January 19 Pottageville Auction Results Video

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January 19 Pottageville Auction Video

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First Sale Of 2013….

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off to another good start!

Thanks to everyone who attended our Jan 19 2013 auction…a great way to start off another new year! Over 200 registered bidders and over 600 lots sold, with a few record prices (at least for us), thrown in for good measure! January auctions are always some of our best.  In the last 17 years I don’t recall ever having a bad January auction. When I am preparing this auction, back in December, I sometimes encounter some slight concern from consignors about putting their items in a January auction.  Some people think there is no money around after Christmas, people are not interested in buying etc.  I tell them to trust me. This is the sale you want your items in.  There is never a guarantee, but judging from my experience, the results are likely to be good. In the winter months, many people have time on their hands, and they can spend a full day at an auction.  That’s what we need. As we get closer to the spring months, the crowds drop off a little until we start with our Saturday night auctions in June. Doesn’t mean you won’t get fair prices for your items in May or early June, but there will be smaller crowds at the auctions. I did mention we had a couple of record prices, but I won’t mention them here, simply because it may mislead some people as to the value of their items.  There are simply times when two people want something very badly, and the price can go through the roof.  However, that does not mean we have set a new benchmark for the value of that particular item, because that price may never be realized again.   There are auctions when you just have to realize you got lucky, and it may not happen again on that type of item.  Now, if they consistently sell for that price, that’s another story! On the other side, we had a new low price.  A pretty decent Victorian sofa, nicely refinished woodwork with clean upholstery, and it sold on one bid for only $50. Great for the buyer, but not good for the consignor and not good for me. I drove for 45 minutes to pick up that piece (along with the other pieces they consigned), loaded it, unloaded it in the storage, did the photos, loaded it for the auction and then of course unloaded again. After all expenses for the auction are factored in…I made $8.50. I turned down two other similar sofas for this auction, and I think it is going to be tough to get me to take any more for upcoming auctions! The market is always changing and as an auctioneer I am always learning. Case in point.  Back in September one of my regular consignors wanted me to take two very heavy, chrome and leather lounge chairs, with split and damaged upholstery.  I turned them down because I just did not see the value in them. Later in December he asked me to take them again, as he had to close out his locker.  He told me they were valuable chairs,, and with a great deal of reluctance, I loaded them into my van.  He emailed me the name of the chairs designer, Nicos Zographos, and I did a little research. Completely reupholstered in leather, they were asking $2800 a piece for them on-line! So the next question in my mind was…is anyone going to realize the potential value of them?  I pushed them in my advertising, explained what they were when we sold them,, and they finally sold for $425 a piece.  A great deal for the buyer and considering the condition, a good price for the seller as well.  The two items I originally turned down, brought some of the top money in the sale!  I don’t mind admitting, I don’t know it all, and always will have something to learn. So now, with the January sale under my belt, I start working on the Feb 23 auction.  Already lined up some good stuff this week, and looking forward to more great stuff coming my way next week.  This business is always changing, always interesting, and I always look forward to the next auction!

Saying Goodbye To 2012…

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looking back and looking forward!

