In passing, you may have encountered a distinguished, sliver-haired gentleman on Lincoln Avenue, strolling around and visiting with the shop owners and the shoppers alike. This particular gentleman is a familiar face in Lincoln Square—even to those who haven't patronized his business. Werner Herrig opened his first shop on Lincoln in 1969 and is one of the business owners who has the been there the longest. Always a champion of other entrepreneurs, he makes a point of renting his two other retail spaces to small businesses. "I am supportive of bringing more retailers to the neighborhood," explains Werner. "I want to have more independent businesses here." His own business experienced a number of evolutions before it became the year-round celebration of holiday traditions and handcrafted German gifts that it is today. Exclusive Gifts Sound & Image is a home to a staggering variety of handmade items, along with music imported from Germany. In his days on Lincoln Avenue, Werner may have seen it all at one time or another, but he is still as interested in and engaged with the neighborhood as ever.
Werner's long journey to Lincoln Square began in 1948 when he left his home of Leipzig, Germany at the age of 17. His family settled in one of the world's largest cities, Sao Paulo, Brazil. He finished school there and learned Portuguese. "The Brazilians live for soccer and Carnivale," says Werner. "Here you work—there they live." Werner came from a mechanically inclined family with a strong work ethic. His dad, who was trained as an industrial designer in Germany, opened his own television repair shop in Brazil. Werner's brother went to work as an industrial designer at Volkswagen in Sao Paulo. As a youth, Werner spent all his extra time at his father's business after school and in the evenings. "I was immersed in technology," he says. Not only did he learn to repair electronics, he developed a love for doing so. After he finished school, Werner studied electronics through a correspondence program from the United States, in English. As an adult, he decided to move to Chicago. He remembers the day clearly that he came to the US. "It was August 8, 1964," recalls Werner. "I flew to New York on a Pan American airplane. Then I rented a big car and drove it all the way to Chicago."
When he arrived in Chicago, Werner gravitated to what was most familiar: fixing electronics. His first job was at UHF Television, a TV and radio repair shop located on Milwaukee Avenue. It didn't take him long to meet the woman who would be his longtime wife and partner, Eva, who was also born in Germany and had emigrated to the US. After working for someone else for a few years, it was time for Werner to follow in his father's entrepreneurial footsteps. In 1969 he opened the first incarnation of his business, the Lincoln TV and Hi-Fi Center at 4726 North Lincoln. As a business owner in Lincoln Square, Werner grew to love the neighborhood and got to know the neighbors. When the area was redeveloped and the stretch of Lincoln Avenue between Leland and Lawrence Avenues went one-way, Werner rolled with the punches. "I liked the change to the street," he says.
Then in 1981, Werner closed the TV repair shop and opened Sound & Image in its current space at 4728 North Lincoln. By then he had bought the building, as well as the two neighboring storefront properties that he owns today. "This building was built in 1913," explains Werner. "Before I was here, it was a shoe store, and then a doctor's office. I bought it from Dr. Ronett, a Romanian doctor who was also a translator." Not only is Werner handy with repairing electronics, he also loves to work with wood. This skill was useful as he made the cabinetry and displays for the music that are still in his shop today.
Sound & Image carried records, tapes and videos, as well as the VCRs to play them. The shop specialized in all types of German music, from classical to popular. "My wife Eva and I went every year to buy records in Germany throughout the 1980s and 1990s," recalls Werner. They sold music from Mozart, Beethoven and Chopin, along with popular German acts like Freddie Quinn. One day, a man walked into the shop and asked if they carried any music from Rudolf Schock. "I said, 'Of course,'" recalls Werner. "Then he said, 'Well, Rudolf is standing right outside your store.' The man was actually his manager and they were traveling through America." A longtime lover of music, Werner never learned to sing or play an instrument. "The only thing I play is the tape player," he says.
