In the past year, new businesses have sprawled across Skokie, many of them restaurants. Sweet Reserve Cafe & Bakery and Slyce of NY, Tortazo, Tasty Crab, and Crispy Slice Pizza are just a few examples of these abundant eateries. Even places like Sabor Mexicano, Devil Dawgs,The Celtic Knot, and Mr. Kimchi have opened in neighboring communities, offering a diverse selection of meal-types for their respective communities. Among those restaurants, however, are places that, rather than serving food, offer other unique items, ones for the window-shopping customer. However, these businesses are few and far between. For the truly quirky and eccentric, there may be no better place than the newly opened variety store Chez Lu’s Extraordinary Finds.
Chez Lu’s, owned and operated by Midge “Cheez” Ripoli and Lucy Render-Kaplan (hence the location’s name) is an independent business selling all sorts of interesting objects and curios. The location officially opened on March 14 just across the street from the aforementioned Sweet Reserve Cafe & Bakery and Slyce of NY—in Downtown Skokie on Oakton Street. The location is yet to have its official, mayoral grand opening, which is expected to include a ribbon-cutting ceremony; a date has not yet been determined as of publishing.
The selection of items at Chez Lu’s is hard to describe, as almost anything and everything that is strange and interesting can be found there. Any item that anyone might find at Chez Lu’s will always be distinct, antiquated, or at the very least conversation-worthy, a conversation that the owners are happy to share.
The layout of the place is like no other shop either. Rather than rigidly structured and clearly laid-out categories of items, much of what is sold at Chez Lu’s almost appears to be simply placed beside pre-existing stock. This is by design, as the owners emphasize an importance among customers of being allowed to explore the shop and its selection; almost anything that isn’t nailed to a wall is free to be held and inspected.
“People come in and spend an hour just looking around, because there’s so many things to look at,” Render-Kaplan said.
As the name of the shop implies, any kinds of “extraordinary finds” can be discovered at Chez Lu’s. This means that almost anything that the owners themselves find interesting can and will be sold at their store. Some items are even customized, repaired, or refurbished by the owners themselves, creating items unique to the shop itself. These include old film projectors-turned lamps or busts of historical figures painted to look like music stars of the 1970s.
“We upcycle (refurbish) a lot,” Render-Kaplan, a Niles North alumna and former North Star News editor, said. “We’ll find something and [Cheez] will turn it into a beautiful coffee table. He’s creative.”
Some items are even signed by the people affiliated with them, including illustrations signed by artists, books signed by authors, albums signed by singers, and even animation cels signed by cartoonists. (Framed, especially signed cels are some of the most expensive items at Chez Lu’s.) Regardless, most if not all of the prices in the store, stickered or otherwise, are always fair and negotiable.
Aside from the quirky and individual, many more regular, everyday items are also sold at Chez Lu’s. These include books, jewelry, keychains, pins, coins, clothing, paintings and posters, kitchenware, statuettes, and various forms of music media like records and cassettes. Though, many of these items will often have a theme, usually with some sort of niche or local association, like clocks made of billiard balls or Niles Township pins.
“If it’s something that we keep going back to and we’re like, ‘I want this in my house,’ we’ll usually buy it,” Render-Kaplan said. “If it’s something we can’t figure out to put in our own home then it’s perfect for this shop.”
In addition to this comment on the nature of the items for sale, Ripoli agrees. “We look around in weird shops and buy things nobody else wants. The stuff we find, it makes us smile. It’s something we haven’t seen before; it’s bizarre, and it’s just weird.” Oftentimes, the items more based in pop culture or music will have a personal connection to Ripoli, as he used to seek out celebrities, their autographs, and their memorabilia.
“There’s so many things to look at, and [customers] will ask questions and they’ll talk,” Ripoli said. “Like, ‘Where did you get that autograph at?’ “Oh, I was actually on the set of Full House.’ I have stories to go with so many autographs; 99% of the autographs I have, I got in person.”
Their connections don’t end there though, as Cheez keeps up with some notable figures for business purposes.
“There might be a few [autographs] that I have bought, or got from Steve, the guy from Pawn Stars,” Ripoli said.
Almost every day the shop is receiving new items, all of which are made clean and presentable before being put for sale. Though the newest oddities might not be properly placed, framed, or organized, the owners still encourage consumers to look through their new selection and put a price on their favorite item. While many of them are found by the owners through auctions and estate sales, some people also donate their old goods to Chez Lu’s, sometimes even receiving a cut if the donated items sell. The owners are happy to receive any niche or antique items from their consumers, ready to shelve, hang, or display them among the rest of the colorful curiosities.
There’s no store quite like Chez Lu’s in or around Skokie. It’s not as big and corporate as a Goodwill store or American Science & Surplus but not as specific and specialized as a coin store. It’s not as rigid and organized as a general store or grocery story but not as scattered and amateurish as a yard sale. It’s a mix of these qualities, creating a local, homey atmosphere for the local shopper. If unique had a name, it would be Chez Lu.
