Bonjour, Bonderant! Artful Petoskey shop offers a world of possibilities

May 4, 2005

“My grandmother was the essence of cool. She wore crocodile pumps with two-inch heels, baked a wicked sour cream chocolate cake and ran her own business for 47 years. Grandma liked to say that she loved jewelry, perfume and men, and not necessarily in that order...”
That’s the beginning of Jennifer Tobias-Turner’s introduction to her beloved grandmother, the text of which is framed and stands in her Petoskey shop, Bondurant, next to her grandmother’s photo. It’s her wonderfully quirky tribute to the equally unique woman who inspired her, and who her store is named after (Bondurant was her grandmother’s maiden name.)
Tobias-Turner had been doing retail for 16 years before she opened Bondurant. Prior to moving to Petoskey, she successfully cycled through a number of professional pursuits, including a stint as a lawyer and establishing a number of retail shops in the Detroit area and on Mackinac Island.
But it wasn’t quite enough - the travel bug was beckoning.
“My undergrad degree is in Romance languages,” Tobias-Turner explains, “and I wanted to find something to do so I could travel and use my language skills. There’s always been a French accent to what I do, since I have ties to that -- so it was logical to bring that into focus with my next shop.”

SOMETHING NEW
One move to Petoskey and a careful search for a location later, the idea for Bondurant really started to take shape.
“The building we’re currently in was formerly the Games Imported store,” she points out, “and if you look on the right-hand wall, you’ll see an old sliding door - prior to being Games Imported, this place was actually an old Ford dealership. There were even oil spots on the floor when we first came in to refurbish everything,” she laughs. “The really neat thing is that my father-in-law used to own a Ford dealership - his was in a different location, but it’s still interesting how everything ties together.”
Bondurant is the kind of store that’s interesting every time you walk in. There always seems to be something new, and that intrigue seems to be part of Tobias-Turner’s approach. She attends all kinds of trade and gift shows, and rarely travels without at some point during her trip managing to find even more new things for her shop.
“I love retail, because every day’s different,” she smiles, “it’s fun to work with people and see what their needs are.”
And plenty of aesthetic needs can be met at Bondurant - it’s delightfully difficult to figure out where to look first. The front of the shop is anchored by a set of custom-upholstered furniture (Tobias-Turner also does interior design consulting and is bringing in a new upholstery and custom furniture line from Expressions), which is surrounded by tidy, colorful displays of quirky doorknobs, cut-paper pop-up flower cards from Bloom, Michael Colero earrings, a whole table of fragrant Paddywax candles, and several shelves of MOR bath and body items (with such intriguing scents as Fig And Olive, Milk, Lemongrass, and Honey).

SIMPLY COOL
As you move further into the store, more and more things catch your eye. Republic of Tea teas share space with a whole range of artistic and fun dishes, napkins, and coffee and tea items. Beverley Feldman’s bright line of shoes sit next to Montreal designer Matt & Nat’s popular purses and bags. Intricate white cut paper chandeliers by a Spanish designer feature delicate but modern floral designs that surround a single lightbulb - the chandeliers also come in hot pink and lime green for the more daring.
There are hilariously witty greeting cards, funny little books, the popular Burt’s Bees lip balms, and plenty of simply cool artwork, including wall tiles that have to be seen to be appreciated.
“Our new line of plaster art tiles are made by Vancouver artist Sid Dickens,” Tobias-Turner enthuses, “they’re becoming very popular, and are so well done and different!” From pears to trees, architectural details to musical instruments, each hefty, highly-detailed tile is unique and can be hung singly or used to perhaps frame out an entire fireplace, as one Bondurant customer chose to do, making that feature of her house really about her and her family. Tobias-Turner can relate.
“With each store I’ve had, I’ve felt more free to have it be more about me,” she muses, “basically, it’s got to be full of things that I love - things that, if they don’t sell, I’d want to take home. And when it came to this store, it ended up being the most personal yet, because it’s so much about my grandmother.”
A grandmother whose style was termed “impeccable,” much like the Bondurant store itself, in which every display is carefully put together and every item is showcased to its best advantage.
Bondurant is located at 206 Howard Street in downtown Petoskey’s Gaslight District, telephone 231-439-9181.