never know what moves here, it could be a fishing pole or a hatchet.

GARY: That’s just it, one person’s junk is somebody else’s gold. Which is interesting. I find that all the time. I just love doing this, and you have to like doing it. The more people like it, the more interest you see, the better the booths are, and the more advertising you get because a lot of the advertising is just by word of mouth.

Tell us about yourself.

MARGO: My parents were antique dealers so I’ve kind of been around this business my whole life. They both passed away so that’s left me with a household full of stuff, plus my boys are older now and I need to downsize so this was the perfect opportunity. So Gary, Richie and I run the store and it’s been good. Basically Richie does all of the mechanics, Gary owns the plaza, and I do everything else [laughs]. It’s a good partnership.

So that must be how you got involved with this store? Starting out with Gary and Richard?

Well I’ve known Gary and Richie for the last 6 years, so when they decided to do this they needed someone to do the bookkeeping and the general running of the store. It was a perfect fit. And then the vendors that we got on board, which you know, it’s worked out because they’re all very nice people and for the most part it has been very collaborative.

What type of items do you typically sell in your booth? How do you find them?

I try to keep it 60% antiques and 40% contemporary items, or new items that somebody might find useful. Most of my items come from my parents stock, although in my 25 years of marriage I’ve collected stuff myself, so I don’t go out and buy to sell because I have so much. It’s just overwhelming how much I already have.

So you just kind of pull from your own stock.

Yes, exactly.

That’s smart, that’s a good way to declutter.

Yeah, but then you’re given stuff from friends or family. Or, I’m a Real Estate agent for my full time job, so sometimes I try to help a client out, you know, sure I’ll sell some stuff for you. I tend not to do that but it depends, if my client really needs a hand then I’ll do it as a client favor.

Have you ever sold anything that was a rare find?

Yes, over the summer I had these antique doors from an estate in Darien, and they were not quite 5 feet tall. We couldn’t figure out, it had either come from their wine cellar or their stable, they were very fancy and it was quite unusual. They were a set of doors with the original hardware and everything, and I think I priced them at $300.

Do you see social media as an effective way to promote your business? If so, which one works best for you?

I utilize Facebook the most, for this, Facebook and our website are the most effective for social media. For myself, for Real Estate, I use my own personal website, as well. We haven’t done a lot of print advertising just because of the cost, we’re a startup and it is expensive. We’ve been really pushing the social media aspect, you know, the local sites also, like the Enfield forum.

So do you typically stick to social media or are there other types of promotion that you do?

Well you were here for Small Business Saturday, and I’m sure they told you about our grand opening that we had in September. So we try to do in-store promotions, with the raffles and having events. We don’t do discounts like 25% off or things like that, because that kind of degrades the stock, and because we have so many vendors you can just do an offering that way. That’s why we try to focus on the raffles and That’s why we try to focus on the raffles and events, to get people in.

Is antiquing a lucrative business?

Lucrative, well that’s… no [laughs]. Could I support myself with this? No. This is a love, this is something that you do because you like it, I enjoy meeting the people, I enjoy being at the store and running the store. I mean my Real Estate business is what supports me, this is more of my love and my hobby. So I don’t know how someone could live off of this, you would have to have some very high end items and I don’t know if this area could support that kind of thing.

What do you think is the biggest mistake a vendor can make?

Not having enough items and not having a variety of items. We did have a vendor in here who left because he didn’t populate his booth and it was kind of just one type of item so he wasn’t making his rent. The more items you have, the more possibility you have to sell something, so you definitely need to have a bigger stock.

What do you think is the biggest threat to a small business in America today?

For a small independent business, a store, a physical brick and mortar thing, it’s the trend that everybody is going to online shopping. And without having the interaction, it’s more impersonal but it’s hard to maintain the cost of running a store. So I think that’s going to hurt people, if you see in Connecticut and across the country so many stores are in bankruptcy, filing for bankruptcy, or closing. You have J. Crew, you have Sears, you have places that were icons of the shopping horizon and now they’re all falling to the wayside, so we have to find ways to bring shoppers back into the stores. That’s why we have events to make it more of a community and a social thing, but that’s hard. It’s hard when you have to pay oil and electricity and all of these things keep going up and yeah it’s easy to throw things on a website but it’s not the same, it’s not the same thing.

What advice would you have to other independent businesses that are just getting started?

Have a business plan before you open, that’s major. You really have to have it all figured out before you even allow your first client in the door. It’s not something that you can just go by through the seat of your pants, so you have to have a plan and you have to know what your expenses are going to be. I think a lot of people don’t really look at that. Also, know your market. Know where your clients and customers are going to come from and cater to that.

