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08/01/2007In BusinessA store for the 'Up North' lifestyleShop offers array of items for the summer homeSpecial to the Record-Eagle About Uniquely North
Jason Fink, son of Uniquely North owners Rollie and Brenda Fink, helps his parents run the store in downtown Bellaire. Address: 221 N. Bridge St., Bellaire Phone: (231) 533-4630 Online: www.uniquelynorth.com Hours: Monday-Sunday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Employees: 6 Years in business: 2 "In business" is a weekly feature on northern Michigan businesses. Next week: Northwoods Soda & Syrup BELLAIRE — Whether your idea of northern living is a one-room cottage on a placid little lake or a six-bedroom summer palace in Bay Harbor, there's a family-run shop in Antrim County that can help you achieve an "Up North” lifestyle. Uniquely North, owned and operated by Rollie and Brenda Fink, offers a variety of upholstered furniture, quilts, pillows, linens, framed pictures, lamps, chandeliers and other decorative accents for homeowners. Drawing a lot of attention are several pieces made by designer Eddy West. All of the more than 200 pieces in the West collection are constructed from either New England white pine or a mixture of hard woods, such as poplar, oaks and maples. Once they are hand-crafted and built, the items are hand-finished in a customer's choice of more than 45 colors and five different aging techniques. West also offers hand-painted art on a variety of pieces. Uniquely North is packed with items of many different prices, including dozens that are perfect for gift-giving. "We're not just offering the lodge or rustic look, but also the upscale cottage look,” said Brenda, who lives and works in Lansing during the week and commutes to Bellaire to run the store on weekends. "We're trying to offer many different looks to northern living.” Uniquely North is very much a family project. Rollie, a Battle Creek history teacher, is working at the store this summer. Their son Jason also is on hand. The Finks previously operated a home furnishing store in Kalamazoo and dreamed of running a similar operation in northern Michigan. Brenda visited the Petoskey and Harbor Springs areas as a child, and the family had stayed at Shanty Creek. "We said, 'Gee, wouldn't it be fun to have a store and live up here?'” said Brenda. They opened the shop on Memorial Day weekend 2005 in the 2,000-square-foot building on Bellaire's main drag, next door to the Bellaire Bar. "It's been growing ever since,” said Brenda. Building on the success of the Bellaire store, the Finks have opened a summer annex in downtown Alden. "We just believe that each person's home should reflect who they are,” said Brenda. "We really like to work with people to help them incorporate different looks and styles for their home. There are just so many ways to be beautiful.”
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