A 1920s industrial warehouse is home to vintage and antique emporium, Maison Bergogne. A shop that showcases an array of antiques, decor and oddities, and is the backdrop for owner, Juliette Hermant’s, design services. Maison Bergogne was founded in 2012, and named in in honor of Juliette’s grandmother and her ancestral female lineage

"As an artist, I am sensitive to color, patina, and layering. The shop feels like an ongoing installation."

Who designed the shop?  The once boarded-up school bus garage inspired me with it’s raw industrial revolution feel. I rolled up the 26’ wooden over head door and have kept on composing the space ever since!

What are you famous for?  From what I hear, it’s the unexpected feeling of walking into a Catskills cabinet of curiosities gathered by a European traveler.

What makes your shop unique?  The shop has grown into an emporium dedicated to Catskills finds; 90 percent of the inventory is local, including architectural pieces salvaged from farmhouses and barns, staged with elements from the land, through my large floral compositions, fur and skull juxtaposed with old hardware and art. As an artist, I am sensitive to color, patina, and layering. The shop feels like an ongoing installation. I also source from local artisans, like the ceramicist Furbelow & Bibelot , and have custom cooking wares from my friend Brian Purcell Woodwork.

Who are your customers?  That is the beauty! My customers are of all ages & shores– last year eight-year-old boys favored badger pelts & reptile skins! Designers mingle with locals while artists cross paths with international guests of second homeowners. The wide-open garage door let all the right curious ones in…

How has the internet impacted your business?  Telling our niche of Catskill’s life style via social media allows being personal about our values and the services we provide. People encounter the shop that way and scheduled a trip to experience it!  I have just launched our online store – check it out!

Who inspires you?  Marguerite Yourcenar for her subtle, complex open mind and Rachel Carson for her fierceful dedication to keep her eyes open…and inspires us to never close them again.

What inspires you?  Contrast, grace, genuineness, and authenticity.

Before I was a shopkeeper ..   I was a nomadic interior decorator, artist and lover…

The hardest lesson learned in starting a business?  Trying to meet up to my own expectations…when there is only twelve work hours a day.

What task do you like to delegate?  Not enough, but my dear friend & neighbor Ray has made me perfect coffee nearly every day since I opened!

The best lesson you have learned opening a shop?  That people actually care! It does matter to revive Main Street America, remodel with sustainable practices all around the board, raise bees, plant pollinator gardens, organize a seed library, and participate in community gardens.

"There are no small steps in creating the world we care to live in – I come from an Old one and know it’s challenges, but we are at a moment in society where it feels crucial to align our values with our actions – what we love, what we breath, eat and drink needs our protecting."