It’s been more than three years since Fort Hamilton Swappies Eric Feller and Jessie Harrison got into the business of buying and selling collectibles but now, the happily married couple has a home for their goods at E & J Boutique.
The shop, located at 7014 Fort Hamilton Parkway, may have celebrated its grand opening on Monday, December 1 but was a bright idea years in the making, according to Feller.
“One day, we were cleaning out an old apartment in the city and we accidentally walked through a flea market,” he explained, “and my wife turned to me and said, ‘Why don’t we do that?’”
And so, the pair’s flea markets were born, today immortalized in their very own storefront, adorned with classic Weird Al Yankovic, vintage Harley Davidson posters, old-school board games, and more – one of their biggest selling points being their $4.99 bottles of “Our version” scents.
“Basically, we sell the ‘our version’ of scents,” Feller explained showing off the store’s very own version of “Dolce & Gabbana,” a scent that has since been modified only slightly, so that shoppers won’t even notice the difference. “It’s almost an exact replica.”
And there’s more to come, he said, as the couple continues to make the rounds at local flea markets, garage sales and storage auctions.
Above all, the two agreed, they just want their grassroots family-business to bring a little bit of personality to the nabe.
“In a nutshell, we want to bring a little ray of light to Fort Hamilton,” said Feller, a Brooklyn boy himself, as his wife rang up one of their first customers. “We find that the community loves finding out about places like this.”
Longtime friend Christopher Digennalo is sure the shop will be just that.
“It’s such a different concept,” he said, also stressing E & J’s warm and welcoming atmosphere. “How could they not be a ray of sunshine?”
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