A retail importer with more than 30 years experience, Peter Karas opened Mercantile Home with his wife Carolyn Hayes back in 2015. The store champions beautiful designs and quality products through a curated range from Australian designers and top European brands. You never really know what you'll find inside, from chic ceramics designed in Canberra by Brian Tunks of Bison Home, to silent, monochrome wall clocks from Huygens, and cutting-edge Bavarian crystal glassware, courtesy of longstanding German designers Nachtmann. Don't worry if those labels sound a little fancy, Mercantile Home also stocks simpler gifts and knick-knacks, like beeswax wraps, quirky shopping bags, candles, reusable takeaway coffee cups and cute greeting cards made in South Australia by Emma Kate Co.

Images: Tracey Ah-kee.