Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Kallgren.
Brian, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
We started buying and selling mid-century furniture 20 years ago, we would buy furniture at local auctions and then sell the pieces online to customers in California, Denmark and Hong Kong. About 5 years ago I was looking for storage space and stumbled upon our present location. Now pretty much everything I sell is through my storefront location.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
When we started 20 years ago we could find mid-century pieces everywhere at cheap prices. Nobody locally was buying, and it was an easy sell for us over time because of popularity it has become much harder to find nice pieces and prices have sky rocketed. so that has been one obstacle another larger one has been the loss of my wife Lisa who I started the business with. She passed away this past May from complications from a prolonged illness. The two of us ran the business with her doing re-upholstery and refinishing. I did the electrical and searching for items along with helping her. Now I wear all the hats, it can be a bit daunting
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Modern Underground – what should we know?
I specialize in designer Mid Century Modern Furniture from the 1940’s to the 1960’s, with a few earlier and later pieces thrown in. All pieces that we sell have been refinished or refurbished back to their original beauty whenever possible. We are the only store in Maine that specializes in this era exclusively. Our customers come from throughout New England, New York and beyond. We can draw customers from such a large area due to pricing which is half to one third of what it would be for the same pieces elsewhere and the quality of our pieces. I also have a large section where I sell vintage analog and tube stereo equipment. It’s something that I have always enjoyed doing and it just fits in.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My wife was the person who ran Modern Underground by herself the first 2 years. She was the mid-century expert. I learned through osmosis. Once my children finished college I left my job at a bank and became a full-time employee. I’ve never looked back and could never work for someone else again.
Pricing:
- Pricing on pieces can run anywhere from $50 to $2500 for a vintage designer piece
- wetry to price our higher end pieces IE; Risom ,Knoll,Pearsall Finn Juhl at 1/3 to 1/2 of what it would be elsewhere
Contact Info:
- Address: 103 main street
Waterville Me 04901 - Website: modern-underground.com
- Phone: 207-200-1290
- Email: m.e.furnishings@gmail.com
- Instagram: modern.underground
- Facebook: @ModernEclecticFurnishings
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
