I have been dealing in antiques for over 15 years and living with them and loving them for my whole life. I currently have an antique/gift shop and am hearing various comments regarding the popularity of antiques.
On the one hand I have listened to so many people who are in their 70's and above who have been collecting all their lives and are now worried that their children and grandchildren won't want to inherit their collections. They tell me how their children don't want to polish silver or hand wash china - they don't want a lot of stuff sitting around to dust - and on and on. My job then becomes one of helping people find new homes for their treasures so that they won't be hauled out on the lawn and auctioned off after they are gone.
On the other hand, it seems to me that there is a new appreciation for recycling and buying old rather than new so as to help save the environment and to get something that is "real" instead of pressed wood, plastic, and various other things that are all made in China.
With the birth of Pinterest, there is a new appreciation for making something new out of something old and using them in new and creative ways. This has young people excited and looking for ideas and old treasures to bring into their homes.
I do think we are in a lull as far as antiques go, but fully expect a resurgence in our business and interest in collecting once again. In my town, I am the only antique store, but there are consignment shops and flea markets and rent a space markets popping up all over town. I'm not sure how that will affect my business; but one thing I am absolutely sure of is that no one will do it like we do here at Memories or have the quality of merchandise or beautiful shopping atmosphere.
I am an optimist and always tend to look on the bright side of things - the economy and gas prices and general negative attitudes because of elections and on and on are affecting every part of our lives. I guess my job is to keep on keeping on and trying every way I can to generate an interest in what I offer in my store so that I can keep finding new homes for these beautiful treasures. I'm using every means that I can think of including http://www.hendersonmemories.com/ , www.facebook.com/memoriespastandpresent, www.pinterest.com/memoriespast/ , email newsletters, and more.
What is your thinking about the future of the antique market, and specifically what could I do at Memories to generate an interest in the younger generation (meaning those between say 21 and 35)?
Wow! So many thoughts here.
ReplyDeleteFirst thing that comes to mind is that you're right; times change and the market is different. Here is Australia, a lot of people are getting into the game, and I think that makes a difference.
The other thing is that antiques dealers being greedy or - ahem! - untruthful has had an impact as well.
I think there are two key things with younger collectors 1a) they think of as 'antique' is stuff I think of as being from my childhood or even (heaven help us) from my teen years, and my mother thinks of it as 'wasn't that last week sometime?' 1b) their houses are small and modern. Huge brown furniture and French vases don't fit - but Art Deco sure seems to! and 2) Education, education, education! This is the Green Generation - nothing's more green than antiques!
I am a collector, my husband is a collector and my in-laws were collectors. We have passed our passion and appreciation of antiques to our daughter and son. My daughter-in-law is a collector also, but she comes from a family of collectors. We have already started collecting for our grandchildren. So, our generation is passing the love of antiques down to our children. Our collection has a lot of family history and is over 100 years old. Hopefully this means our children will not be so quick to dispose of cherished items. I agree, Pinterest has renewed my belief that the younger generation still has an interest.
ReplyDeleteI am very interested in and concerned about this general subject. Thanks for bringing it up.
ReplyDeleteMy husband collects old silver and bottles and I have broader antique interests. We have observed an enormous deterioration in the offerings at auctions and antique malls and yard sales here in Virginia, and outrageous price escalation in the better antique stores. So you face the choice of either junk or incredible costs for items that aren't junk.
So what remains are Ebay and online dealers. The fun of getting out and exploring and "making finds" in the real world is pretty much gone. Anyone can check Ebay to see what something is worth, and "The Antiques Roadshow" has created an absurd gold-rush mentality among the masses. So the cracks through which interesting things and undiscovered treasures once fell have tightly closed.
As for young people, many of them are unemployed and have no money even to buy "trash" antiques. No wonder they have little interest. Maybe that will change, but overall I don't feel as optimistic as some others here.