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Miller\u2019s Crossing isn\u2019t your average furniture or antique store, and its devoted customer base is a testament to that. \u201cI\u2019ve shopped here for years,\u201d says Don Buesy. \u201cEverything here is always different. Every two weeks, it changes out. It\u2019s never the same store.\u201d<\/p>\n
The constant evolution of Miller\u2019s Crossing is a direct result of enthusiasm and effort on the part of owner Bernard Miller, who handpicks every piece that goes into his two stores, located just a few yards from one another in the heart of Asheville\u2019s antique district along Swannanoa River Road. Miller does his research\u2014he knows the history of every item, an impressive feat considering there are thousands. \u201cI know my product,\u201d Miller says. \u201cI know every piece, where it came from.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The stores feature antiques and gently-used pieces, but Miller can also attend to the needs of a customer seeking something newer. \u201cCustomers come to us for new stuff, used stuff, architectural stuff\u2014we just have that mix, and it goes together,\u201d he says. \u201cFinding tomorrow\u2019s antiques for today\u2019s customers\u2014that\u2019s really what we do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The road to owning Miller\u2019s Crossing has been a long and winding one, but Miller has spent a lifetime developing his taste. He was a buyer at Macy\u2019s before moving over to the manufacturing side, making fabric. \u201cI did that for 10 years, learning from a Japanese man all about how to weave and how it works,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s lived in New York City, where he worked with big names like Calvin Klein, Donna Karan and Perry Ellis. Then he started his own company making garments, which thrived for a decade. \u201cSo I\u2019ve been around the block and my taste was pretty good, I found out,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
About five years ago, he opened the original Miller\u2019s Crossing at 172 Swannanoa River Road, followed a few years later by the furniture warehouse at 130 Swannanoa River Road. More recently, Miller has expanded from curation into creation. \u201cI got this piece six months ago and I thought it would be a great bar for somebody, but I couldn\u2019t find anybody to make it,\u201d he says. \u201cThen Paul just stopped into my store down here, we hooked up and the Ranucci was born.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Paul is Paul Giuseppe Ranucci of Giuseppe Woodworks. The pair have been working together for a few months now: Miller finds the piece and creates the design, and Ranucci makes it a reality.<\/p>\n
The bars are often made from antique Victrola cabinets, but also from wardrobes, Art Deco glass cabinets, and other statement pieces. Ranucci adds fabric, removable serving trays, lighting, sliding shelves and other bar features. \u201cWe can\u2019t keep these in stock and we just started making them,\u201d says Miller. \u201cI want a Ranucci in every apartment, every home.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s clear that Miller truly wants people to have access to beautiful, long-lasting pieces for their home, and he prices the items in his store accordingly. \u201cI don\u2019t have to mark it up to mark it down,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
For someone with such distinct taste, Miller is very non-judgmental about people\u2019s choices and style. \u201cYou can take these chairs and put them with that table, mix and match, whatever you want,\u201d he says. \u201cWe give you that flexibility. It\u2019s not like buying something as a set.\u201d<\/p>\n
Coupled with a vast inventory and careful curation, Miller\u2019s supportive, can-do attitude makes for a pleasant shopping experience. \u201cI have the best customers,\u201d says Miller. \u201cA stranger walks in and they become a friend. I am so fortunate.\u201d<\/p>\n