text and photos by Caitlin Donohue
I was off on my own adventure the day I found Cottage Industry (2326 Fillmore, SF). Drawn initially to its display window full of small wooden men with exotic potbellies, further exploration revealed that this was the kind of cavernous, glorious grab bag of a store every neighborhood should have.
Scattered throughout the cluttered aisles was an antique cabinet whose jars and drawers neatly organized a world’s worth of ceramic beads, banks of somber African idols. I lost myself fingering a starter jacket made from dashiki fabric and in the fumes from the cones of bazaar incense. International objects of flair on shelves, on the floor, on every inch of wall.
It was as though someone traveled the globe and brought back every beautiful thing they saw. Which basically, is what happened.
Owner Claudio Barone ventured from his native Napoli at age 18 to open his first store in New York City, and brought his current collection- culled from estate sales, antique stores and local markets in 47 different countries- to Pacific Heights 22 years ago. “I had to explore our territory,” he tells me. “You know, Italians discovered this place.”