Business & Tech

Vintage Collector Opens Antique Store on Cahuenga

A stroke of luck inspires a decades-long collector to launch a business at 5520 Cahuenga Blvd.

Stepping inside Georgy's and Mami's Finds presents a common, yet visually overwhelming, sight for an antique store: cluttered piles of everything from old books to rocking chairs hanging from the ceiling, racks upon racks of vintage clothing and jewelry.

The store opened for business two months ago at 5520 Cahuenga Blvd., but if it wasn't for a day of doing typical yard work, the owner may not have been motivated to pursue the venture.

After 38 years of scouring yard sales, estate sales and even some dumpster diving, Artemiza Newton had amassed a pretty formidable collection of antiques and knick knacks.

While sprucing up her yard in Van Nuys not too long ago, she had left her garage door open, revealing a room that was stacked to the ceiling with vintage toys, old furniture and other decorative pieces.

"People were thinking I was having a yard sale," Newton said. "By the end of the day, I made $500."

Laid off in 2009 from a job in the adult health care field, Newton thought selling her finds from over the years could be a new calling. 

And in addition to her garage, she had four more bedrooms worth of inventory at her house.

Taking inspiration from her cats Georgy and Mami for a store name, she now had a business.

Newton said she never really had a particular kind of item she'd keep an eye out for, just anything that caught her attention.

"I think everything is a favorite thing. It's like entering a candy store; you walk in, you feel like you're overwhelmed, but every piece or item I get in this store or or that I buy at a yard sale has history," she said.

Now a North Hollywood resident, Newton says she enjoys the neighborhood where she set up shop because many people like to walk the streets.

She says she donates some of her clothing items to the needy whenever she can and has hired some of the less fortunate for short-term work, a practice she plans to continue.

"It helps out a little bit, I can't afford much, but I'll do every little bit that I can do," Newton said.

In addition to selling items, she also buys from customers and does consignment deals.

Georgy's and Mami's Finds is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesday through Saturday. Hours on Tuesdays are from noon to 8 p.m. and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays.


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