Before Top Hat, There Was a Love of Craftsmanship

For Lance, an appreciation for furniture and beautiful spaces was part of life from the beginning. Before joining UPS in 1985, Lance worked alongside his father, who designed custom furniture for interior designers in High Point. He helped upholster furniture and deliver finished pieces to some of the finest homes in the area.

There was something about seeing a customer’s reaction when that beautiful new piece finally arrived. The excitement, the transformation of a room, and the appreciation for something carefully designed and made by hand all left an impression.

Over the years, while working at UPS, Lance continued pursuing many of those same interests as hobbies, including custom home projects, remodeling, refurnishing, faux painting, and interior design. He developed an appreciation for the details that can transform a house into a home.

Today, that same eye for detail has found a new outlet in antiques, vintage home décor, collectibles, and the unique pieces that can make a home feel truly personal.

Then Anthony Discovered the Hunt

Anthony’s journey into antiques came from a different direction.

While remodeling a house, he began visiting antique stores looking for that one special piece that would bring something different into the home. But the more stores he visited, the more he discovered.

Some pieces were rare. Some were beautifully crafted. Some were things you simply don’t see anymore. Others were the kind of pieces that immediately became conversation starters.

There was something different about bringing an antique into a home. It wasn’t just furniture or decoration. It had character, history, craftsmanship, and a story.

Anthony began to appreciate the idea that the right antique could give a home an extra-special element that simply can’t be replicated by something mass-produced. That interest soon turned into collecting.

From Collecting to Sharing the Finds

As Anthony’s collection grew, so did the desire to share these unique pieces with other people. He eventually began renting vendor booths at antique stores, filling them with antiques, vintage finds, collectibles, and unusual treasures he had discovered along the way.

What started as a hobby became an opportunity to introduce other people to the excitement of finding something truly special. A beautiful piece of furniture, a rare collectible, a vintage item that brought back a memory, or simply something unusual that made someone stop and think, “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

Meanwhile, Lance’s lifelong appreciation for furniture, design, craftsmanship, and beautiful spaces continued to grow. Two different journeys were moving toward the same place.

Two Perspectives. One Vision.

Anthony brought the excitement of the hunt. Lance brought a lifelong appreciation for craftsmanship, design, furniture, and the details that make a piece special.

Both understood something important: the best things aren’t always the newest things. Sometimes they’re the things with a history. The things made with care. The things you don’t see everywhere else. The things that make you stop, look twice, and wonder where they came from.

That shared appreciation eventually sparked an idea. What if they created a place where people could come together to discover those things for themselves?

And so, Top Hat Vendor Emporium began to take shape.

From a Love of Antiques to Top Hat Vendor Emporium

Today, that journey has grown into Top Hat Vendor Emporium, a storefront in Greensboro, North Carolina, filled with antiques, vintage finds, collectibles, furniture, home décor, jewelry, memorabilia, and all the unique treasures that make antique shopping so much fun.

But Top Hat isn’t simply about selling old things. It’s about the hunt. It’s about walking through the store and wondering what you’ll discover around the next corner. It’s about finding something you didn’t know you were looking for, seeing a piece of furniture and appreciating the craftsmanship that went into it, finding something that brings back a memory, or discovering that one piece that completely changes a room.

More Than a Store

Part of what makes Top Hat special is that every vendor brings something different. Different interests, different collections, different experiences, and different ideas of what makes a piece special. Together, they create a constantly changing collection of antiques, vintage treasures, collectibles, furniture, décor, and unexpected finds.

You might come looking for antique furniture and leave with a collectible you’ve never seen before. You might be searching for vintage home décor and discover a piece of history. Or you might simply come in to browse and leave with the perfect conversation piece.

You never quite know what you’ll find at Top Hat.

A Few Things We Believe

For Lance, the things that matter in life have always extended beyond furniture and antiques. He has a passion for music, an appreciation for attention to detail, and a belief in having fun along the way. More importantly, he believes in staying true to his convictions, doing what is right, and standing behind your word.

Let your word be your bond. Let the Lord be your guide. And let your family be your focus.

Those principles are part of the person he is and the way he approaches life, business, and the people around him. And perhaps that’s fitting for a business built around things that are meant to last.

Come Find Your Next Treasure

What began with two lifelong friends, two very different journeys, and a shared appreciation for beautiful and unique things has become a place where people can shop, sell, collect, explore, and discover.

Whether you’re looking for an antique for your home, a vintage treasure, a collectible, a piece of furniture, or simply something you’ve never seen before, there’s always another discovery waiting.

Come see what you can find.

There was something about seeing a customer’s reaction when that beautiful new piece finally arrived. The excitement, the transformation of a room, and the appreciation for something carefully designed and made by hand all left an impression.

Over the years, while working at UPS, Lance continued pursuing many of those same interests as hobbies, including custom home projects, remodeling, refurnishing, faux painting, and interior design. He developed an appreciation for the details that can transform a house into a home.

Today, that same eye for detail has found a new outlet in antiques, vintage home décor, collectibles, and the unique pieces that can make a home feel truly personal.