FAQs

Store Policies

Q. Can anyone shop at your store?

A. Everybody is welcome to shop at Steven-Thomas.  We do, however, have a special program available for the trade only, e.g. antique dealers, architects and interior designers.

We offer courtesy to the trade, so please contact us with your proper credentials.

Q. My budget doesn’t exactly allow me to purchase a piece now, but I don’t want to let it get away from me. How can you accommodate me?

A. We offer a layaway program. Our general terms are ¼ down and the balance in 30 days, but special accommodations can be made for a longer layaway. This ensures you that the piece you want is yours, and won’t sell out from under you.

Q. Everyone tells me to “bargain” at antique stores. What is your policy regarding discounting?

A. We are not the swap meet, nor the Istanbul bazaar. Our pieces are priced to sell at the price we mark on them. We do not raise our prices so that we can offer discounts. With the weakened Dollar over the past years, and the continuing scarcity of antiques, our owners are not keen on discounting pieces. This isn’t to say we NEVER discount. A large, volume purchase might qualify for a small discount, and when new accessories are purchased at the time antiques are purchased, since the new accessories can be easily reordered (unlike our one of a kind antiques), we are happy to offer a discount on new accessories. Similarly, if a piece has been on the floor for quite some time, we may be open to a discount. Talk to your designer, but please do not ask “What is your best price?” Our best price is on the piece. We prefer you to make a reasonable offer (the key word being reasonable). Please be aware that all discounts given in the store are for cash or check only.
At our “Liquidation Center” and “Container As-Is” sections, prices are non-negotiable, regardless of volume.

Q. Is delivery included in your prices?

A. Unfortunately, no. Many of our customers prefer to pick up their own pieces and customers would be paying an inflated price if we priced our pieces to include delivery. If you wish to pick up your own piece, please notify us before coming, and please, please plan on arriving one hour before our store closes if at all possible. Our warehousemen are hard working members of our team, and we like to see them be able to leave and eat dinner with their families instead of working overtime loading goods. If Steven-Thomas moves your piece, we take full responsibility for transport once the piece leaves our doors.

If, however, you wish to have your pieces moved by a professional delivery service, we will be happy to arrange a quote and arrangements for you. We use our own men and truck, which gives you the best experienced hands possible delivering and handling your goods.  If we move your piece Steven-Thomas takes full responsibility for transport once a piece leaves our doors.

Q. I’ve seen signs in your store that say “Please touch the furniture”. What’s this about?

A. We encourage you to touch, feel, smell, sit on, and fully explore our furniture! Feel the patina, smell the rich woods, feel the carving of the wood, and intricacies of the brass hardware. Dream for a moment and use your imagination to wonder about where this piece has been during its lifetime, and what it has shared with its previous caretakers. Antique furniture has a feel that new furniture can never have, because of its patina and age. Notice how the doors open and close and the quality of the piece that just isn’t found in new furniture.

Q. Are my children welcome in your store?

A. Of course! We love (well behaved) children. We even have gifts for them. We do ask, however, that you hold your toddlers’ hands so they do not run through the store and risk damage to themselves or to our antiques.