All is Unique at Susie’s Trunk Show and Emporium

A round table set with decorative plates and all the toppings sit in the store’s front as if a party of five were expected for dinner. The tables in the center of the room hold a wide variety of jewelry while the vanity’s curved mirror protects unique household goods. And that’s just the first room. 

Every inch of Susie’s Trunk Show and Emporium is filled with clusters of one-of-a-kind, never-seen-before items that were handpicked by owner Susie Trunk.

The walls are lined with art, frames, mirrors and clocks. Whether it’s a plate from France, a clown cookie jar, a silk scarf or linen, each item has a distinct place in the store. Trunk put her love for interior design into the store in the Old Orland Antiques District, as well as he personal exuberance.

Customers will never see more than two of the same items and once it’s sold it will never be available in the store again. That business motto has proven to be a positive for customers looking for unique items for their home or gifts that can’t be found anywhere else.  

The store’s highest selling items are Miche purses – with seemingly endless variations on styles, colors and shapes. The Miche company also produces a Hope purse specifically to raise money and awareness for breast cancer treatment. One of the Hope bags proved to be more than an accessory for one customer.

“She said she was born with her heart in backwards and had everything wrong with her,” Trunk recalled. “She was in her 40s and was told she wouldn’t make it past 3 or 4-years-old. She had multiple surgeries and she said that the purse told her story. It was very touching. I was so happy that I had that purse for her.  She wore it as a badge of courage.”

Things to know about Susie’s Trunk Show and Emporium:

• Yes, Trunk is Susie’s real last name and yes she tells every customer that before they have a chance to ask.
• Once an item is sold, the same item will never be found again in the store.
• A working 1931 Hot Point all-electric stove and an apron embellished with “Cocktail Queen” along the front was available on July 13, but again when they are gone, they are gone forever.
• The store has a wish list where customers who didn’t find what they were looking for can leave suggestions for what they hope to find the next time, and Trunk is happy to try to fill the request.
• Trunk will gladly place a “sold” sign on an item a customer struggling to make the final call on buying, so he or she has time to think it over.
• She usually finds that those customers are back in the store within two hours to make a purchase.