Another year gone by and once again I sit down to write my year end “News and Views”.  It is a little clichéd to say “I can’t believe how fast the year has gone by”, but it is true! It has been another interesting year in the auction business, but fortunately for me, they are all interesting years! Certainly the most discussed issue this part year, has been the falling prices on some antique items. Wherever I go I hear about falling prices on furniture, glass, china, coal oil lighting etc.  It is true.  I am selling some furniture pieces for the same money or less than they sold for in the 1980’s.  Some of the coal oil lamps have been selling for less money than they did when I started collecting them back in the 1970’s.  Pressed glass is generally lower than I have ever seen, and there are even some  furniture items I will no longer take into the auctions, because it is no longer practical for me to pickup, store and transport them to the auction. Many people are quick to blame the economy, but I don’t agree with that.  I think it is a matter of changing tastes and changing demographics. For the last thirty years the baby boom generation and their parents generation, have been buying up and collecting antiques.  Now many people are in a situation where they must down-size, or settle an estate, and there are a lot of antique items coming onto the market. We had two generations buying antiques, and now there is a generation of new buyers coming into the marketplace, but they are not buying the same way their parents and grandparents did.  Look around at any auction and you will not see many people under age 40.  When they do buy, they usually are buying accent pieces, rather than furnishing their homes with antiques.  Not many are building collections the way their parents did, and probably most do not want to decorate their homes the way the parents and grandparents did.  To me that seems natural. Younger buyers usually are looking for primitives, advertising, toys and industrial type antiques.  What I call “antiques with an edge”.  The sort of stuff you see them buying on American and Canadian Pickers.  Watch those shows and you will not see them buying much furniture or glass and china.  They look for the unique items. Most of the Victorian antiques appealed to an older buyer.  The ornate furniture, parlor sets, rocking chairs, ruffled glass and nic knacks.  Those buyers are now selling, but their taste in antiques was much different than the young buyers of today.  So many of the “hot” items that sold for big money in the 1980’s and 90’s, have definitely cooled off.  I think it is going to be a long time before that turns around. If ever. However, it is not all doom and gloom.  On the up side it is a great time to buy antiques, especially if you do prefer the “older style” Victorian era pieces.  Also if you are selling items you bought 20 or 30 years ago, have used and enjoyed them, and now can realize a reasonable price when you sell them, that’s not a bad thing.  Even if you don’t get the money you paid 20 years ago, if you had purchased a new piece of furniture 20 years ago for the same price, you would get nothing for it now!  Antiques are still a good deal. Auction prices certainly fluctuate, but auctions in general have become very trendy again.  Many TV shows involve buying at auction, and I think the general public is now more aware of auctions.  Our average attendance figures have gone up 20% over the last year. We are having bigger crowds and bigger auctions than we have ever had.  Proves to me that people enjoy coming to auctions, so you just have to make sure you have what they want! So, for 2013, I once again am planning some adjustments to our business.  I have said this before (probably last year and the year before), but I would like to make our auctions smaller, and concentrate on the quality items.  As you probably know, we do get our share of good quality pieces, and those pieces usually do well, but we also get bogged down with low end items as well. Primitives in our back corner do very well, and rarely do we ever have to pack any unsold pieces up after the auction.  However, low end glass, china and low end art, is another story.  It is getting to the point where I can no longer sell a lot of that stuff, and we never empty the hall. So we pack it up again, move it back to storage, unload it, and then the following month, repeat the process over again. Obviously this is where I want to make the changes, and I am going to do it.  I may ruffle a few feathers and lose some consignments, but I am simply going to have to say no. I will not eliminate the low end items entirely, because there are times when they are part of a large consignment and have to be disposed of.  Also I don’t mind selling a reasonable number of $2 items, and if they sell quickly, it’s not a problem.  However, when I waste valuable time begging for bids, that’s another story! Basically I want the focus for 2013 to be filling the auctions with what people want. Quality items. Unique items. Primitives and country items…those are what we do best with, and that is what I want to concentrate on. I want to make the sales smaller.  Currently I am selling 700 items to get the same dollar value we used to get out of 500 items, however it requires two auction rings, more staff and as a result higher costs to sell those 700 items. Better off to have 500 decent quality, saleable pieces, and eliminate 200 pieces of low end “stuff”.  At least, that’s the plan. So I am looking forward to the upcoming year.  I am optimistic about our auction business and the antique business in general.  It’s just a matter of making adjustments, changing with the times, and like any business, giving your customers what they want and need. Happy New Year! Rob

So What Do You Want For It?…..

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sorry, but some things are just not for sale.

