116th Street is filled with chains, be it Dunkin' Donuts, CVS or 7-Eleven, but in the fall of 2016 Manhattan Sideways founder Betsy Polivy stumbled upon a colorful gallery quietly tucked away in a tiny space, amid all of the other shops, filled with unique pieces of jewelry, art and glass. Although everything inside the space is beautiful, it was the owners of Millennium, Bertram and Judith Romeo, who drew her in and kept her there for quite some time.
Bertram came to New York at the age of 12 from Jamaica while Judith arrived with her family a year later from Trinidad. They both landed in Brooklyn and met through their brothers, who had become friends. "We grew up together, and then it became more," Bertram beamed. He studied computer engineering, but one day, they decided that it would be fun to open a boutique and sell the pieces of jewelry that Judith had been creating. That was in 1999, and in 2023 they are still enjoying every minute of being in business together.
Bertram was proud to point out the stunning earrings and brooches that his wife had made. The "Mother Earth" collection was embellished with numerous stones — each one more attractive than the next. Judith chimed in at this point and said, "We take pride and are passionate in what we do." She continued, "We always go the extra mile for our customers and they've been coming back for years."
There is no doubt that Bertram and Judith are a fixture in the neighborhood. The door was swung open that day, and not a person went by without calling in to say "hello." Commented Bertram, "We are always watching out for each other."
The two have added "different elements" as the years go on, changing up the inventory, but keeping true to selling jewelry, artwork and glass. In addition to Judith's artwork, the couple has a stunning selection of hand blown Venetian glass from their years of traveling to Italy. "We have loved traveling, my wife still enjoys creating, and we both adore meeting new people and spending time with those that we already know."
Since they do not travel as much as they used to, they now recruit their friends to bring interesting pieces back from their trips to inspire them. They have loyal customers, but in order to keep them around, they need to "have something different to offer them."
Bertram and Judith are inspired by current events. When the Metropolitan Museum of New York had an exhibit on American designers influenced by Asian elements, they "played around" with Asian designs. And more recently, that "something different" is pressing the essence of leaves and botanicals into silks and other materials using heat and pressure. It makes an extraordinary leaf pattern for scarves and fabrics, including oak tree pieces created with leaves from Massachusetts. Judith shared that when a couple brought back leaves from Australia, she created an Australian-themed selection.
The shop represents several local artists and others throughout the States, as well as having a nice collection of art from Africa. Their clientele comes from the local community, but also the buses that travel to 116th Street each day taking tourists to the outdoor Malcolm Shabass Harlem Market next door, "and then they inevitably stop into our shop," said Bertram.
When asked if after all of these years it was still fun, he immediately replied, "I still love every aspect of the business," and then smiled and said, "We grew up together and we are always together, and we like it this way."
UPDATE: Judith now has a sideline of Decadent Desserts for pickup at the store.
