Beth Nowicki - Kennebunk Auction Gallery
Going Once, Going Twice: Elizabeth Nowicki Finds Her Dream in Kennebunk, Maine
From commercial photography in New York City to a colorful auction gallery on Route 1, Elizabeth Nowicki is building a business, embracing the unexpected, and discovering that sometimes the best things in life are worth holding on to.
Editor note: Kennebunk Auction Gallery is open by appointment only.
At 9 a.m. on a bright October morning, two red antique tractors sit outside Kennebunk Auction Gallery on Route 1. Inside, more than 300 antique dolls are waiting for new homes, a Dalmatian named Liberty is looking for attention, and Elizabeth Nowicki has an online auction closing in just a few hours. There are porcelain dolls, vintage jewelry, colorful paintings, old furniture, and enough unusual objects to keep a curious visitor occupied all morning. For Nowicki, who goes by Beth, it's another day doing exactly what she loves.
There is no auctioneer shouting numbers, no crowd waving paddles, and no gavel striking a wooden podium. Instead, there's a former commercial photographer who has transformed a century-old building into a bustling online auction business, connecting sellers in Southern Maine with buyers across the country. Her business, Kennebunk Auction Gallery, is only about a year old, but she's already discovering how much work, creativity, and opportunity can fit into 1,400 square feet.
And somewhere among the antiques, artwork, and cardboard boxes, she's found a version of a dream that began years ago in New York City.
From Pennsylvania to New York City
Nowicki grew up in rural Pennsylvania, about an hour north of Philadelphia, surrounded by woods, family, and opportunities to explore nature. Born in 1989, she attended Catholic school before graduating from public high school in 2007. Art and design interested her from an early age, and growing up around family members who operated their own businesses gave her an appreciation for independence.
"I come from a family of a lot of self-employment," she said. "So I knew one day I wanted to be my own boss, but it took a while to get there."
After attending community college and working for her father, who owned several small businesses, Nowicki moved to New York City at 23 to finish her education. She earned a degree in photography and spent several years working commercially, enjoying the opportunities and lifestyle that came with living in one of the world's great creative cities. But despite having a good job, she began imagining a different future.
"In New York, the dream was always to have a contemporary art gallery in Chelsea or a really fun, hip neighborhood and then live above it," she recalled. "And that reality when you live in New York, not making six figures then, was a pretty hard goal to achieve."
Maine Was Calling
Maine had been part of Nowicki's life long before she considered living here. Her parents honeymooned in the state more than 50 years ago and loved it enough to return with their children for summer vacations. Those visits created a connection that followed her into adulthood.
"Visiting as a working adult, I thought, I need to move here one day," she said.
In the summer of 2018, Nowicki decided to make that happen. She quit her job in New York without another position lined up and accepted her parents' invitation to stay at their place for the summer. What began as an uncertain career transition became a permanent change of direction.
"Almost nine years later, I'm still here," she said with a smile.
She initially returned to restaurant work while figuring out her next move, eventually landing a job in Portland photographing antique jewelry and helping sell it online and in a retail shop. The position combined her photography education with a growing interest in older objects, their craftsmanship, and their histories. She later managed an antique shop in Kennebunk, learning the business from experienced dealers and discovering how much she enjoyed giving secondhand possessions another life.
"Things are just made better back in the day, construction-wise, whether that's furniture, jewelry, pretty much anything that's old," she said. "It's meant to last."
A Dream on Route 1
While searching for a property where she could live and work, Nowicki happened to notice a for-sale sign outside an older building on Route 1 in Kennebunk. The property, originally built as a house in 1920, was zoned for both commercial and residential use. Suddenly, the dream she'd imagined in New York City seemed possible in a place she had grown to love.
"I thought to myself, how do I make this happen?" she recalled. "This is my dream."
She purchased the building, began renovations, rented the upstairs apartment, and started developing a business plan for the commercial space below. The property had previously housed a printing business and later a woodworking shop, leaving behind remnants of old signage and sawdust that Beth still occasionally discovers in the windowsills. A fresh coat of white paint, colorful merchandise, and a little imagination helped transform the space into Kennebunk Auction Gallery.
At first, she wasn't sure whether the business would become a traditional antique shop, an art gallery, or something else entirely. Eventually, she decided to create an online auction business where customers could consign their belongings and buyers could determine their value through competitive bidding. Her biggest concern was whether anyone would trust a new auctioneer with their possessions.
"I was nervous," she admitted. "How am I going to get consignors? Who's going to trust me to sell their stuff?"
She didn't have to wonder for long. People began arriving with antiques, household goods, collectibles, and entire collections, and the business quickly became busier than she'd anticipated. Today, she typically works with approximately a dozen consignors per auction, holding two online sales each month.
Everything Has a Buyer
On the morning of our visit, the gallery was filled with more than 300 antique dolls from one woman's lifelong collection. Some were German porcelain dolls with original clothing and delicate wigs, while others represented different eras and styles. There were 242 auction lots in total, with some containing multiple dolls, and buyers from around the country were preparing to bid.
One of the featured pieces was an antique Santa Claus figure believed to date to the 1920s. Another recent auction had surprised Beth when a doll she expected to sell for approximately $300 brought $1,100. It's those unpredictable moments that make the auction business particularly exciting.