Tell us about yourself.

SAM: I’m an artist, that’s primarily what I do, I paint. I worked in the graphic and printing industry for a hundred years, and my boyfriend and I still have a printing company [Letterpress Arts] about three blocks from here. So I have all of these things because I’ve actually collected them all. They’re things that I’ve found from different places, and when I decided to downsize and move in with my boyfriend I had to get rid of stuff.

How did you get involved with Southwood Antiques and Marketplace?

I had known Sue who owns the other half of this booth, and she said come share a booth with me! I went, well, I don’t know if I’ve got enough; and right now I have about 258 items in this booth. It’s like, who would’ve thought you could fit 258 items into half a booth? Some things are hard to get rid of, but you can only keep so much. Like these baskets, they’re all handmade. I found them once at this tag sale in Suffield. This one year, I go and this lady had this huge space and it was full of baskets; they were all beautiful, I ask where did you get all of these? She says, “Oh my mother did this for a hundred years, I just don’t know what to do with them myself. I’ve never liked them and now that she’s gone-”. I was sick. I pulled every dollar I had in my pocket and took as many as I could because they were all gorgeous. They were all hand made; her mother must’ve worked years and years. I find that’s what’s happening, with millennials especially. So every little thing I have here is a little treasure.

What type of items do you typically sell in your booth? How do you find them?

I’m always surprised. Things I don’t think could possibly go, go, and things I think should go in a snap don’t, so it’s always a surprise to me. There’s no one specific type of item because everybody is different. I know when I go to poke around places I always have little things in the back of my head, so it’s nothing super specific. I had a little stool, it wasn’t an expensive stool it was made out of resin, and it was a little bear. I said this is never going to sell, and yet off it went, so you just never know. I thought that “Family” sign would go in an instant because you can put it up on a mantle, put some pictures next to it. Nope, hasn’t moved. I also have a range of things price wise, some that aren’t expensive and some that are a little more expensive. It all varies, everybody’s booth has a big variance of things because we’re all different.

Have you ever sold anything that was a rare find?

I’ve got some things that I think are excellent bargains. That painting right there is by a local Connecticut artist. She’s still alive, she’s a member of the Connecticut Watercolor Society and the National Academic Artists Association. That’s an original watercolor, not a print, an original. So rare find, I find things occasionally that I think are excellent bargains because silly people don’t bother to check, they just toss it out.

Do you see social media as an effective way to promote your business? If so, which one works best for you?

I think social media is an interesting way to find out about stuff, but I personally think it’ll never replace hands on. I’m a touchy-feely, want to see it up close kind of person. So when people talk about, oh, in another ten years we’re all going to be shopping online, I just cringe [laughs]. I have a hard enough time buying things when I go out. So I think social media is good for putting the information out there, but I still think we should all be going out, seeing it in person.

What type of promotion do you do besides social media?

Between all of the groups that I have, we do tons of shows in terms of art. For this stuff, the poster in the front, we did that. Susie, who owns the other half of this booth and maintains the website and Facebook Page, could do those things but it’s time consuming so why should she have to? So now my boyfriend and I do all of the posters and the new signs. Anytime we need those kinds of things done here we take care of it.

Is antiquing a lucrative business?

I don’t know if it’s lucrative. We’d be real happy if we could get it to be a steady business, and that’s the biggest problem I see for new, small businesses. Getting people to know where you are, and keep them coming back or telling their friends. We want to promote some events here—bring your Women’s club. You have 10-15 women in your Women’s club? Make a date, the store will be closed, we’ll get them all in and bring some cookies and cider or coffee, those type of things that are personal. We try to dream these things up at our monthly meetings.

What do you think is the biggest threat to a small business in America today?

The hardest part is letting people know you’re here. Small businesses don’t have a lot of money. The newspaper wants you to buy an ad, they don’t want to publicize your stuff beforehand. How many times do you open the paper and see, “Look at the great time we had last weekend at this event,” but did you know about the event beforehand? No, because the newspaper wouldn’t give them any space and they didn’t have the money to buy an ad. So who suffers? We suffer because we didn’t get to go and the group suffers because they didn’t get enough people to attend. It’s a terrible, vicious cycle for small businesses, clubs, and non-profits.

What advice would you have to other independent businesses that are just getting started?

You really need to believe in what you’re doing, regardless of what people tell you, you just have to keep truckin’ down that road. Listen to what everybody tells you but only use those pieces that are good for you. And you cannot be in any business unless you’re willing to open your mouth and talk. People who are too quiet don’t make friends, they don’t meet people. If you can’t do that, or if you’re not willing to do that, then you’re probably not going to get very far.

