Ail assorted world of 'Bazar' oddities
tugene esiaDiisnment Lazars
Bazar features an assortment
of goods from camping
cookware to urban clothing
Ryan Bornheimer
Senior Pulse Reporter
Makyadath Lazar has an easy expla
nation for why his store, Lazar’s Bazar,
has emerged as a one-of-a-kind retail
establishment in Eugene: “My cus
tomers are unique.”
Lazar’s dependence on his cus
tomers’ input can’t be overstated.
Patrons themselves have truly cre
ated the strange concoction of
products that characterizes the
nearly 30-year-old store.
“There is little we don’t carry.
And anything we don’t carry, we’ll
order,” Lazar said.
Lazar said special orders that cus
tomers have neglected to pick up over
the years are thrown on the shelf for
anyone to buy. This explains why a
person can wander into Lazar’s and
find anything from Halloween masks
to skateboard gear to martial arts sup
plies —and that’s just on the first floor.
Beyond the assortment of vintage
clothing and trendy urban garb,
customers can find stickers, pipes
and even camping cookware. The
second floor is devoted primarily to
an enormous assortment of posters
ana greeting caras.
Eugene resident Hollow Reed said
the establishment reminds him of
places normally found in big cities, and
that Lazar’s appeal comes from the
store’s wide selection of disparate items.
“Basically, it’s a conglomeration
of a bunch of shit that nobody needs
and can’t use,” Reed said. “And
that’s a good thing.”
Lazar agrees: “It’s definitely a differ
ent world in here,” he chuckled. “Peo
ple come in here, forget what they
came in for and find something they
didn’t even know they wanted.”
Lazar’s Bazar could be described not
only as a retail store, but as a museum
too. Since the shop’s opening, Lazar, a
self-described “sucker,” has attended
countless trade shows, snatching up
whatever oddities grab his interest —
many of which remain on the shelves
until that special customer finds it.
Lazar laughs at how long some of his
products have lingered. For instance,
the owner says one strange litde alarm
clock has been on the shelf for nearly
25 years. Customers can go in and pick
up items that were featured as popular
gift ideas, faded into obscurity, and
then reemerged as retro-chic. Anyone
need an unopened poster of Pat Bene
tar? Lazar’s is the place for you.
Lazar, who rarely uses his first
name, could be described as a true
American success story. Arriving in
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Family-owned
Lazar's Bazar, located
at 57 West Broadway,
offers a cornucopia
of old and new
amenities alike,
from alarm clocks
to nnstprs
Eugene from his native India in 1974,
Lazar began selling tapestries out of a
backpack around the University while
his wife, Rosie, took a position as a
nurse at a local hospital. From there,
the young entrepreneur moved into a
small space at 13th Avenue and Oak
Street, where he sold tapestries, Indian
clothing and handicrafts.
Today, Lazar owns three retail
spaces Downtown with plans to open a
fourth near the University. In addition
to the Bazar at 57 West Broadway, he
owns two shoe stores—one next door
to the Bazar and Shoe-A-Holic, located
at 957 Willamette St.
He said his preoccupation with
footwear came when his son, Priya
mon, took up skateboarding in the
1980s. In the anything-goes spirit of
his establishment, Lazar began selling
skateboarding products with his son in
charge—at 10 years old. The growing
sales of skateboarding shoes led to the
current, larger operations. Meanwhile,
Lazar said Priyamon, now 24, will be
the chief creative force behind the new
University store, which will specialize
in shoes and tobacco accessories.
Lazar gained notoriety in 2000when
HHHIH Jeremy Forrest Emerald
he ran for mayor. Spending just $50 of
his own money on advertising, the bud
ding politician garnered 7 percent of
the vote—not bad for a guy who start
ed off with 12 tapestries in a backpack.
Lazar credits the success of his
store to the constant cooperation of
his family. In addition to his son’s
involvement, Lazar’s wife and three
daughters are fixtures at the estab
lishment. He said it’s truly a family
operation, and then laughed: “The
only thing is, I can’t fire them.”
Contact the senior Pulse reporter
atryanbornheimer@dailyemerald.com.
Pizza
continued from page 5
compost as much as possible.
If the dining area seems eerily qui
et, this is because the kitchen is de
tached from the main building. Dur
I
ing the summertime, Gozmic opens
up its back yard, a grassy plot of land
surrounded by sky and cloud murals.
