Czech Village shop puts keepsakes in the frame

The original business plan was a good. But things didn't quite work out.

Calvin Paul Spinka and his father, Frank Spinka, own Frame Trader, in the heart of Czech Village. The custom framing business opened three years ago with the intention of accepting frames for trade in, hence the Frame Trader name.

""We kind of wanted to be the 'Play It Again Sports' of framing," Calvin Paul Spinka recalled. "We planned to give customers a credit for their used frame. Somebody might come in and buy their frame, which we would either sell as is or modify it.

"We quickly became inundated with custom framing using new materials, and we never really pushed that aspect of our business plan."

Woodworking and cabinetry are Frank's specialty, which complement his son's education and expertise in art and print making.

"People bring their keepsakes to us and we try to create unusual display ideas. We really get a thrill knowing that customers are finally able to display things that may have stored for years," Frank said.

Calvin Paul said the shop targets customers who typically do not consider custom framing.

"We've tried to keep our prices low and build our business on volume," he said. "We're looking for people who normally would go to a big-box store to buy a frame and try to do it themselves. Often they find the mat is the wrong size, and they're not really satisfied with the end result.

"They can come here, spend about 20 percent more and choose (from) a wide selection of frames for a professional appearance."

When Frame Trader opened, there was not a lot of foot traffic in Czech Village after the 2008 flood. Frank said the shop has added retail items such as toys, t-shirts, games, wood puzzles and posters to attract visitors browsing the stores in the village.

"We're hoping that the retail items will bring people into the shop and they will discover that we offer custom framing," he said. "We have gotten a lot of work from people who have visited our shop and returned to have keepsakes framed that have been rattling around their homes for years."

Frame Trader recently came to the rescue of a  out-of-state visitor wanting to donate a rare document to the National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library.

"She could not find the right frame anywhere and happened to be visiting Czech Village several days before the dedication of the museum," Calvin Paul said. "She was surprised to find a custom framing shop this close to the museum.  She was very pleased that we were able to get the document framed in time to present it to the museum before it reopened."

Frank said creating unusual frames, shadow boxes and other displays is a specialty of Frame Trader.

""We've had people bring us bricks from a school that was demolished and we created special shadow boxes that included a photo of the school," he said. "We've had parents bring us matchbox cars and other favorite toys to assemble a collage that they can display.

"We have customers who trust us enough to bring us items and tell us to call them when they're ready. We're really only limited by how much someone is willing to spend and the style of framing they're looking for to create an unusual display."

Sometimes framing an item requires specific expertise.

"We made a one-of-a-kind flag display case that you can see in the Village Meat Market," also in Czech Village, Calvin Paul said. "When a flag is folded, you only see the stars. We angled the matting to make it look like a flag in the background.

"We cut another mat around a certificate indicating the flag had been flown above the capitol and we also created an opening in the mat to show the capitol dome," he explained.

"It's the kind of thing that we would do in the future using a laser mat cutter. Right now, it requires a lot of intricate cutting that is time consuming and adds to the cost of a project."

Company: Frame Trader

Address: 72 16th Ave. SW, Cedar Rapids

Phone: (319) 365-1944

Website: http://frametraderonline.com

Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday, and noon to 6 p.m., Friday and Saturday. By appointment on Mondays