Collectors and cuisine: an artful combination: a European-style art bistro thrives in the heart of a South Carolina tourist town - strategy

The city of Myrtle Beach, S.C., isn't known for culture. Though an estimated 13.5 million tourists visit this South Carolina city each year, they come for its designer golf courses, outlet shopping centers, glittering country music theaters, and a 60-mile stretch of coastline.

Collector's Cafe, a Myrtle Beach gallery and restaurant modeled after the art bistros of 17th-century Europe, is an oasis of sophistication in a vast playground of lowbrow beach fun. Co-owners Michael Smith and Thomas Davis created their bistro with a simple goal: to stimulate culture in their little corner of the Palmetto State. In Collector's Cafe, they've found success far beyond their initial expectations.

When Smith and Davis first met over a game of beach volleyball, they were both deeply entrenched in corporate careers. Both graduates of Clemson University, the two became friends, and as single guys in beach towns tend to do, they would cruise the streets for hours after work and on weekends. They spent many of those hours discussing the need for art and urbane entertainment in Myrtle Beach.

"There was never anything cultural to do" said Smith. "We'd drive around listening to the stereo, writing ideas in a notebook." Their conversations included daydreams about taverns in 17th-century Holland, where painters like Vermeer and Rembrandt sold their work to patrons who came in to dine. Davis, who had attended art school in Atlanta after graduating from Clemson, had recently started painting. As Smith recounted, "I wanted to build something--I didn't know what--and Tommy wanted to hang his paintings."

Davis' parents happened to own a building on the north end of Myrtle Beach. They agreed to lease 6,000 square feet to the enthusiastic pair, and renovations began. Davis has no idea how much money was spent in that long process; he and Smith did much of the labor themselves. Because his parents owned the space, he felt comfortable taking his time. "We spent seven months working without a paycheck before we finally opened" he said. "We wanted it to be right."

Collector's Cafe opened in May 1994. Initially, it was a low-key coffeehouse/art gallery, with a small menu of grilled food. For a time, Smith and Davis tried hosting a private dance dub in the space, but it was soon phased out in favor of an upscale Mediterranean menu, which quickly found favor with locals and tourists alike. The cuisine, created by executive chef Carlos McGrigor, has won the restaurant a reputation as one of the best on South Carolina's Grand Strand. Collector's Cafe has earned an Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator magazine, several Taste of the Town awards and a Business Image Award from the local Chamber of Commerce. It's also received mention in Southern Living, Golf Digest, the Chicago Tribune, the Washington Post and the Atlanta Constitution.

About 600 patrons dine here each week, for an average of $43 per meal. Smith guesses that local restaurants of similar size might serve as many as 2,000 weekly meals. "But we don't like to cram our space full of tables" he said. Though large, the space has an intimate ambience. It is separated into a seemingly endless number of rooms, each with its own mood and theme. The Gallery, a private dining room, seats 30; from its ceiling hangs an outrageous metal sculpture created by Myrtle Beach artist Robert Saddlemeyer. The Lounge has a pressed-tin ceiling and columns covered with a mosaic of Italian glass tiles, laid one at a time by Davis himself. Collector's Cafe has also evolved into a popular location for private parties, meetings and presentations. "That's about 20 to 30 percent of our business during the week," said Smith, "and they keep coming back."

The art for sale in the elegantly funky bistro includes paintings in an array of media, metal, clay and glass sculptures, pen-and-ink drawings, mosaics and photographs. Prices range from $15 to $75 for posters, $500 to $1,500 for lithographs, serigraphs and giclees and $150 to $13,500 for original works. Though the cafe takes a comparatively small commission (30 percent of sales), the income generated can be substantial. Last year about 250 original pieces were sold for commission income of approximately $112,000. Exhibits have included many regional favorites and several national artists, including prodigy Alexandra Nechita, Disney artist Eyvind Earle and Rafal Oblinski, who illustrated covers for Time, Newsweek, Omni and other magazines.

Running one of the hottest restaurants in town would be enough to keep most people busy, but Davis and Smith have found the time to cultivate separate careers as artists. "I started painting about 10 years ago, first for my friends and family, then for myself" recalled Davis. "But I never liked the term `starving artist.'" With his background in marketing, he knew he could do better. "You can sit and paint in your studio forever, but you eventually have to get out there and market your efforts." Davis has sold 70 of his own paintings at Collector's Cafe over the last six years.

Smith began painting in earnest about a year after opening Collector's Cafe. His works are surrealistic and whimsical, rendered in oils and mixed media. He signs each painting as Michael Craig (Craig is his middle name) and reported with amusement that many regular patrons who see his work hanging in the restaurant still don't realize that Mike Smith and Michael Craig are the same person. Smith's paintings have sold well at Collector's Cafe, and his October 2000 show at Soho's Agora Gallery netted him two sales of the seven works in the small collection.

Lately, Smith and Davis have begun considering expansion. "We'd like to construct a second Collector's in a place not quite as cyclical as Myrtle Beach, with consistent business all year round," said Smith. But he and Davis couldn't be happier with their little bistro. "We built Collector's Cafe so we'd be able to see creativity all the time" he said. "And there's plenty of it here."

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