I have been in the business of buying and selling antiques for almost thirty years now.  I find it hard to believe I am now one of the “old timers”.  Not as “old time” as the “old timers” I knew before I was an “old timer”, but I am getting there. Almost everything has a price sooner or later.  Most people will eventually sell something if the price is right, and I  am no exception. However, I do own one piece I will never sell, regardless of price.  It is not the most valuable piece I have every owned, but to me it is priceless.  Let me digress. My late father was born in 1927.  When he came home from the hospital, my grandfather had purchased a very nice German mantel clock as a gift for my grandmother.  In it’s day it was an expensive gift….and a cherished piece by my grandmother.  Westminster chimes, striking on the quarter hour.  A quality clock. When I was very young, visiting my grandmother (my grandfather died in 1941, long before I was born), I would run into the living room to hear the clock strike the full chimes on the hour.  Even as a kid, I loved to hear that clock chime. In 1969 my grandmother’s second husband died, so she moved in with our family.  Of course the clock came with her. However, when the clock struck on the hour, it struck with a dull thud marking the hour, rather than the mesmerizing chime I remembered.  My grandmother told me she had taken it to a jeweller, and he could not figure out what was wrong with it. So we lived with it making a dull thud every time it signalled the hour. One day I decided to open the back of the clock and have a look.  I was about 14, and of course didn’t know anything about clocks, but I did notice that the chime bar was resting on the wooden base of the clock.   I adjusted the chime bar, moving it away from the wooden base, and when the hammers struck the bar….the chime was back!  I solved the problem the jeweller couldn’t figure out, and I was pretty proud of myself!  The clock was back to the way I remembered it, and my grandmother was pretty pleased as well. On Nov 19 1971, my grandmother passed away suddenly at our home.  After the doctor left, the funeral directors arrived.  I was in the kitchen as they wheeled her body out on the gurney.  As they were taking her out of the house, the clock started to chime and strike midnight.  To me it seemed like a fitting farewell. The clock stayed at my parents home until I graduated college, and then it was passed on to me.  I have had the clock ever since. I moved to Barrie in 1999, and not long after, the main spring in the clock broke.  I had a very expensive repair made, but not long after that, the other two springs went.  The clock still ran, but without the chimes. For over 10 years it sat on the shelf, and only occasionally did I wind it just to make sure it did not seize up.  Just wasn’t the same without the chimes. Finally, in the summer of this year, I took the clock to a good customer of mine, and he made all the necessary repairs, cleaned the case and the brass trimming, and the clock looks and sounds great! It has chimed twice in the time it has taken me to write this. I sometimes lie in bed at night and listen to the chimes before I fall asleep.  I hear it first thing in the morning. It is there every 15 minutes.  I don’t hear it chime every time, because you get used to a clock chiming.  As my grandmother used to say, sometimes you don’t even notice it until it stops. The clock has survived my grandfather, grandmother, father and hopefully one day me.  I will pass it on to a nephew or niece,  and hope it is with our family for generations more. Some things you can put a price on.  Some things you can’t. Some things just won’t ever be for sale.  Not in my lifetime. They are called family heirlooms, and I hope every family has at least one.

When It Is Time To Sell Your Antiques…

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be realistic!

