Adding a little Turkish delight to the smorgasbord of special-interest shops lining N. Santa Cruz Avenue is the Black Sea Gallery. It's a purveyor of large and small home furnishings hailing from artisans both international and domestic.
Los Gatos is the sixth Bay Area city to see a Black Sea Gallery; stores already exist in Burlingame, San Jose, Oakland, San Francisco and Walnut Creek. The business was founded in 1995, by brothers Mike and Yusuf Sarimsakci, Mike's wife Lilianne Bader-Sarimsakci and brother-in-law Tony Bader.
Natives of Turkey--which borders the Black Sea, hence the gallery name--the Sarimsakcis tried, but failed, to find a good variety of home furnishing stores in the Bay Area that catered to fans of Mediterranean decor and lifestyle. They filled that niche with the first Black Sea Gallery in Burlingame, and it's been onward and upward since.
Over the years, the product line has expanded from merchandise imported only from Turkey and the Black Sea region to include items from Italy, France, Spain, India, Mexico, Peru, Argentina, Indonesia, and even the United States. These items include armoires, dressers, beds, dining tables, end tables, trunks, sofas, chairs, ottomans, lamps, pillows, bedding and picture frames. To fragrance the home and body, there are also candles, soaps, bath gels and related products.
Much of the furniture is crafted from exotic woods. Mike says all woods have been approved for harvesting and construction by the governments of their countries of origin--no clear-cutting or poaching.
Along with everything in the Black Sea Gallery, Mike says catalogs are also available to clients interested in special designs, custom upholstery or other services. Notable past customers have included an Indian princess, an Arab sheik and a handful of football and ice hockey players.
"To this day, I think the secret of our success has to do with several things: the quality of the product, the uniqueness of the product and the value of the product," Mike says. He adds that 50 percent of the merchandise is always in stock and that the co-founders and their employees maintain constant communication with their customers and their suppliers.
Black Sea Gallery, 218 N. Santa Cruz Ave. Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. 408.399.5070.
Los Gatos, California Since 1881