"Every auction, I say that there's a wild card item," she explained. "Sometimes you see people battling things out for something and you're very surprised what it brings."
Unlike traditional auction houses, Kennebunk Auction Gallery operates almost entirely online, using platforms that allow customers to bid from anywhere. Beth photographs the merchandise, researches its history, creates listings, manages the auctions, and carefully packages purchases for shipment throughout the United States. Buyers include collectors, antique dealers, and resellers who sometimes turn a modest auction purchase into a much larger profit.
"I bought this from you for $30. I sold it for $300," she recalled one customer telling her. Her response was simple: "That's great. Keep coming back."
For Nowicki, the arrangement works because everyone has an opportunity to benefit. Sellers receive money for possessions they no longer need, buyers find items at prices they're willing to pay, and Beth earns a commission for bringing the two together. She believes the marketplace, rather than an arbitrary price tag, should ultimately determine an object's value.
A Forever Student
Despite her growing experience, Nowicki is quick to acknowledge that the antiques business requires a lifetime of learning. She encounters objects from different countries, centuries, and artistic movements, each demanding its own research and understanding. Even dealers who have spent decades in the industry occasionally discover something they've never seen before.
"You're always learning when you're in this business," she said. "Sometimes, simply thinking about how people lived back in the day and the tools they had, it's just different."
Her photography background has become one of her greatest professional advantages. She estimates that photographing merchandise for a single auction can consume an entire 40-hour workweek, followed by editing, research, descriptions, and uploading listings. Accuracy matters because a customer purchasing an antique from thousands of miles away needs to understand exactly what will arrive.
"You're taking a 3D object and essentially making it 2D online," she explained.
Her favorite assignments involve artwork, especially colorful paintings and unusual contemporary pieces. She also enjoys photographing jewelry, sometimes modeling it herself, and admits that being surrounded by so many interesting objects has largely cured her desire to collect things personally. There's always something new coming through the door.
Giving Old Things Another Life
Nowicki's appreciation for secondhand possessions began long before her professional career. Her grandmother enjoyed visiting antique shops in Pennsylvania, and her grandfather was an architect. Both came from a generation shaped by the Great Depression, when repairing, reusing, and saving possessions were everyday habits.
That philosophy remains central to her business today. She encourages customers to explore secondhand markets before purchasing newly manufactured goods and tries to reuse cardboard boxes and packing materials whenever possible. Even an old picture frame or an ordinary household item can find a new purpose in someone else's hands.
"I think it's just important to buy on the second-hand market," she said. "Save a little money, stop buying from these big retail stores."
There's also an emotional dimension to the work. Some consignors are settling estates, others are downsizing, and longtime collectors occasionally decide it's time to part with possessions accumulated over decades. Objects that once belonged to one family may eventually travel across the country to become part of someone else's story.
Building Something of Her Own
Running the gallery has been rewarding, but Beth doesn't pretend it's easy. She handles nearly every aspect of the operation herself, sometimes working 14-hour days answering customers, organizing inventory, preparing shipments, and keeping up with paperwork. Two part-time helpers now assist during busy pickup days, but she hopes to eventually expand the building and hire a larger staff.
"I would say it's double the normal workload that I've been used to," she said.
Still, she finds the work less exhausting than some of her previous jobs because she's building something
that belongs to her. She can organize her day, choose her priorities, and occasionally decide that an afternoon at the beach or a pizza sounds better than another hour behind the computer. There's also the considerable benefit of having Liberty, her young Dalmatian, alongside her throughout the workday.
Liberty is something of an unofficial gallery assistant, greeting visitors, investigating cardboard boxes, and occasionally testing the durability of antiques. Beth describes her as a "Velcro dog," and the energetic pup rarely strays far from her side. So far, Liberty's enthusiasm has resulted in just one broken bowl.
Looking ahead, Nowicki hopes to create more specialized auctions, expand her workspace, build a stronger social media presence, and possibly host live auctions on the property. She wants to continue growing without losing the personal relationships and creative freedom that make the business enjoyable. For someone who once wondered whether she could find enough customers, the challenge now is finding enough hours in the day.
The Things Worth Keeping
When asked how she measures success, Nowicki doesn't immediately mention revenue, auction records, or the number of packages leaving her gallery. Instead, she talks about enjoying her customers, appreciating the unusual objects that pass through her hands, and having a workplace where she can spend her days with Liberty. After years of exploring different careers and imagining what her future might look like, those everyday freedoms mean something.
"Success to me is every day knowing that I have a job that I love going to, that I can bring my dog to, that I have fun with the customers," she said.
Outside, the two red tractors remain parked beside Route 1, reminders of another era when machinery, furniture, and household possessions were built to last. Inside, Beth and Liberty are surrounded by objects waiting for their next owners, each carrying a little history into the future. And while nearly everything in Kennebunk Auction Gallery is destined to leave someday, the life Elizabeth Nowicki has built for herself in Maine is something she intends to keep.
Many thanks to Beth and Liberty for their time at Kennebunk Auction Gallery on Wednesday, October 21, 2026.
Kennebunk Auction Gallery is by appointment only. Visit https://www.kennebunkauctiongallery.com to learn more.
Kennebunk Auction Gallery profile on Auction Ninja: https://www.auctionninja.com/kennebunk-auction-gallery-llc/
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