Harmony by the Bay is a gifts and collectibles store located in historic Port Gamble. The inventory includes an eclectic mix of imported items from the Far East, works created by local artists, and pieces collected by owner Katherine ‘Kat’ Klint.

Klint opened Harmony by the Bay in the summer of 2007 and expanded the store last summer. A new Web site is in the works to serve customers near and far. 

Prior to Harmony by the Bay, Klint was involved in a number of entrepreneurial endeavors.  In 2004, she opened her first store, The Kat Walk Consignments in Kingston.  She added a booth at the Port Gamble Trading Company in 2005 where she included collectibles and home accessories.

When the Port Gamble Trading Company closed doors in early 2007, she opened Harmony Cottage in two new locations in Poulsbo and Edmonds. When she saw that sales were not as good as they had been in Port Gamble, she began looking for a retail location there.  

Now Klint’s Harmony by the Bay occupies the New York House in Port Gamble. Many of the local artists she worked with at the Port Gamble Trading Company now sell their work there.

Harmony by the Bay features wired-tied jewelry, bamboo clothing, vintage-colored glassware, Fiesta Ware, old books, structural pieces rescued from Burmese temples, Tibetan singing bells and bowls, Nepalese hats, nautical pieces, paintings, custom signs and more.

When asked what she attributes her success to in a failing economy, Klint pointed to the customer service offered. “We have a standard of service in our store based on the level of customer service you would find at Nordstrom’s. If a customer needs something shipped, we ship it.  If they need directions, we will go online and get them. If a customer is looking for a particular piece of glass, I will find it.”

Klint is a member of the Kingston Community Center Foundation, on the board of Jefferson Beach Estates and a volunteer for Kingston Rotary. Her passion for collecting began when her parents took her to an auction as a child.  Her grandmother was also a collector, and this helped fuel her ambition.  

She has a saying taped to her computer she reads everyday that further inspires her: “Life is not a journey to the grave, with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty, well-preserved body, but rather skid in broadside thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and proclaiming ‘WOW – what a ride!’ ”