A day in the life of Finn Persian: The Antique Shop owner in Sylvanian Town

 Dear Readers,

As I promised, today´s post is about Finn Persian and a day at his Antique Shop. Hope you enjoy getting to know more about him and his business.

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The working day at the antique shop begins on the second floor where Finn Persian has his office.

Every morning, before opening the shop, he writes down in his agenda his tasks and to do list.

He also reads the paper while drinking his first coffee of the day.

He pays special attention to the buying and selling section. He´s always on the hunt for unique "treasures”to add to his collection.

During the morning, the shop isn´t usually  busy so Finn spends part of the time in his office: making calls, carefully packing items for shipment, updating inventory, cataloging new purchases....

His office is a cozy place.A nicely decorated room that includes some valuable antique pieces such as the desk and swivel chair from the Tommy era and the grandfather clock. Both items are for sale in the shop but at a very high price. Finn knows there are collectors who wouldn´t  mind paying a good sum of money for them.

The piano is not one of the oldest but Finn acquired it because ,in addition to antiques and collecting, he enjoys music . Playing the piano is another of his hobbies. His grandmother was  a music teacher and she instilled in him a love for music. 

This is a picture of her grandmother.

Actually, the pictures on the walls tell us something about his family life. Finn is the eldest of 8 siblings. He has 4 sisters and 3 brothers.His parents married very young and have always lived in the city, but after the triplets arrival they decided to look for a quieter place to raise their family. They decided to move to Sweet Berry Valley.

Some of  his mother's relatives live there. His aunt , Salome Persis is the owner of the dress shop and his uncle, Septimus Persis, is  a master craftsman in the carpet business .Besides, some of his friends like Stella Chocolate and Catherine Periwinkle, who are from Sweet Berry Valley, spoke highly of the village and its residents.

However, Finn decided to stay in Town for three good reasons. First of all, he was studying History at The Sylvanian University College, which is located on the outskirts of Town .

The second reason is that when his grandfather retired, he inherited the antique shop.

Therefore,he saw his dream come true: making a living out of his favourite hobby . His grandfather warned him that he wouldn´t become rich but that he could lead a comfortable life and, most importantly, enjoy working in something he loved.

Finally,if you have a look at this picture you´ll immediately realize that his third reason was the main one for staying in Town.

It's nearly nine o'clock. It's time to open the store. Finn places the shop board next to the door and hangs up the open sign.

One of the tasks he has to do today is to change the store's window display.

He knows that updating the shop window is a way to attract potential customers´attention.

Dusting  and cleaning was also on his to-do list. He likes to keep the store spotless.

The vintage gramophone played scratchy jazz tunes while Finn polished the brass frame that holds his grandfather´s picture.

After dusting ,Finn went back to the top floor to catalog new items. He has a small room next to his office where he stores his recent acquisitions.He should call an artisan to restore the upholstery .

Finn's office has direct access to the store down a flight of stairs.A soft chime on the door informed Finn that the first customer has entered the shop so he went down straight away.

It was her friend Stella Chocolate.

Stella likes to visit the antique shop frequently. There is always something that catches her eye: 

an ornate brass frame,

the copper teapots,

the delicate bohemian crystal goblets and matching carafe...

But that day,what really caught her attention were two rugs . They looked nice and would come in handy to decorate her apartment.

 

Stella asked Finn if he could show them to her and he gladly unfurled them.

"They´re two Persian masterpieces. Both are in very good condition despite the years. They combined silk and golden thread and they have a story behind. A story of love and loss. Let me tell you... "

When Finn finished the story , Stella blinked back tears.Touched by the story, she was willing to buy at least one of them, regardless of the price, but she had a hard time deciding because they were both very beautiful. Finn told her that he would hold them for her for a few days until she could make up her mind.

"Thanks so much , Finn. I promise I´ll be back in a couple of days."

Each item has a story, whispers from the past and Finn enjoys sharing them with his customers.

Catherine Periwinkle was her second customer. 

