News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Jay Bergevin brings a lifetime of experience to the creation of Sisters' new antique shop, Velvet & Rust. PHOTO PROVIDED
Jay Bergevin’s “retirement” to Sisters has brought him back to a passion he developed in his first business in the 1980s: The hunt for exceptional antiques and unique items for the home.
“It’s just in my blood,” he explains.
Bergevin recently opened Velvet & Rust in Town Square. It’s an antique store, but it’s far from run-of-the-mill.
“I’m tired of antique stores that only have grandma’s stuff,” Bergevin told The Nugget.
Velvet & Rust features items from a Napoleon III-era desk set to a 1950s industrial cart, from a pre-war Lionel train to a magnificent handcrafted walnut cabinet taller than a tall man. There’s Western art and items of décor. Vintage sporting equipment includes a wooden French kayak dating to 1929, and a wooden paddle wielded by a Hungarian Olympian in the 1968 Mexico City Olympics.
The name of the new shop reflects the range of its contents.
“I wanted to do something that was for women and for men — so the velvet is for women, the rust for men,” Bergevin said.
When Bergevin says that the hunt for antiques is in his blood, he means it. And if there’s a distinct French cast to some of the selections, he comes by that as a matter of heritage, too.
“My dad was in World War II and he was with (General) Dwight Eisenhower in Paris for five years,” Bergevin recalled. “He was there long after the war ended.”
His father fell in love with Paris and with French design, a passion that would manifest itself in a father-son business venture. The two operated a furniture store, and the younger Bergevin swiftly realized that in order to set themselves apart, they must offer something more than the standard available just about everywhere. So they decided to go on a buying trip to France. The first trip was in 1980, and over the next couple of decades there were many more. French furniture became an attractive staple of a thriving interior design business, which also incorporated antiques.
The store was located in Redmond, Washington, and drew a well-heeled clientele that sought the unique.
“We were pretty high-end in the Bellevue-Redmond area,” Bergevin said. “We were just a block down the street from Microsoft.”
The business grew to support 42 employees before Bergevin decided it had grown too cumbersome, and he moved into a new career in commercial real estate.
“I’ve been a real estate broker for the last 15 years in Bellevue, Washington,” he said.
His wife, Karen’s, family had had a vacation home at Black Butte Ranch since 1971 — some of the first people to buy property at the Ranch — and Bergevin had always loved the area. When it came time to retire, he and Karen chose Sisters.
But Bergevin isn’t really suited to “retirement.” He wanted to keep working in some fashion — and he returned to his passion.
“I’m into vintage anything,” he explained. “Vintage cars, vintage motorcycles, vintage boats.”
He said he’s attracted by the richness of wood and by the exceptional craftsmanship often found in vintage items. And, he acknowledged, “It’s the thrill of the hunt.”
He’d held back considerable valuable inventory from the old store in Redmond, which became the seed for Velvet & Rust. He found the spot at Town Square, and his landlord adapted it to fit his needs.
“I’ve got to give kudos to Mike Reed for putting the shop together,” Bergevin said. “I’m just thrilled with the space.”
Bergevin won’t be traveling to Europe to hunt for unique inventory.
“I’m focusing on American items,” he said. “I’ve got a trip to Montana in September to buy these things.”
Velvet & Rust is located at 161 E. Cascade Ave., Ste. C.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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