Photo courtesy of BC Modern
BC Modern
A selection of mid-century furniture and décor at BC Modern (2025)
“We find the vintage that makes your house feel like a home.” As the largest Black and Brown-owned vintage store in Milwaukee, BC Modern (3116 S. Chase Ave.) is the top destination for restored mid-century furniture, decor and found treasures. Owners Eric and Veronica Lewis curate their store with a “where would I find another one?” mentality, hand-picking items from private estates and collectors across southeastern Wisconsin. BC Modern is open exclusively the last weekend of every month from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.-which means they are open this Saturday and Sunday, May 30 and 31.
BC Modern is populated over two floors with items Eric and Veronica would want in their own home. “It’s all cleaned and treated just like it would be in our house,” Eric affirms. Pretty much everything one sees when they walk in is for sale from the chairs, couches, tables, light fixtures, china, glassware, knick-knacks, artwork, clothing and more. The only things not for sale are the plants, rugs, books and a select few decorations.
Highest Quality
Only items of the highest quality land into BC Modern’s hands. “You’ll never find anything here broken, chipped, cracked or missing pieces,” Eric guarantees. “If it’s a set, t’s going to have everything with it. We’re not the type of shop to do the turn-and-burn. It’s much more important to us to make sure that when you leave with it, whether it’s a piece of clothing or glass or wood, you don’t have a complaint.”
Photo courtesy of BC Modern
Veronica and Eric Lewis - BC Modern
BC Modern owners Veronica and Eric Lewis
Between the owners, Eric spearheads acquisitions while Veronica manages the business side of things. Eric explains he is basically a competitor to an estate sale or auctioning company. “They’re going to go in there and say they’ll sell everything for you for a percentage. I go in and say I’ll buy everything, and that’s how I can keep a high volume of inventory coming in. I’m not just buying one thing; I’m taking everything from this house in a 26-foot truck.”
His previous experience as an auctioneer and pawn shop owner taught him to take every call and look at every house. “You don’t know what I’m going to buy and I don’t know what you have,” Eric notes. “I’ve uncovered some of the craziest stuff in peoples’ garbage that they were going to throw away. My job is also to be anywhere things are for sale that I feel should belong here, so I don’t discriminate where I shop. I’m literally out there every day. I have fun because I can go everywhere and just stand back and scan the room and see what’s going to pop out.”
|
|
Move to Bay View
Photo courtesy of BC Modern
Furniture at BC Modern
A selection of furniture at BC Modern (2025)
Originally opened in Walker’s Point at Ninth and National in 2015, BC Modern lived in several different locations before moving to Bay View in 2022. The “BC” in the name stands for Brew City. Prior to Covid, BC Modern was open every weekend but now just being open the last weekend gives Eric more time to travel and find items. The store’s sales get quite busy; Eric notes that 13-1400 people may come in one weekend and from quite a ways away. “We had someone here from Kansas last month,” he mentions. “It’s just amazing to build something from scratch and people love it.”
VIP membership at BC Modern grants folks early access to the store’s monthly sale on the Friday before plus a 5% discount with their purchase. It is limited to 50 tickets. Styling by BC Modern is offered for commercial units, though the owners hope to expand on this service moving forward. “It’s where I see our future,” Eric remarks. BC Modern also has its own pillow and candle lines as well as t-shirts for sale. Eric and Veronica’s daughter CeCe operates a candy shop on the lower level, which is also named after her. “That’s her first step of her entrepreneurial journey,” Eric says, proudly.
Eric’s roots in the vintage business trace back to selling part-time on eBay in the early 2000s. After quitting his corporate job he opened an eBay consignment store where one of his first clients was an antique dealer. “That’s what flipped the switch,” Eric continues. Then he started an auctioning business focused heavily on antiques. “Early on I bought a mid-century chair that I was drawn to for $250 and sold it in 48 hours for six grand.”
Over time, Eric grew tired of selling everything and anything so he pivoted to focus on mid-century items. “I felt like I was in a hamster wheel because there was no real focus so it became kind of mundane, whereas this started as a passion project that I enjoy. I’m so glad I took that chance 20 years ago (laughs).”
