From the dining room table made out of 150-year-old tribal doors, to certified jade jewelry made by a 10th–generation carver, every import at Dragon Moon Trading has a story.

Owner J.D. Lama, his wife Jessica, and their partner J.P. Dickenson opened the store in March after Lama left the Asian import wholesale business. The store mostly features handmade Asian imports, including custom furniture, jewelry, paintings and antiques.

"Even though it doesn't have the sticker that says free trade, the truth is that it is," J.D. said. "We buy directly from villagers that we go and meet face to face, that we have long-term relationships with, and that we buy from in cash."

He said Dragon Moon Trading only offers handpicked items that are not mass-produced and targets often ignored regions for import.

"Houston has a very large international community, and a lot of things are brought in from China by other people," J.D. said. "But they usually ignore Thailand, they ignore India, they ignore Korea and we don't."

Other than the imports available at the shop, which range from $5 to $5,000, J.D. said he offers free appraisals for Asian items, offers consignment on a case-by-case basis, and is open to price negotiations on items sold at the shop.

Dragon Moon Trading, 309 Sawdust Road, Spring 281-315-0931, www.dragonmoontrading.com