My Biz: Amana store sells antique furniture

Sue and Dave Merck love making furniture together. They were into repurposing long before it became a trend.

'We loved the architectural look, so we took antique elements and made furniture and shelves from them,” Sue said.

Filling a 20-foot trailer to the brim with their creations, they traveled around the country selling at large festivals for many years before opening their shop, The Painted Cupboard, in the Amana Colonies in 2007. The store brings together their love of antique furniture and accessories under one roof.

And while they no longer do the festival route, the couple makes it out to antique shows now and then. Merck said their time spent creating new furniture pieces is also limited these days.

'We rarely have time now to take off or to build much because we run the shop seven days a week,” she said.

Among the shop's specialties is early, original painted furniture as well as pine products.

'A lot of original furniture doesn't have original paint after all these years,” Sue Merck said.

'A lot of antique stores don't carry antique furniture. A lot of antique shops are glass cases. Our specialty is finding beautiful antique furniture for people and then complimenting it with home décor items so they can complete a room with items we have for sale in here.”

Merck said her husband used to collect hot rod cars - a hobby that led to him creating a successful 'guys' department” within the shop filled with hood ornaments and hub caps.

'We don't have cars,” she said, 'but we sell those car collectibles as fast as we get them in.”

Antique wood duck decoys are another specialty of her husband's, so there is an area centered on sporting collectibles, she said.

The Painted Cupboard is located in a building built in the 1850s that once housed the Amana Society pharmacy, which Merck said lends itself well to the Amana experience for their customers.

'The colonies are a wonderful place to visit,” she said. 'There aren't many places like this in the Midwest all in one place that offer so many unique wineries, restaurants and boutiques, each carrying different things,” she said.

l Know a manager or company in business for more than a year that would be ideal for 'My Biz”? Contact Chelsea Keenan at chelsea.keenan@thegazette.com

l Manager: Sue and Dave Merck

l Company: The Painted Cupboard

l Address: 4311 220th Trail, Amana

l Phone: (319) 622-3427