South Front Antiques
Opened in 2014 www.southfrontantiques.com
From X-Cart: We have asked Dawn Nielsen, the Content Manager at South Front Antiques, to share her experience with the X-Cart platform and services.
In the ‘South Front Antiques’ eCommerce project, I’m responsible for driving the content. Working with the Resaleworld WebDesign Team, we push content to them either through the Resaleworld Inventory Management Application or directly for static items such as logos, permanent photos, “About us” information.
We wanted an inventory management system to work with our point of sale system online and in-store and a secure, reliable checkout process. Resaleworld and X-Cart allowed that to happen.
Antiques are unique. We may come across an antique door or mantel that is a one-of-a-kind. My favorite item is our foundry patterns. Most of the patterns are around 100 years old, made of wood, by machinists in the years before calculators and laser cutters. They are, in my opinion, works of industrial art. Foundry patterns were used in making cast iron parts. The wood patterns were pressed into sand, removed, and then the molten iron was poured in the space left by the pattern. Some are as small as a paperweight while others could cover a wall. Especially interesting is the fact that cast iron shrinks as it cools, so the patterns were all precisely larger than the final cast piece. What I love about them is that they are uniquely MEMPHIS… Memphis made for Memphis industry. Some of the final cast iron pieces can still be found on the streets and buildings of Memphis.
Our picker, Eric Nielsen, has a magnificent eye. Since we’ve been in the architectural antique business for over 40 years, a lot comes our way, but Eric sorts through for the most interesting, unique pieces. We have such a range, everything from a 12 ft tall pharmacy back bar from the late 1800s to 1950’s cast iron tubs and sinks.
That type of content needs to be global. Also, we serve a large geographic area already. It’s difficult for some of our customers to drive in to visit us. That’s why we made our mind to start selling online. By having an online store, people from all over the world can check our new inventory, create wish lists, and get further information.
Integration with an eCommerce platform was the key for us. We wanted an inventory management system to work with our point of sale system online and in-store and a secure, reliable checkout process. Resaleworld and X-Cart allowed that to happen.
Maria is a marketing manager at X-Cart. Once captured by digital and content marketing in her student days, she keeps living and breathing it ever since.