Employee, Mary Jane Jamrogowicz, in her booth.

Tell us about yourself.

MARY JANE: It’s kind of been just a hobby, collecting. I’ve been collecting things for about 30 years, and I’ve had family members that have also collected so I’ve acquired some of those things as they’ve passed. I’ve been selling for about 5 years now, doing different venues. I’ve only been in this shop for about two years now and I have other places where I sell in Brimfield, Massachusetts.

How did you get involved with Southwood Antiques and Marketplace?

I was looking for an avenue to actually sell some of my stuff and I had thought about opening my own store but there’s a lot of overhead, and you have to have the sales. This gives you another outlet where you can pay a reasonable amount of rent, put in your time, and still move your product. My sister was over at Dunkin Donuts when I heard about it, she said, hey there’s a new antique store down there. They had an open house a few months ago and I came to that, asked if they had anymore space available and they did.

What type of items do you typically sell in your booth? How do you find them?

I have a variety of things: toys, glassware, vintage things, some wreaths on consignment. I’m working with a lady who was changing her holiday decor this year and said I have 17 wreaths, do you think you can help me get rid of some of them and I said, I can try [laughs]. I find things in a lot of different places; Antique shows, there are a lot of different venues that have shows in Brimfield. Other shops like this, you can also find things at tag sales, they usually have things at a value that you can resale. Cleaning out your attic and basement, or if you have relatives that have collected things themselves, some of the glassware I have here belonged to my aunt who has passed on. It’s all about finding things. I used to collect teddy bears and I still do to an extent, but it’s all about finding the new thing that strikes you. The interesting thing is that people don’t need to have this stuff, they need to want it, so you’re really trying to appeal to that collector or somebody that is trying to put a certain look into their home.

That’s smart that you say that, because last time I was here I saw that movie poster and thought, wow, the actress signed this poster. I don’t even know her or the movie but I want it now because it looks interesting.

Well she was an actress in the 30’s, Mary Astor, and she actually died in 1987. But this film, White Shoulders, was based in the 30s.

How did you get that poster?

We picked it up at an antique store in Monson, Massachusetts. And you know they probably picked it up at some estate sale, that’s another way of finding things, estate sales.

Have you ever sold anything that was a rare find?

I’m going to say no, because my friend and I collected stuff for 30 years, we never sold things. So, some of these are getting to be what you would call a rare find because you don’t find trucks like this. This is from the 1920s and 30s, and the fact that it survived all this time, you know, the canvas is still intact, it’s these kinds of things that I’m trying to sell now. And that Zeppelin, I forget what Christmas movie, but there’s a movie where the little boy is unwrapping a Zeppelin, so those are the things I think are rare. And I have an inventory of things like that, so it’s more so that I’ve acquired more things that are unique and rare finds, than I’ve sold them.

Do you see social media as an effective way to promote your business? If so, which one works best for you?

Yes, I think it is a good way to promote your business. We’ve been using Facebook, and actually in Enfield there’s a Connecticut Forum, and a lady who came in today saw our advertisement about the Small Business Saturday event on that, so that is an effective way to get people out who are looking in the area. It’s really trying to get known, so spreading the word. Word of mouth and social media are effective ways of doing that.

So that leads into my next question, what type of promotion do you like to use besides social media?

Yeah, word of mouth, talking to your neighbors and friends, people that you meet in different places and getting them to come in. If they see something that’s interesting then they tell someone else, I think that’s an important part of making the connections, and it’s really about making connections. And going to other places, like these antique fairs I talk about, things like that, if you have a little brochure about your stuff then that gives them a way to contact you.

Is antiquing a lucrative business?

It can be, I think it really can be. Different venues have different clientele, so it’s about getting the right mix of people. I’ve participated in auctions and I’m going to say I wasn’t as pleased with putting things in auctions, just because it’s kind of a gamble as to what you’re going to get. If you’re looking for the true collector, you have to put it out on display and then a collector will come and buy it. So places like Brimfield, places like this, different venues, you find things and you have the opportunity to sell things. I rent space in Brimfield that’s open year round And going to other places, like these antique fairs I talk about, things like that, if you have a little brochure about your stuff then that gives them a way to contact you. along with this space, have two spaces, so I try to spread the wealth a little bit and get different clientele from different places.

What was it about toys, because I’m seeing so many different toys, that made you want to start collecting them?

