Galisteo Street Store Offers Exotic Furniture From South Pacific
Balinese art and furnishings are a big part of Barbara Millstein’s life. Her Santa Fe area home is filled with an exotic selection of teak furniture, lontar grass baskets, decorative umbrellas and colorful paintings.
“I’ve been going to Bali for 30 years,” she said. “The first time I visited was right after I finished serving in the Peace Corps (in Micronesia). I fell in love with Bali. I’ve made a point of going there two or three times every year.”
Millstein has been racking up even more frequentflier miles since she opened Bali & Beyond in June with her friend, Pamela Nittolo. The Galisteo Street store sells Balinese couches, fine art, traditional puppets, pillows and temple umbrellas, as well as a few one-of-akind items, such as a side of an antique opium bed.
“I took a three-week trip to Bali and the nearby islands in April to connect with craftsmen and workshops that make the kinds of goods we wanted to sell,” Millstein said. “There aren’t retail stores in Bali like we’re used to seeing in this country. I had to figure out who sold what kinds of items and go to those workshops. In some cases, I knew specific artists from previous visits and went to their homes.”
The merchandise that’s visible in the showroom represents only half of what Millstein bought during her spring trip. She said a large storage room in the rear of the building has as many items in it as are displayed out front.
All the wood furnishings and picture frames are made out of recycled teak, a tropical hardwood native to Java. Millstein says old, uninhabitable homes are torn down in Java. Teak wood boards are brought to Balinese workshops where they are transformed into furniture.
“New teak is extremely expensive, but it also wouldn’t do well here because of our dry climate,” she added. “The advantage of using recycled wood is that recycling doesn’t devastate the teak forests.”
Bali & Beyond is not Millstein’s first experience as an entrepreneur. A Realtor for the past 30 years and an associate broker with Santa Fe Realty Partners, Millstein owned two restaurants in northern California while working as a full-time Realtor. At one point in her life she sold real estate while practicing family therapy. Millstein has a master’s degree in social work and a doctorate in art history. “I’ve always had two or three jobs going on at the same time,” she said.
Nittolo, a Realtor at Santa Fe Realty Partners who shares listings with Millstein, is also experienced at multitasking. Near the end of an 18-year career in information technology, she got her real estate license in California so she could get involved in investment properties. She owns and manages rental property in California and Florida.
The agreement between Millstein and Nittolo is that they take turns minding the store and selling their clients’ homes. “We work seven days a week,” explained Millstein. “When I’m working at the store, she’s doing real estate. We alternate days at the store.”
Finding the right location for Bali & Beyond should have been easy for two Realtors, but it was happenstance. The building wasn’t listed in the MLS.
“We spent three months looking for a place that would work for us and be affordable,” said Millstein. “Then we happened to walk by this store. There was a sign on the door saying it was for lease. Fortunately, the space was in great shape and we didn’t have to do anything to it before moving in.”
Millstein and Nittolo plan to donate 5 percent of their annual profits to four charities that work to improve health conditions, medical care and literacy in Bali.
Bali and Beyond
WHERE: 218 Galisteo St.
HOURS: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday
PHONE: 989-1415
