About Us

The story behind Te Papa Nui Antiques, Invermere

You may well wonder how Joe and myself (Elizabeth), two Scots, opened up an antique store in Invermere with a Maori, New Zealand name.

Joe and I came to Canada in 1980 from Glasgow, Scotland. After a few moves we settled in Calgary and have weekended in Invermere since 1984. Joe retired in 1997, and I geared down to 3 days a week in Calgary and 4 days in Invermere. We have travelled a fair amount and have collected antiques for years.

In 2004 I decided that Joe needed more to occupy his time (he disagreed) and then we both decided to open an antique store and here we are!

We travel to China, Western Europe, Eastern Europe and the UK (You will notice we are true Scots, Islanders, and still cannot call ourselves Europeans!) and have tried to pick quality pieces and hopefully pass them on to our customers at reasonable prices.

If there is something special that we can look out for please tell us and we will do our best. Remember, you cannot pick out antiques from a catalogue as each piece is unique, but we can try to find that unusual item for you.

The most asked question: what does Te Papa Nui mean? “Our big place” in Maori, New Zealand.

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