It was really my friend, Michael, who was just fascinated by the old toys, and he loved to look at them. He has since passed away, but I have this huge collection of toys that he would just have around the house and it was just fun to look at, you know. It reminds you of your childhood, a lot of times it’s like, oh jeez, I remember those or I had one of those growing up, or I knew somebody who had one. He was also really fascinated by the craftsmanship of these old toys, they were made to last, and the history that went into them. A lot of metal was not made during the war, so during the war years more wooden toys came out because they had to use the metal for war. It’s fascinating to think that some of these have survived that long, just being passed down from the family. A lot of families were poor so they would just repaint it and give it to the next child for Christmas, so that’s part of what’s interesting in finding old toys like that. And I’ve always had a penchant for collecting things, even growing up. My aunt and I used to go looking for old bottles. It’s the thrill of finding something that’s really cool and intact from years ago.

Do you think it helps to keep history alive?

Yes, I would say that’s a good way of putting it, because even look at this orange cooler. That was used at some fair years ago and this is how they used to make an orange drink. The oranges would go in the top here, and this is where the ice and water goes inside. It’s just cool to think about, this was probably used in some fair or circus years ago, probably from the 20’s or early 30’s. Just the fact that this survived, I mean, it’s a little rusty but… this used to be in display in our kitchen, so [laughs].

What do you think is the biggest mistake a vendor can make?

I would say the biggest mistake is to not make a deal, because it’s all about making a deal. When you collect things, you have to let them go too, so another mistake is if you price your items too high, you’re not going to make a deal so you have to be reasonable.

What do you think is the biggest threat to a small business in America today?

Certainly large conglomerates taking over the clientele. Even with the internet, and not having the stores, we keep seeing the bigger businesses closing down, but more and more of the smaller businesses just can’t make ends meet. There’s a business called Country Curtains, they’ve been in business for about 60 years, they pride themselves in making quality products and they’re going out of business now because they can’t compete. Even though they’re on the internet, it’s just the cost of labor and everything that comes with running a business becomes overwhelming. If it’s a family business and you get people who aren’t interested in the business then what do you do next? There’s all those factors that come into play as people move on and change their goals and ambitions.

What advice would you have to other independent businesses that are just getting started?

Be patient [laughs], because it takes a while to get established. You have to be patient, take the good with the bad, and you can be successful. My father was in his own business years ago, he owned an oil service, and so whatever you’re doing you have to do it with quality. Get a good name recognition out there for yourself, because advertising and word of mouth is how you make your customer base.

Tell us about yourself.

MARY: I’ve been collecting all my life, I would go around to different antique stores in Connecticut and whatever state I was in because I’ve always been drawn to pottery, and just older things. I loved Hitchcock, I just loved vintage things. I’ve had them in my home all of these years and I always had a dream that someday I would have an antique store or rent a space in one. This all came to fruition about 6 months ago, I would go on walks everyday and I saw the antique store had opened so I came in, Richie rented me a space, and I’ve been here since the end of June.

What type of items do you typically sell in your booth? How do you find them?

Right now they’re the contents of my home, and things that I’ve found by going to estate sales, other consignment stores, and things I just bought, like the Hitchcock chairs I bought in Riverton back in the day. Those are authentic, they don’t make them like that anymore, although I think they just reopened to start doing that again. Eventually, I would start going to other auctions, you know, I kind of buy and sell.

Have you ever sold anything that was a rare find?

Not yet, but that is my goal and wish [laughs]. To be that lucky person that has that Cubic Zirconia that just looks like a real diamond but then it actually is a real diamond.

Do you see social media as an effective way to promote your business? If so, which one works best for you?

Absolutely. Facebook is the biggest one that I use… actually Facebook is all I use [laughs]. But we are going to get into that Antique Trail that is something that Sam probably told you about. It’s a map throughout the state of Connecticut, it’ll put you on the trail so that people can come, but I think Facebook is the best. Thank goodness for social media, right?

What type of promotion do you do besides social media?

None right now really, just Facebook and word of mouth.

Is antiquing a lucrative business?

It could be, for me right now it’s more of a passion. I hope that it will become somewhat lucrative, like a retirement type job that will supplement my income, but I don’t think I’ll ever get rich off of it.

What do you think is the biggest mistake a vendor can make?

Not having enough variety, not having different price points, and not being here to sell your items. That’s why I have the books and the dolls, and then I have the dishes that are more expensive. You have to have a variety, but I’ve learned that by watching what the customer buys while working in the store, because this is all new to me, so I’m learning as I go.

What do you think is the biggest threat to a small business in America today?

