Halifax’s own little house of horrors

Q&A at the Monkey Paw Curio Shop

The Monkey Paw Curio Shop is in the North End of Halifax, at 2180 Gottingen St., inside Plan B Merchants’ Coop. The fun and funky store is a small antique and vintage shop filled with odd and downright bizarre things. The store carries items from records, comic books and clothing to a reindeer head, human skull and a 100 per cent preserved spider web. When you find yourself on a quest for unusual things, I highly suggest checking out the shop. It is open from Monday to Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and is only 19 minute bus ride from Dalhousie University.
The Gazette interviewed the founder, Bob Chiasson, to talk about the shop.

Gazette: How long has this shop been open for?

Bob Chiasson: Been open for three years – Halloween is its anniversary.

G: What is one of the strangest things you have sold?

BC: That’s a tough one, so many odd things. Just two days ago I sold a mummified cat’s tongue. I have a medical skull, castration knife – not the sort of thing you see too much. I like the odd and unusual stuff, that’s what I have kind of collection. When you really like something, you want to sell it. The show *Hoarders*, I watched it saying that I didn’t want to be on it; I had six storage units filled with stuff.

G: What is your favourite item in this entire shop?

BC: Tricky…Usually anything I really like, this bastard in Toronto would buy it. But my two headed bunny rabbit, and I have a really nice flying monkey. The first thing I sold, it was like having a child ripped from my arms.

G: What interested you opening up The Monkey Paw Curio Shop?

BC: I worked in film for 23 years and I specialized in weird antique stuff. When film is done, there is no benefits package, no retirement plan. I needed some kind of Plan B – that’s what made The Monkey Paw Curio Shop

 G: What is your least favourite item in the shop?

BC: Just the other day someone came up with a blue jays catcher mitt night light. I couldn’t believe it was mine, I wouldn’t have bought that in a hundred life times.

 G: What kind of advertising do you use to promote your business?

BC: We are primarily word of mouth, as we don’t have an ad budget. We use the gallery in the back as an event space that always brings in people. When you come into the shop you’ll be happy to be here, and you’ll come back and bring friends.