There is a stage, flower garden and
bench for customers to eat at.
The restaurant employs seven
people, and has recently opened up
another location in Ashland. Em
ployee Tyrone Barnett has worked
for Gozmic for three years and puts
in about 30 hours per week. Bar
nett, also a musician, performs a
variety of tasks for the restaurant,
including delivery.
1
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UO TASK FORCE ON
ATHLETICS
OPEN FORUM
Wednesday, March 5 • 4:00pm to 5:30pm* 150 Columbia
Members of the Task Force on Athletics invite you to an open
campus forum to discuss current issues regarding intercollegiate
athletics. The panel particularly invites your questions, comments
and views on the compatibility of intercollegiate athletics with the
UO academic mission and the national athletics "arms race." How
are we doing at the UO on these issues and how do they affect us
all? Let your voice be heard.
Panelists from the UO Task Force on Athletics
Suzanne Clark, Professor of English, Co-Chair of Athletics Task Force
James Earl, Professor of English
Jim O'Fallon, Professor of Law, Faculty Athletic Representative
Martin Smith, Head Men's Track Coach
Margie Paris, Professor of Law, Co-Chair and Forum Moderator
Interested faculty, staff and students are encouraged to participate in this forum.
^ ^ J UNIVERSITY OF OREGON
To view the recently released Task Force statement on U of O Student-Athlete Welfare, go to
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“I like delivering,” he said. “You
don’t have to stay in one place, you
can go around and find things. It’s
like a video game. ”
For desserts, the restaurant offers
vegan cheesecake and Rusty’s Hand
built cookie bars. This isn’t mere co
Used
continued from page 5
W. 11th Ave. offers hundreds of
new, used and vintage guitars. The
prices make the difference be
tween vintage and used obvious.
Buy & Sell Center, at Eighth
Avenue and Charnelton Street, is
a new and used instrument dealer
offering all the standard fare, such
as guitars and amps, but manager
Stephen Mathys said the store’s
main focus is a little more eclec
tic. Buy & Sell Center is the place
to go for anyone looking for eth
nic instruments such as bagpipes,
sitars or harps.
This fact may account for the
vast age range of customers who
visit the store.
“We get everything from young
kids that need a saxophone to 80
year-old Dixieland banjo players,”
Mathys said.
According to Mathys, used in
struments account for at least 50
percent of sales. Although all used
goods are sold “as is,” Buy & Sell’s
fully staffed repair shop helps en
sure the biggest bang for the
budget-conscious buck.
Mathys said saving money is not
the only reason to look into used
instruments. String instruments,
for instance, sound better with age
and are often made of wood that is
now rare or expensive.
ACE Trading Company, located
at 3697 Franklin Blvd., does not
specialize in musical instruments,
but this consignment shop might
be just the place to find that “dia
mond in the rough.” The selec
tion depends greatly on timing.
On any given day, ACE can have
everything from saxophones, key
boards and accordions to guitars
and amps.
The store prides itself on the
incidence — the dessert business op
erates next door to Gozmic.
Gozmic is open from 11:30 a.m. to
11 p.m. everyday.
Contact the Pulse reporter
at aaronshakra@dailyemerald.com.
extensive quality check per
formed on every instrument. All
instruments bought for resale are
held for seven days before being
put on the shelf. An in-store mu
sic specialist is available Wednes
day through Sunday to help guide
the weary consumer.
Customers needn’t overlook
stores that specialize in new
equipment.
For instance, some may be sur
prised to learn that Guitar Center,
at 65 Division Ave., carries a vari
ety of used guitars and amps.
For students interested in pi
anos, Musician’s Depot may be
worth checking out. This store,
located at 92 Centennial Loop, of
"We get everything
from young kids that
need a saxophone to
80-year-old Dixieland
banjo players "
Stephen Mathys
manager,
Buy & Sell Center
fers mostly new merchandise but
also has a selection of used pianos
and keyboards.
Eugene’s recent placement on
Rolling Stone’s list of hot college
music towns may offer proof of a
burgeoning local rock scene. The
above establishments could help
ensure that legacy without break
ing local musicians’ wallets. At
the very least, it’ll anger the
neighbors at a low cost. Now
that’s bang for your buck.
Contact the senior Pulse reporter
atryanbornheimer@dailyemerald.com.
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