The biggest threat is that the bigger businesses are taking over, and online. EBay, Amazon, all these items are there. The plus side of this is that you can come in, touch it, feel it, and you don’t have to pay shipping.

What advice would you have to other independent businesses that are just getting started?

Advertise. Have promotions, like we did with Small Business Saturday, and we’re having a Christmas giveaway. We have to get more creative with that, but we’re starting to build a customer base now, we get a lot of repeat customers, so I think that that will take off.

Employee, Bill Blythe, in the booth that he owns with his wife, Jill Blythe.

Tell us about yourself.

BILL: I moved into my parents’ house, and all of their parents’ stuff was in there. So we had an attic full of antiques, not real high end antiques but old stuff. Plus, all of my grandfather’s tools because he was a mechanic, so with all of that, we found other people who had a stockpile of stuff they didn’t know what to do with either. We started selling things for them, so we sell for other people as well and give them the money back. We have to charge a little bit for some, but sometimes we don’t. In fact, one of our customers, his brother is a Vietnam Vet, he’s terribly ill and living at home, and his desire is to stay home. So we’ve been selling his stuff for him, what he can’t use anymore, and a lot of it is his father’s stuff. I found his grandmother’s bicycle, it was an 1892 bicycle, beautiful and in perfect condition. I went on a forum and found a buyer for it in Florida, he was willing to drive up to get it, he wanted it that bad, but I shipped it to him. He got $1,100 dollars to help pay the taxes on the house so he can keep it, and we didn’t charge anything for that. So I’m not really an antique person myself, but I’m learning about it.

How did you get involved with Southwood Antiques and Marketplace?

We were actually involved with Richie, we were selling things for him and then we all decided to start this, so we were one of the first ones in the door. So it’s been since last February.

What type of items do you typically sell in your booth? How do you find them?

I find them in the attic, or we may go to tag sales to find interesting items. Sometimes online, I buy certain things online but you have to pay up for that and you can’t really afford to resell it so it doesn’t make sense, but I find things everywhere. I try not to, if I go to someone else’s house, start eyeballing and looking around [laughs]. I know people who do that but I was trained to, you know, keep your eyes and your hands to yourself when you’re in someone else’s home. But people are opening up to us, they found out about us and they call us to look at their estate.

So people are coming to you now?

They come to us, yeah. It’s pretty neat. It’s a great way to meet interesting people, too.

Have you ever sold anything that was a rare find?

That bicycle, that’s a very rare find. In fact, right next door here, there’s a yellow sign that says Iver Johnson, that’s the motorcycle version, same name as the bicycle. I saw the badge on the bicycle, it was far away, and I said to the kid, hey what’s the name on the front? He says, Iger something and I just go, oh my god it’s an Iver Johnson! It was made in Chicopee, Mass, so it’s kind of a famous make. That was really good find. And the gentlemen that bought it had another 1892 bicycle, which is so rare. It was a men’s bike, with a pipe on the top of the frame and this was a women’s bike with a V frame, so the lady can step through the frame and not mess up her dress. There’s a netting over the back, over the spokes and the fender, to keep the lady’s dress out of the spokes. It’s kind of neat.

Do you see social media as an effective way to promote your business? If so, which one works best for you?

Absolutely, Facebook. We use Facebook, and Jill uses OfferUP and EBay for some stuff. When we get a bigger ticket item that we want to sell, whether it’s here or in our possession, we’ll go to EBay. Craigslist is junk, it’s been ruined by scammers. We don’t ever bring anybody to our home, we bring people here but not to our home. We went to Geissler’s and sold somebody a chainsaw we met off of Craigslist. The transaction for a chainsaw had to be done in public, at a grocery store [laughs].

What type of promotion do you do besides social media?

Word of mouth. We don’t do any paper advertising, we don’t pay for advertising anywhere, we can’t yet. We haven’t turned enough money around yet, so all of the free media we can get. There are forums, Suffield and Enfield, so local forums.

Is antiquing a lucrative business?

That’s a good question, I don’t know how to answer that. It isn’t for me yet, but I think some people can make money off of it. I think it’s becoming a thing of the past, because people don’t want their grandmother’s dishes anymore. They don’t want hand-me-downs, people travel light today, so it’s iffy.

What do you think is the biggest threat to a small business in America today?

Business going overseas, but it seems to be turning around somehow, and taxes, especially in the state of Connecticut. They’re tough here, the governor came up with a Business Entity tax several years ago. It’s $250 dollars and they send out a bill to every tax paying business. Why? What is it about? It’s just a way to make money off of the back of small businesses.

What advice would you have to other independent businesses that are just getting started?

Go somewhere else [laughs].