Sheryl Selvey's career move literally opened a door to a rewarding new calling at the Corner Bazaar, located at 1105 East 52nd Street [PP25 on map], along the Monon Trail.

"I was a pharmacist until a year ago when I started an antique booth at Vintage 54 and quickly realized that I needed more space. I wanted to find a location where I could get furniture in and out of the store and where merchandise was easy to show customers. This was the former location of my favorite flower shop, The Empty Vase, which was owned by David Strohmeyer. He sold a variety of flowers that were used in weddings. Hopefully, he will be working with us around the holidays. This building was formerly an old railroad station. This space is really a close-knit, like a family. Marilyn Solomon is the younger sister of Ben (owner of Solomon Paris Antiques), which recently reduced their retail space by half. She owns the salon, Hair That Rocks, which is next door. Sometimes they send their customers over here. There are a lot of parking spaces here next to the Monon Trail. I had to be cognizant of overhead costs and this place allows me to have a great location with a great owner. I think that it's essential to offer people something that offers a reprieve from the everyday thing. There was a real need for this type of thing. Even if it's challenging for a while, we hope to find a value for customers here. I know the SoBro area well. I moved back to Indianapolis a few years ago from the Boston area where I worked in biotechnology in Cambridge," she explained.

The Corner Bazaar remains new to the area. "We had a soft opening date on Saturday, August 22nd. We put out some items from the marketplace at 54th Street & Winthrop and we were ready to open our doors. Our business is a mix of true antiques, vintage clothes, accessories and decor, music merchandise, records and stereo equipment in addition to gifts and for anybody looking for something to make them smile," Ms. Selvey mentioned.

She utilizes various resources in discovering antiques. "Some of it was left from the house. Some customers mention items they have. I search everything from flea markets, auctions and storage units. I do take a lot of requests. Mid-century furniture is hard to find. I try to find quality pieces for customers compared to what is in a retail store. We always try to price everything lower than what you could find on-line or in a retail store. The way we price I encourage others as well my philosophy is to price it based on what I paid for it. There's an upside for the buyer. As long as I can make my margin, it's a win-win. It keeps their merchandise constantly changing over. The goal is to keep it fresh every single time a customer comes in," she noted.

Ms. Selvey's partner at Corner Bazaar is John Zeps, who specializes in vinyl records, high end audio equipment and band merchandise. Having played in various bands (Burn It Down, Majhas and Action Strasse) in Indianapolis, he formerly owned Vibes, which was located at 54th Street & the Monon Trail.

The Corner Bazaar is open Thursday, Friday and Sunday from Noon to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. They are available by appointment on Monday through Wednesday. Antique inquiries can be answered by calling (317) 377-4639 or by accessing: thecornerbazaar.com.

She reflected on the fulfilling aspect of being an entrepreneur. "The most rewarding thing, honestly - it's really crazy - but I feel that I'm able to help people more now than when I was in working in healthcare. Customers send me pictures of items they have in their house. I'm glad to see the item find a new home. Sometimes, its small stuff and sometimes it's different, an atomic fireplace, an antique rocking horse or other item. Another thing that is rewarding to me is providing people with smiles when they see something new. I wanted to have a retail front and see where the pieces go."

"One thing we've trying to do differently is that we don't want to be antique mall. I choose a few friends who can curate the same type of items into different sections of the store, like jewelry, furniture and industry to retro and salvage architecture. I know the store and the area well and collaborate with four local vendors. "The great thing about this location is that it allows to do outdoor markets and have specific events, like music-specific events with local artists. We have a lot of ideas that we want to do and incorporate that gift nomenclature and bring in local artists. My father-in-law (Abe) assembles and creates Adirondack chairs. He makes them out of cedar and also makes inlays. We want to do that with large scale art. We will start displaying local artists as well. You can find novel-made Indiana gift items here. He made a personalized urn for a customer's loved one where their memory lives on," she noted.

She mentioned a recent story where Abe restored a damaged item for a client. "Some customers bought their dream home in Southern Indiana who were moving there from Southern California. While driving here, their designer table, that was packed wrong, broke. They asked me if I could find the same table for them from photos they sent. He was able to repair the table. They were beyond words," she recalled.

Sheryl Selvey and John Zeps are creating a cultural and vintage shopping destination at Corner Bazaar that you can discover at 1105 East 52nd Street along the Monon Trail.