She stepped into the store and went straight to the clock section. Next week she is visiting her family in Sweet Berry Valley to celebrate her grandfather´s birthday. Mack Periwinkle was a clockmaker and has a beautiful clock collection.

A pocket watch caught her eye.

"Finn, do you think I can afford it?" Catherine asked. "I´m sure my grandfather will be very happy to add it to his collection".

"It´s a very valuable watch but making your grandfather happy is priceless so I can make you a special offer". Finn was very thoughtful and considerate.

The rest of the morning was quiet so Finn started studying for his final exams. He only has two subjects left to graduate.

Late in the morning,he closed the store for a few minutes to go to the nearest coffee shop. He always buys a take-away coffee and something to eat. This way, he doesn't have to leave at lunchtime, which is usually the busiest times of the day.

As Finn expected, the influx of customers arrived around midday  but today the shop is particularly busier than usual.

In the afternoon, William Cinnamon stopped by the antique shop with the intention of buying Stella a gift. He wanted to congratulate her on the success of the spring-summer fashion show held at the Grand Department Store.

"I have the perfect gift for her. Come and see".

"What about this? It´s made from mahogany wood."

"A box?" William didn´t seem to be very convinced by Finn´s suggestion.

"It´s not an ordinary box. It´s a sewing box!" Finn said.

"I'm sure Stella will appreciate its value. It belonged to a seamstress who worked for the ladies of the Parisian court.These needles have stitched many beautiful dresses" . 

William changed his mind and thought it was a very appropriate gift for the occasion but decided to continue browsing through the rest of the items in the store.

She would probably also like a china tea set...

or an antique necklace...

Finally, after going through the entire shop he decided on the sewing box. 

"It´s quite heavy!" William said holding it ."Would you mind reserving it for me? I'll come back tomorrow to pick it up with my car".

"Of course I will!I'll wrap it up in a nice paper. Stella is going to love it".

The last customer of the day was Natalia Tuxedo who went shopping with her twin daughters. Her wedding anniversary was coming up and she wanted to surprise her husband with a special gift. Mason likes antiques and Finn's store is one of his favorites.

"Dad likes playing chess, why don't we buy it for him?". Rose suggested admiring the eye catching board and shiny pieces

"Yes, it's very nice. It would look lovely in the living room". Lily added.

Natalia also thought it was a good option but the silver and gold pieces increased the price considerably.

"What about one of these gilt edging tomes? "The Secret of Ancient Sylvanian myths and legends" is a real treasure.It´s in pristine condition and has detailed illustrations.Gilt edges were reserved for valuable and special books, and this book is undoubtedly one of them.A genuine antique."

Natalia appreciated Finn's recommendation. Mason was fond of reading and antiques so she was sure her husband would love it.

Meanwhile, the twins enjoyed looking at the old toys. "What treasures could this box be hiding?" Rose wondered. "Who could have been riding this pram and swinging on that little horse?" Lily wondered too.

 

While Finn carefully wrapped the book, Natalia wandered around the store. She fell in love with the porcelain tableware.She imagined it on her dining room table and was tempted to buy ,at least ,the tea set.

Then, she walked over to the antique toy section, where her daughters were. Rose and Lily thought they could buy something for the triplets.

 

"We´ll get the ring tose game, Finn".

"Good choice! This game will keep the triplets entertained" Finn still remembers the day the Tuxedo triplets walked into the store with their father. They almost knocked over the table with the glassware!

"I hope Mason likes the book and that the little ones have fun with the game". Finn said as he walked them to the door .

After a day's work it was time to call it a day.Finn was very satisfied.It had been a great sales day. He tidied up the shop and went out to put away the board.

A familiar voice made him turn his head.

It was his girlfriend Alicia!

Finn has lots of little treasures in his shop but Alicia is the greatest treasure in his life.

They were delighted to see each other.

Time to spend the rest of the day together. 

A piano performance by Lionel Grand and a candlelight dinner at the Delicious Restaurant. 

The perfect ending to a perfect day, don´t you think so?