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GLOVERSVILLE — The cash register on which James Keneston rings out his customers is an old National unit with a chromed back. Sale amounts are shown as black letters on white cards, which rise and fall, depending on the keys that are pressed.
The cash register is not for sale, but its age, distinct look and continued utility, he feels, makes its usage appropriate inside his Pine Street Antique Gallery, open since 2009 at 176 North Pine St.
“Where do you go when it comes to the guy that wants something with a little bit more of a draw to it?” he asked as he discussed the store’s inventory during a recent visit. “Well, we have that here.”
Keneston was sitting at his desk on a raised area in a corner of the store, above the register. From the platform, was visible some of the shop’s merchandise, including assorted tables, lamps and chairs.
Another National cash register — old but smaller than the store’s — was tagged for sale near a table covered with crystal glassware, and just beyond a sterling silver tea set displayed inside a repurposed Seiko watch case. Hung on a wall and illuminated, a Coca-Cola menu board still showed the offerings of a pizzeria. Near this was a Schaefer “COLD BEER” sign of the type that once topped refrigerated cases inside corner stores.
“I have a feeling that if they say, ‘Wow!’, at the front door here, I did my job,” the store owner added as a visitor looked at some of the offerings.
Keneston, 59, opened Market Street Antiques in a leased space on that Johnstown street in 2000. He changed the name when he bought 176 N. Pine St., a much larger building, and relocated to Gloversville about 14 years ago.
He has 30,000-square-feet of space on two levels, and the store owner also controls all the merchandise. There are no dealers renting space inside the Pine Street Antique Gallery.
Antiques have been the Keneston family business for three generations. Keneston’s late father, Lee, owned Keneston’s Antiques in Schenectady. His grandfather, Leo, operated Leo’s Moving and Furniture Co., also in Schenectady, which also carried antiques.
James Keneston considers his time working for both men to have been an apprenticeship in the business.
“They would talk to me as we were driving down the road — to a pickup or a delivery — and give me all the information,” Keneston recalled. “They explained the details of what is a custom piece and what is factory-made. A piece of furniture, or anything, could talk to you as you studied the way it was mechanically put together.”
In addition to buying and selling antiques, Keneston purchases items made from gold or silver. He uses chemicals to determine the composition of the metal and its purity, scales to record the precise weight, and he considers precious metals to be an important part of his business.
“The gold and silver,” Keneston said, “probably, it’s an easier, faster way to make money today.”
A subset of antiques called “industrial” is one of the store owner’s favorite segments. These are carts, tables, workbenches, cabinetry and other furniture that long ago was ruggedized for use in factories and other commercial settings.
“And now people are taking some of these heavy benches and they’re reusing them for kitchens and dining rooms and other locations in the house,” Keneston said.
Customers have been attracted to the Gloversville store from distant places, according to Keneston, including New Jersey, Connecticut, Long Island and Canada.
Tom Persse had driven from his home, west of Gloversville, on a recent Saturday afternoon and spent time downstairs looking at the lighting fixtures and other industrial stock displayed for sale on the lower level.
“He’s got unusual items and I like it because he also has some salvage items that you could use for architectural things,” Persse said. “Like an old door — if you wanted to update a room but make it old.”
Economic inflation has impacted even the Pine Street Antique Gallery. A shipment of 280 oak barrels, used to age Canadian whiskey, were recently trucked to Gloversville. Keneston said he had taken similar shipments in the past, but this one cost him $500 more because the trucking company had passed on the higher cost of diesel fuel and other overhead.
He added that he was accepting a lower profit margin on these barrels, which are still priced at $125 each, or $100 apiece when 5 or more are purchased.
“I’m doing the same price as I did last year, to help the customers,” Keneston said.
Some customers just like the look of the barrels, with their curved wooden sides and metal bands. They buy them and place them in a room as a conversation piece. Others have Keneston turn the barrels into Adirondack-style chairs, tables, rockers and stands, though the store owner would not reveal if he did this conversion work or used the services of a subcontractor.
“We have to keep our secret somewhat to ourselves,” Keneston said. “That’s all.”