 After a number of successful years, yet another transition was in the works for Werner's business. Because it sold some electronics, Sound & Image faced increases in its insurance, to the point where the margins became so low that it was impossible to make a profit. "We had to sell a lot more to make up for the increase in price," explains Werner. He and his wife both loved gifts. So in 1986, the shop became Exclusive Gifts Sound & Image. Visiting the shop is like discovering a perpetual fairy-land. In a nod to its musical heritage, the doorbell plays Beethoven's "Für Elise" whenever a customer walks in. Werner still offers a good selection of German music, although CDs have joined the ranks of the records and tapes. Although he no longer sells videos, "We have about 100 German videos for rent," explains Werner. One example is a video of scenes from Germany and Austria with a soundtrack of traditional folk music. One evening, a young couple walks in to Werner's shop. The woman is looking for some music for her mother as a Christmas present. She is from Austria and is nostalgic for the folk music of her youth. Werner helps them find several CDs. As he helps them, a sign on the counter reads "If we don't have it, you don't need it."
Wooden figurines make up a large part of the inventory at Exclusive Gifts Sound & Image. The shop is filled with ornaments of all kinds: birds, elves, angels, dogs and even mushrooms. "The mushroom is a good luck sign," explains Werner. After they adapted the store, Werner and Eva continued their buying trips to Germany, though their focus changed to gifts. Today, Werner continues to look for special items for the shop, especially those that are made by hand and that have a story behind them. "Everything is made in China now," says Werner. "I try to buy only things from Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, places like this." Once, Exclusive Gifts Sound & Image was featured on a German television program. "When it was broadcast in Germany, a friend of my wife's from her school class saw it and called her to tell her about it," recalls Werner.
If possible, Werner visits the places where the ornaments are made. One line that he carries by Flade & Wiltner features tiny handcrafted figurines with unbelievable details such as lifelike hair made from flax that is sometimes pulled into little pigtails. Or a functioning nutcracker that's under an inch tall. These figures are available separately or in tiny holiday scenes, sometimes on top of music boxes. There are even several pieces that can be put together to create a Christkindlmarket, or traditional German outdoor holiday market. Werner has had the pleasure of meeting the artisans who make these miniatures. "They make them in their family house, in a part of Germany that opened up after the unification," explains Werner. "Everyone makes a different part—one person paints, one person adds the hair, and so on." Other popular lines include Wendt & Kühn, which makes little wooden angels with curious green and white polka dotted wings. These figurines have been handmade in the same factory in Grünhainichen, Germany since 1923. Werner has assembled an entire Angel Orchestra, in which each angel plays a different musical instrument ranging from trumpets to accordion. Traditional Schwibbogen of all kinds are on display. These arches of candles are said to represent the arches of light created when miners hung their lanterns at the opening of a mine during their rare holiday breaks. Pyramids, another German tradition, took the place of the classic Christmas tree when living trees were unavailable. Werner carries a variety of these, as well. Most hold candles, which when lit, turn the propeller at the top or even the scenes themselves with the heat they bring to the air.
Eva worked faithfully by Werner's side until she passed away a few years ago. A memorial is set up in her honor at the store. Werner continues to run the business as he always has, nearly forty years after first opening his doors. He loves talking with people and helping his customers find gifts for their friends and loved ones. When the shop is closed, he's either enjoying a beer at the Chicago Brauhaus or in the back of the shop fixing old radios, just like the good old days. "Right now, I'm working on a Philco from 1947," he says. Or he may be out socializing with one of his tenants or a fellow entrepreneur on the street. So the next time you're walking down Lincoln Avenue, stop in to pick up some traditional German holiday decorations, or some music, or to just say hello to Werner.
Exclusive Gifts Sound & Image
4728 North Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, IL 60625
773.334.3212
Open 7 days a week through the holidays.
Regular Hours:
Monday and Tuesday 11pm - 7pm
Closed Wednesday
Thursday - Saturday 11am - 7pm
Closed Sunday
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