More food for thought in all of this from John Fiske about the state of the USA antiques market today,
Chris
" The antiques business is going to rebound very healthily. At all the shows the gates were excellent, there was terrific enthusiasm and appreciation for the great stuff for which New York is so well known. The fact that fewer people are buying at the moment does not mean that antiques have fallen out of favor; the New York shows made it abundantly clear that the passion for good antiques is alive and kicking. There’s a pent-up demand building that means that the rebound, when it comes, will be powerful.
When we’ll see it is the unanswered question. Obviously it depends largely upon the global and national economy, and more locally upon the state of the housing and credit markets, and upon consumer confidence. Traditionally, the antiques business has been a laggard, trailing the general economy by a few months. We don’t have any control over the general economy, but we do have some control over how laggardly we are – we can hasten the rebound, or we can delay it. The way to boost the rebound is to create good buying conditions for our customers. The antiques business will inevitably go through some price corrections, it will inevitably go through a general process of leveling – areas that were once super-hot will moderate. The dealers who offer good buying are the ones who will survive the recession, and more importantly, are the ones who will spur the recovery.
I came away from New York feeling that the antiques business as a whole is flexible and is capable of responding to dire market conditions; that there are enough dealers at all levels of the market who are capable of adjusting to tough times; that buyer desire is far higher than buyer performance; and that we’ll come out of the recession fit and healthy, though almost certainly leaner. The silver lining is there. "
Chris
" The antiques business is going to rebound very healthily. At all the shows the gates were excellent, there was terrific enthusiasm and appreciation for the great stuff for which New York is so well known. The fact that fewer people are buying at the moment does not mean that antiques have fallen out of favor; the New York shows made it abundantly clear that the passion for good antiques is alive and kicking. There’s a pent-up demand building that means that the rebound, when it comes, will be powerful.
When we’ll see it is the unanswered question. Obviously it depends largely upon the global and national economy, and more locally upon the state of the housing and credit markets, and upon consumer confidence. Traditionally, the antiques business has been a laggard, trailing the general economy by a few months. We don’t have any control over the general economy, but we do have some control over how laggardly we are – we can hasten the rebound, or we can delay it. The way to boost the rebound is to create good buying conditions for our customers. The antiques business will inevitably go through some price corrections, it will inevitably go through a general process of leveling – areas that were once super-hot will moderate. The dealers who offer good buying are the ones who will survive the recession, and more importantly, are the ones who will spur the recovery.
I came away from New York feeling that the antiques business as a whole is flexible and is capable of responding to dire market conditions; that there are enough dealers at all levels of the market who are capable of adjusting to tough times; that buyer desire is far higher than buyer performance; and that we’ll come out of the recession fit and healthy, though almost certainly leaner. The silver lining is there. "
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