Photo by STEVE BUTMAN

It was at age 10 that Tom Craig started buying and selling antiques, especially old advertising signs.

Depending upon how you look at it, Tom Craig either embarked on a new career or he returned to the antique business.

Craig is one of the owners of Antique Station, located at 703 North Third. Built right after World War II, the building was originally the service station for the Ben E. Keith Co. (hence the name Antique Station) and later served as various garages before the building was purchased in 1998 by Craig and his wife Betsy, his parents Mary Louise and the late Jennings Craig, her parents Sam and Ginny Bolin, along with Bob and Christie Beermann. The couples incorporated and opened the business in 2000.

Craig has taken a convoluted route to his current position. He worked as a reporter for the Abilene Reporter-News in the early 1990s, leaving for Hendrick Medical Center in 1993. He worked for Abilene Christian University from 1997 until 2000 when he left to open the Antique Station. He returned to ACU a few years ago, first on a part-time basis but later full-time. Fortunately, his position at ACU, Director of Student Productions, requires many late hours so he is able to be in the office Monday through Wednesday and at the store Thursday through Saturday.

However, it would be accurate to say Craig returned to his first love when he got into the antique business.

"I started buying and selling when I was 10," he said on an early August afternoon at Antique Station. "I was interested in old advertising signs."

The interest in advertising signs remains evident in the store. Perhaps the most prominent item in the building is the neon sign from the Windsor Hotel, circa the 1930s, soon after the hotel was sold by Conrad Hilton (yes, that Conrad Hilton) to a group who changed the name of the first Hilton to the Windsor.

"I’ve always thought Abilene should capitalize on that," said Craig, whose interest in marketing is usually never far beneath the surface. Indeed, Antique Station is more shopper-friendly than the prototypical antique store where the treasures and the junk reside side-by-side. Six vendors rent space at Antique Station, but you would never know that when you shop.

"We didn’t want it to look like there were booths or bays," said Craig. "You’ll notice when you walk around different areas of interest."

Antique businesses are unique retailers for several reasons, said Craig. One is that the owners are collectors themselves. Many items in the store are things the owners once collected themselves.

"It’s fun to sell something that you enjoyed to someone else who’s going to enjoy it," he said.

Since there are not many vendors for antique items, Craig and his co-owners have to shop for their merchandise themselves. Many of the things come from Nebraska and Tennessee, primarily because the owners are from there. In addition to providing the merchandise, the owners also provide a service, seeking out the items for other people.

"That’s true, but that’s the basis for most business," said Craig. "You do things for people that either can’t do or don’t have the time to do."

Like most retail businesses, Craig said there are peak times.

"Any time there is a big event at one of the universities, we’ll see a spike in business," he said. "An event like the Frontier Heritage is big for us. Hunting season is a huge time for us. While some members of the family is out hunting, others are in here hunting. Typically it’s the males who go hunting while the females come here, but sometimes it’s the other way around."

When those times of the year come up, Antique Station prepares by going on buying trips, contacting vendors, attending estate sales and even by dipping into its owners’ own stockpiles.

Anticipating what will be popular is not an exact science, but experience has helped Craig forge a philosophy he calls the rule of 30. He believes people are looking for things they remember from 30 years ago.

"When people hit their 30s, they gravitate to things that have strong sentimental value," he said. "They remember a cookie jar their grandmother put candy in. They’re usually things that were almost universal years ago and people didn’t see much reason to save them."

For that reason, Craig believes things that are made with intent to be a collectible don’t usually end up having much value.

Craig said the furniture segment is the strongest part of the antique market, trending toward usable pieces that complement other furniture. Craig said that part of the market has changed since the Antique Station opened.

"We were going great guns until 9-11, then it slowed down," he said. "I don’t think it had much to do with 9-11 as it did that the furniture market changed quite a bit. It’s about functionality now. A lot of people are looking for a particular piece for a particular purpose."

As if on cue, a woman in the store is shopping for a four-drawer chest. Antique Station has five-drawer and three-drawer chests, but not what the woman is seeking. No one makes an attempt to steer her toward something else. She is wished well on her quest.

The internet may change the antique business, but Craig thinks the internet is more marketing than retailing for his business.

"The internet lets people know where you are, but they still want to come in and put their hands on it. It’s the thrill of the hunt."

So, come on in and browse. Tom Craig knows exactly how you feel.