FELIX DA VINTAGE HOUSECAT
Words: Kate Higgins
When I was in school my friends and I dreamed of owning our own store. It was to be essentially a café. Slash bar. Slash live music venue. Slash art gallery. Slash record store. Slash bookstore. Slash tattoo parlour. We planned to do nothing but hang out in this imaginary haven as we grew older, and all live and work together in the shop, very much like Liv Tyler and Renee Zellweger circa ‘Empire Records’. That all sounded like too much work in the end, so we all now work in crap retail jobs. But for some people, the vision of owning the store of your dreams comes true. This is true in the case of Max Johnson, who has opened up an amazing store, Felix, on the ideal beachfront of Dromana. Felix is an eclectic space, full of antiques, artwork, craft, and more sweet knick-knacks than you can handle. So if you happen to be frolicking in the peninsula sun this summer, do yourself a favour and pop in to say hello. They are really nice. And they might even let you live there.
SPOOK: Who are Felix?
Max: Felix is a family you wish you were a part of! I am incredibly fortunate to be supported by my Mum & Dad – Michelle and Warrick, who are patient, supportive and fiercely intelligent. Together they find, price, clean and store the treasures while I source the new stock and run around making sure things are running seamlessly. Mum and I are best friends, so the best part of our jobs is that we get to hang out together.
SPOOK: When and how did the idea of opening an antique store come about?
Max: Ever since I was in school it was a dream of mine to own my own shop. I wanted a space that was edgy, quirky and totally different. Dad had an antique shop in nearby Mornington for about 25 years, which he opened when he was only 18! His shop was totally different from mine, but the formula is the same a friendly face, a welcoming place and a story to tell – people love to learn. A key component of our marketing plan is to “tell the story”. Each second hand treasure in our shop is unique and although it can be a laborious task, we label each item with a description, an approximate age and any other relevant information. We use Dad’s skills as an antiquities expert (my own walking, talking Antiques Roadshow!), Mum’s knowledge of business administration and her artistic eye coupled with my talents as a stylist and visual merchandiser to create a business which celebrates the past and “up-cycles” products to bring new life to them.
SPOOK: Have you hit many speed bumps along the way?
Max: Touch wood, we have had a fairly breezy run so far! In our first month we had our windows tagged, we were broken in to, and our roof gave way and flooded the back half of the shop! It sounds like chaos, but with blind ambition we laughed it all off and pushed through! I think when you really enjoy what you do, and can have fun along the way it doesn’t really matter what the universe throws at you.
SPOOK: What’s in a name? Is there a story behind the name ‘Felix’?
Max: Naming your business is like naming your child – you have to get it right! Felix is something I now say everyday hundreds of times so I really wanted to find a name I could live with. Felix is Latin for “happy and lucky” a philosophy I wanted to breathe throughout the shop. It does mean that I am asked constantly if MY name is Felix, but it is fun to think of the shop as a being with a personality all of its own. He is funny, quirky and sometimes a little crass…but always happy and lucky!
SPOOK: How do you source your stockists, and what do you search for in new labels and designers?
Max: We love sourcing our stock locally! We try to be as environmentally friendly, and distinctive as possible. We have so many labels who are just starting out who we are encouraging to bigger and better things. A lot of my friends are clever artists and jewellers, so its great fun selling their treasures and getting in the market for them.
SPOOK: If you could choose one item in the store to have for yourself, what would it be?
Max: I am SO guilty of taking stock home! I fall in love with so many things and somehow justify having it for myself! The great thing about having your own shop is that you can sell your own treasures when you’re sick of them – so it’s like an ever-changing landscape in my lounge room! I often walk around the shop wearing some of the jewellery and smelling the gorgeous local soaps. There are just too many treasures to choose from!
SPOOK: Have you always been a Mornington Peninsula habitant? Was the beach location of the store an important factor?
Max: We have lived on the Peninsula for about 15 years now. We just love being here, the people are lovely, the local produce is wonderful and we get to see the sea through our front window! We knew we wanted the shop to be somewhere on the Peninsula and after searching possible locations for a few months we came across a huge shop right next to the pub in Dromana with views of the Bay. Bliss!
SPOOK: What are your dreams for Felix over the next 5 years?
Max: I have so many over-ambitious things I’d love to achieve with Felix…
We’re still very young (we only opened in June 2011), so for the moment I would like to think we’re still here, looking fabulous and kicking goals! I’d like to see more local brands being nurtured through the store, have more parties and meet more of the wonderful customers we have already welcomed through the door. Everybody reacts in such a positive way towards our space, it is really humbling for people to appreciate what you do – I’d like to keep doing that.
SPOOK: Can I live in your shop?
Max: We actually have an incredible art deco 2 bedroom apartment upstairs… unfortunately nobody has loved it enough and it has sat unloved for about 20 years. Technically you COULD live there, but I think they call that “squatting”… right?
