Classic Retro

Not much good to say, so I won’t say much: From the outside, Classic Retro’s keen signage and artful murals make it an irresistible destination for vintage shoppers — but I encourage you to resist the urge. This place is all sizzle. The store is cluttered; Prices are agressively high; and the clerk/​owner is just-​short of pretentious. There are some interesting mid-​century modern items here, but the owner is shrewd. You’ll pay a premium.

Expensive. Nice stuff but super crowded and stuff not priced. This is super annoying when owner is busying shooting the shit with others and you have to interrupt to find out price. Also found cute old poster with 9.99 price tag on back. Owner says isn’t that great, I say yes and it’s only 9.99, he says oh that’s not my tag. That’s what I paid for it. I will give it to you for $ 70 On and by the way it did have glass but that broke. Oh will since it had wrong tag on it I will give it to you for $ 60. I think not. Maybe I screwed up and how about $ 20 and I doubled mg money. No the owner kind of arrogant and I won’t go back. On and looked and some quality vintage hawaiian shirts. $ 400 and $ 450. I almost laughed at him them found same shirt in great quality on eBay for $ 45. Sorry dude I concur with other reviewers and don’t think he wants to part with stuff!!!
Also parking was a pain but found lot behind but not sure if its ok to park there. Not worth the trouble

Classic Retro is the best for mid-​century modern in Minnesota, hands down.
This shop is for true connoisseurs that appreciate and collect high quality mid-​century modernism. Be prepared to fork over some money.
This is NOT a thrift store. And you can’t compare it to places like Succotash, Up Six, or any of the other places in the Twin Cites «Retro Loop». If you want the best of the best from the 50s & 60s (like an original Adrian Pearsall or an original Herman Miller) this is the place. Your only other option is to drive to Chicago or to ship something from New York or Los Angeles.
My wife and I have been collecting retro for nearly 10 years. As the years have gone by, our knowledge and our budget have increased. We started at thrift stores, moved up to estate sales and small local shops, and we finally ended up shipping items from the east coast & west coast… or even better, finding stuff at Pete’s. He already found it, you just have to walk in and buy it!
What we’ve discovered is if you find a retro item at a thrift store, you might not pay much for it… but if you get tired of it and want to sell it, you can’t give it away. But if you buy an original designer item for a couple of grand, it’s always going to be worth a couple of grand to a collector (as long as you don’t damage it). Sometimes things actually go up in value.
Pete is a little eccentric but his knowledge is truly encyclopedic. Don’t be fooled by the humble building and the packed interior – he has some COOL stuff!
Thank you, Pete, for finding and then selling us amazing stuff over the years!
–Daddy Maxx Retro

When I walked in. My heart started beating faster and my mouth was probably drooling a little. My dream had come true — items I longed to have were waiting there and I finally see them in real life, not just online. So many items to add to my collection. I was so excited!
Then… I asked for a price (because about half the items are actually priced with a label)
The guy knows what he has. Therefore, he marks it up. A lot. I’m not sure how other reviewers say it’s marked a little higher. I saw several items that I wanted and had to have but the price was so high! As one reviewer said — «could you find it cheaper somewhere else, sure?» Well these prices were a hell of a lot more than online + shipping + waiting + anything else that sucks about buying online. Honestly I could have spent over $ 500 if his prices were at least some what reasonable. I am collector of several pieces he had in there, I’ve been doing it for a long time and know what something is worth. This was ridiculous.
It kind of reminded me of being in a hoarder’s house — stuff everywhere. He marks up the price just so he doesn’t have to sell it. He’s attached. If you’re willing to pay the high price then he will part with it.
Will I stop in again? Maybe — maybe not. Should you stop in? Sure but be prepared to pay much more than an item is worth. Even though he says they «sell online for this price». Because they don’t.

Liked this place since on West 7^th.
I think some people miss the point. YES I could theoretically scour every estate sale in the metro and find a lot of midcentury treasure for next to nothing, even now. The midwest is amazing for this — BUT I don’t have time.
I lose money doing that and actually save money when someone intelligent and dedicated to that as their livelihood — does that instead.
It’s not that people don’t have the information, the taste and the knowledge, some of us just do not have the requisite time.
So if you are able to make sourcing stuff your major pasttime, then by all means, you can get it cheaper. Everyone knows that.
Pete knows his stuff, it’s evident in the selections. Clean and consistent design sensibility. Lovely glass, particularly. Helpful and kind with my «walk away from it» moments, too.

I am totally into the way things were… you dig? And I have been visiting this place since it was on 7^th in St. Paul. This guy really knows his stuff, therefore it is a little pricey, however you get what you pay for.
Walking into this place is like walking into a time warp.
Totally Boss, Peter.
Tell em the ZERO sent ya.

I stopped in Classic Retro bc it’s on the St Paul Retro loop as a prime shopping spot. Although I found Pete to be a nice guy, I would say there are plenty of other spots that offer a better deal. His shop was cluttered and disorganized and the prices are WAY too high in comparison with other local shops. His prices and unwillingness to negotiate were a put off for me. I browsed for about an hour, tried to haggle on some teak kitchen goods and left empty handed.
However, if you’re a die-​hard vintage shopper, you will find a WIDE array of choices. Plus everything’s in excellent to mint condition. All in all I would say give it a try and see what you think.

perhaps 3.5 stars? no, the selection is good enough for a 4 star review.
so… this place has an AMAZING selection. AMAZING!!! it’s a mid century modern collector’s wet dream.
it’s also pretty high priced. I mean, yeah, he could make more selling it on ebay, but still, in a shop in MN its a bit overpriced. great as a museum or a collector with $$$ to burn.
The owner is pretty nice but VERY cocky and slightly pushy.

We were in here today, window shopping. The store offers an interesting range of products, focusing on «midcentury.» Unlike the previous reviewer, I noticed items ranging in price from a buck or two on up. Could you find some of this stuff cheaper on Craigslist, or on your own? In theory, sure. On the other hand, if Pete’s (or anywhere else) has what you want, you can make a concrete determination of bang for the buck. Buy, or don’t, but don’t slam the dude for selling – or give a one star review because you don’t accept the premise of the store. Anyways… I thought the inventory was interesting and of a wide price range. There were some very nice pieces there (an art deco desk, a couch/​chair/​ottoman combo) that were not unfairly priced. Owner Pete Vento was about as friendly as could be, even after we made clear we were «just looking.» Worth a trip, for sure.

Let me start by being ridiculously honest.
The bad: I think stores like Retro Pete’s cater to people who want to pretend they are creative and artsy enough to be retro but aren’t actually clever enough to come up with the look themselves. So they get into their fancy cars and drive down to good ol’ Pete’s and pay way too much money for something that would be an amazing find if it were ten dollars at a thrift store or even an old antique store but instead is a laughable 100 dollar purchase.
Also, there is a huge difference between being fun and kitchy in your decorating and trying so hard to look retro you wind up looking stupid, and most of Retro Pete’s merchandise is more Retro geek than Retro chic.
Whew. Got that out of my system. (I can be a bit snarky)
The good: Well… the sign out front is cool. And if you aren’t afraid paying big big dollars you can occasionally find a neat chair or something. I guess.
Bottom Line: Not my favorite but I am biased. Save your money and search thrift stores.