In the last few years, the on-line classified sites, have become a popular way to try and sell your items. Kijiji is probably the most popular site in this area, while Craig’s List is very strong in the Toronto market.  The sites are free to use and you can post unlimited text and several pics. The down side is you don’t know who you are letting into your home, and of course the scam artists are working those sorts of sites. What I find particularly interesting is some of the prices some people are asking for antiques.  I recently saw a very low end piece of 1950’s or 60’s furniture, that I would not even want in the auction, and if I did have it, I would be shocked if it even brought $10 or $20.  The asking price? $420.00 ! It makes me wonder, is the seller even serious about selling this piece of junk? Why bother posting an ad, when no-one is ever going to pay that price?  I recently saw an oak case wall telephone, in poor condition, and a very common model, and they were asking $1200.00.  Average auction selling price would be $100-$150.  So I wonder where they would come up with an asking price like that?  I guess some people just pick a number and hope some sucker is willing to pay the price! Bottom line is, people can ask whatever they want for something.  However, if you are serious about selling your pieces, don’t be mislead by some of the asking prices you see on-line. Ebay can be a good reference for selling prices, but you must check the completed listings to see what price the articles actually sold for.  It doesn’t matter what people are asking, it only matters what people are paying. Of course if you frequent the auctions, you get a good idea of what the average selling price is on most items.  Retail prices may be double or even triple the auction price, but as a seller, you cannot expect a dealer to pay you retail. Dealers have their time and overhead to recoup, and they deserve a fair return. Quite often people will quote me a price they see in a store or antique mall,, and of course it doesn’t matter how good the piece in the mall is, theirs is even better. However, they may not realize that the piece they have seen, may have been sitting in that store or mall for a very long time with no takers. I have been watching one piece in an antique mall for the last three or four years.  It is a china base coal oil lamp, without the original shade, and we would usually sell them for $25-$50.  This particular dealer is asking $425.00  Why?  I have no idea!  I have never ever seen that particular lamp sell for anywhere close to that price.  Maybe $100 tops, and I have been doing this for almost 30 years now.  It boggles my mind why they would even waste shelf space by pricing it at such a ridiculous price. Another particular pet peeve of mine, is when someone calls about selling an item, and they will not tell you what they want.  They usually tell me they have no idea what it is worth. So, far too often I make the appointment, spend the time and money to get there, and after I quote them a price, they start quoting me retail prices on every item!  If you know what you want, just say so on the phone, and if it sounds reasonable, myself or some other dealer will make the effort to go see it.  But don’t waste someone’s time and money, if you are going to ask retail price.  You are going to have to work a little harder to find a retail buyer. Recently I offered a person approx. $25 a piece for a certain item.  She then indignantly told me she saw them selling for up to $85 a piece in the shops.  I explained that was an asking price, and in all likelihood the dealer paid about what I was offering her anyway.  She refused my offer, even though there was a dealer looking at them just before I got there, and he didn’t even make an offer on them.  A day or two later, I was telling this story to a friend of mine, and he told me he bought similar items at an auction recently for only $17.50 a piece!  I think the lady should have taken my offer. Just in case you are wondering why I sometimes buy items, when I am an auctioneer, and for the most part make my living selling for other people on consignment?  I do advertise in the yellow pages to buy antiques, because there are people who just don’t want to go the auction route with their items.  I tell them what I think it will sell for at auction, and then make an offer to buy outright, if that is what they want.  However, over 95% of what I sell, is consigned through the auction. So to summarize, when you decide to sell, be realistic about the value of your items.  Most auctioneers will give you an idea of what your items will bring at auction, and in my case, I have over 2000 photos posted on my website with the selling price at our auctions.  It gives you a good idea of what prices certain items have been selling for in the last few years. Remember also that even though the items may have sentimental value to you, as far as a dealer is concerned, it is just inventory, and they cannot put a price on sentimental value.  That photo of your great grandfather in the nice oval convex glass frame?  You might just want to hang on to that for now. Some come out to the auctions, get a good sense of the current market, and if the prices seem fair to you…give me a call! Rob

The Anniversary Of A Very Memorable Auction…

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and I pray it never happens again!

I’ve had a lot of memorable auctions over the last 16 years.  The one we did last weekend for the closing out of The Little Furniture Shoppe in Wasaga Beach will be one of them.  The first on-site auction I did 13 years ago when we almost set fire to the house is another. ( just a small fire on one of the tables of merchandise set up outside…we put it out).  The there was the “mudfest” at the Cookstown Curling Club.  An early May sale that was so muddy around the building that I didn’t know how we were going to get people in or out. However, the most memorable sale was one that never actually happened! Sept 25 2010 we were to make our much anticipated debut at the Pottageville Community Centre.  It didn’t work out too well.  Here is a repost of my blog concerning that fateful event 2 years ago! The Saturday Sept 25 auction was to be our big debut at the Pottageville Community Centre.   Well I guess we created quite a bit of talk….not about what happened…but what didn’t happen!   The auction didn’t happen! This gives me an opportunity to explain what happened to our Saturday Sept25 auction…the one that was cancelled at the last moment! The sale was almost completely set up, on Friday.  At 5:00 pm we were visited by a very nice young woman from the recreation department explaining that there was some confusion as to the auction date.  I believed we had a three day booking,  Thursday, Friday and Saturday of course. But it was brought to my attention that it was booked for Thursday 9:00 am until Saturday 12:00 am. Ok so what was the problem?  We had all day Saturday to do the sale right?  No, actually 12:00 am Saturday is just past midnight Friday…and that is when we were to be done with the hall. There was another booking for the hall on Saturday, and we would have to have the hall cleared by 8:00 am Saturday.  Now I am not going to cast any blame here, because there was a mix up and miscommunication on both sides.  Verbally the hall was to be booked for 3 full days, but when the contract arrived I did not notice the Sat. 12:00 am mistake.  The point is, we had no choice but to clear the hall. It took us two days to set up the sale, and now we were going to have to empty the building in a matter of hours.  I was overwhelmed and a little distraught, but it had to be done. I called back all my incredible staff, family members, friends and some consignors, and began the task of repacking and removing an entire auction! It took until 4:00 am, but we had the hall cleared and  contents stored in various locations. I put a notice on the website at 10:00 pm, which was the earliest I could access my computer, and sent out the email list at 4:00 am hoping to catch people first thing in the morning announcing the cancellation . Dave and Carol Beasley also sent out notice through their email listings, as well as Tom Clarkson Auctions, so we did everything we could to spread the word. I made a few early morning phone calls to people I knew were traveling a distance, but this is all I could do. With about one hours sleep, I went down to the hall for 8:30 am Saturday and delivered the bad news to those who did not receive notice and showed up expecting an auction. I was absolutely amazed at how understanding and considerate everyone was.  Not a single complaint from anyone….just inquiries about when the next auction was!  I really do have some wonderful customers! At this point I want to express my deepest appreciation to everyone who came foreword to help.  The people I work with are not just staff, they are friends and family.  And they came to my aid as good friends and family would. Everyone showed up when I called, pitched in and did everything they could to help.  It was just amazing . So here are the people I want to express thanks to on-line…I have thanked them over and over again in person, but I want you to know. Mom, my brother Brian, sister Kris and brother in law Gerry, Dave and Carol Beasley, Raymond and Cecile Bates,  Don Garner and his wife Audrey, and last but not least Charlie McAteer, who worked with me through to 4:00 am.  Also consignors who I called to pick up their merchandise, but would prefer I did not announce their names.  I was truly overwhelmed by the effort everyone put forth! Also the many emails and phone calls from customers who offered whatever help they could. So a bad situation was made as good as it could be, and I once again thank everyone. Yes it is an experience none of us will forget, and a lesson for me to read the contracts carefully!

The State Of My Auction Business…

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same old, same old..just putting in time until I can retire?

I was picking up some furniture today for our Oct 6 auction, and the consignor asked me if I ever get tired of doing this? I have been doing auctions for 16 years, and put together over 200 of my own auctions.  I also had an antique store for 10 years.  I told her I never get tired of doing this. And it is true.  I have sold over 100,000 items through our auctions, but I am probably more excited about the business now than I was 16 years ago! For me, putting our auctions together, is like putting on a show every month.  I get excited when I have good pieces consigned to the auction.  I get excited thinking about how I am going to photo them, and how they will look on the website.  I plan out where they will go on the stage and how that will look. I research many of the items as I am getting the photos done. I am constantly learning new things even though I have been involved in the antique/auction business for almost thirty years now. I like selling good stuff.  Yes there are times when handling the pieces, removing them from the homes,  and setting them up for auction, can be physically demanding. Doing up the photos and promoting the auctions properly takes a lot of time. Quite often I will spend 12 or 13 hours a day making house calls, packing and moving the pieces to storage, doing the photos and then spending the time to post them to the websites. There are days when I have 15 or 20 phone calls, plus emails, concerning consignments etc.  Then of course there are days when I have only a few and just one or two house calls to do. I have heard this saying a few times. “Do something you love and you will never work a day in your life”  That is true.  When you love it, it doesn’t seem like work.  Regardless of the hours or the physical strain. On Sept 22 I am partnering with David Beasley and we are doing a closing out sale for The Little Furniture Shoppe in Wasaga Beach.  I have never done a sale quite like this before.  Nicely refinished antique and reproduction furniture, plus the shop equipment etc.  When I went to the shop to do the photos I was very excited about what I was seeing.  I couldn’t wait to get back home and get the photos posted!  I knew everything was going to look great and this was going to be a unique auction for us. All this week I have been picking up interesting pieces for the Oct 6 Thanksgiving Auction. Moorcroft pottery, original paint country furniture, old toys, lots of interesting primitives…this has been a good week!  This is what keeps the business interesting for me. So it is true.  I don’t get tired of this business.  Every auction is different, and to paraphrase another show business adage, “you are only as good as your last auction”.  Every month you start over and try to put together as good an auction as you can. So as long as the phone keeps ringing and good, interesting pieces keep coming in, I am going to keep loving this business. I hope when you come to one of our auctions, you are having a good time. Because I am. Rob