The Antique Profession Is Not Like I Remember

ANTIQUES OR BUST, WOULD I TAKE THE SAME ROUTE IF THERE WERE "D0-OVERS"?

WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE PROFESSION THAT MAKES US WANT TO STAY, OR BECKONS US TO LEAVE WHILE THE GOING'S GOOD?

     Suzanne and I got into a disagreement the other night, (nothing serious, like the butter tart incident of several weeks ago -see our facebook page), about of all things, a cabin in the hamlet of Dee Bank, a couple of tee shots from the outer limits of the Village of Windermere. She's got an idea that we should do a later life "Thoreau" thing, and find our retirement Walden Pond. I'm a lover of nature, and love nothing more than a trip up to Canoe Lake, and a paddle over to the old Mowat Lodge, but living rural is a different animal for me, at the age when I hobble in town. And that's on level terrain. Roughing in in the wilds is for reading about at my age, no actually doing, unless its a Four Seasons hotel. We agreed to put that on the back burner for now, or until our ship comes in, loaded with money.
     I have been dogged by idealism throughout my life, like the birth mark, on my left butt cheek, that looks for all intents and purposes, like a spinning wheel. I've checked it in a mirror, and if I wiggle, it looks like its actually spinning. I began as an antique dealer, with what you might say, was "an old school" perspective. I think I accelerated myself right through to senior status, from the tadpole stage, because of my keen enjoyment and appreciation of the way things were in the 1970's, as far as the antique profession was concerned. I barely recognize it today, in part, because of the way upstart, inexperienced dealers, (with money raised from other professions) have watered-down a culture that seemed nailed-down and unmoveable, as far as day to day conduct of the dealer-kind. I'm sorry to write this critical overview, but I find that the profession has changed dramatically in the past twenty years, not at all what I remember as a fledgling dealer, trying to break into the industry. Like many dealers I knew back then, and respected, they started with passion for history, and not pockets full of money. The money was an inconvenient truth, and I know, thinking back to my own start-up period, nothing was going to stop me chasing after the antiques I wanted. I started small and contented myself as a scrounger, even to the point I would spend hours in the bush digging in long retired dump sites for cork top medicine bottles. It was my boot camp as an apprentice dealer. I didn't have surplus money for the first ten years of playing around in this new-to-me profession. I taught me how to spend wisely and get more for less investment. Today I feel there are a lot fewer poor upstart dealers, and more retired professionals, making antiques an after-thought enterprise. They have ample resources to swallow mistakes, and speculate where others are operating as normal retail, trying desperately to survive a tough economy. And yes, my wife is a retired teacher so we have it better than others in our profession. But we started as bottom feeders, and worked our way up, with the long term intent, 32 years in the making, of retiring to what we both professed, was a pleasant pre-occupation.
     I remarked to my partner, Suzanne, just a few moments ago, that I'm not sure, if I had to do it all over again, if I would choose the antique profession as I did, so willingly in the mid 1970's, when I first caught the collecting bug. Possibly, I would have been better opening up a free enterprise museum, or as the curator for a travelling exhibit of pioneer artifacts; or if that wasn't enough to turn the crank, then possibly a "believe-it-or-not" kind of collection, showing off three headed houseflies, and skeletal remains of this and that; maybe even a funerary heritage exhibition of which I am quite interested. But as far as being involved in the normal competitive fare of the antique business, as it operates generally today, I think there are better heritage related activities to get up to, for a life's work. Even as a retirement business, I wonder if we made the right decision back in 1985 or so, to work at our day jobs until our antique enterprise reached a proportional level of success, that it could walk on its own and entertain us until that final big retirement in the sky.
     What has made me question this, is the well founded hunch antique dealing is not what it used to be. What really inspired me to get involved, in what I believed was a truly historic profession, with a lot of interesting baggage? Not much of what I see out there today, that's for sure. For me, back then, as idealistic as I was, the experience of entering the profession of buying and selling antiques, was like entering a haunted house, with all the ghostly bells and whistles; and a profession that could be described, if, as a book, a literary classic. It was an industry full of intrigue and mystery, as if it had been defined into history, by well versed authors, such as Charles Dickens and Washington Irving. In some ways, this was true, and in my era joining the trade, it was all these things and more, each day being spiced with adventure and discovery. So full of curiosities, you bet, with a sort of embedded magic, that we enjoyed without having to dissect it into small portions, in order to understand. It was a profession of rich culture and periless intrigue. Buried treasure and pirate maps, hidden drawers and secret passages, and an industry where mysteries were everyday temptations, to look harder, drive further, research more, and enjoy passion for passion's sake. I still live and work as I entered the antique industry way back when, but it is so much more obvious today, I don't fit into the modern way of antique buying and "flipping," which is a term I have come to despise. It puts greed into the mix, and although it's an inherent part of speculative buying, in order to achieve a profit, veterans of the profession would rather not wear it as a button on our lapels. All retail is speculative afterall, but it doesn't come down to the crass representation of normal sales as "flipping" as one might attach to making money in real estate. I heard a rookie antiquer talking to another a about the big money "flipping" art work, and honestly, at that moment, I saw the side of my profession rearing up as if, to this young fellow, it was more important than the lifestyle with a heritage theme.
     If you know Suzanne and I as friends or as customers, you will appreciate that we are a husband and wife proprietorship, who have put lifestyle at par with the commercial prowess, of the antique business we created so many years ago. We got the template, in fact, from the Ned Hay General Store, now a restored part of Huntsville's "Heritage Place," formerly Muskoka Pioneer Village, which in its on heyday, was in the hamlet of Falkenburg, just north of Bracebridge. On a visit to the heritage site, shortly after we were married, we decided that the way this re-created Victorian era store was appointed, would be our own template for an eventual family antique shop. While we have a lot more space and more inventory than the Ned Hay General Store, we think we've captured a portion of its heritage essence, and most certainly, we would confess to anyone, it was the heritage venue we admired, as seen in the 1980's, that led us to our retirement business in this new century. That and Robinson's Store in Dorset, one of our favorite places to visit when we're in that neck of the woods. It's not an antique shop, but it is one of the most unique general stores in this region, and a good model for us as far as what generates the curiosity of our customers.
     What influences us today, is the watering-down of the heritage component of antique venues; big on prices, weak on history, provenance almost non-existent, on antiques that deserve to be researched. Customers who deserve information about the items they wish to purchase, at considerable expense. As far as due diligence these days, it generally comes down to a folded-up piece of paper, with the unmistakable print of a run-off listing, from an online auction or sales site, offering a parallel review of an identical piece, including the asking price. I will not enter an antique shop, or mall booth, where this method of identification and pricing is employed. It is the sign of inexperience plain and simple. If you have risen to the stature of antique shop or mall both proprietor, then for gosh sakes, you're expected to be more professional and astute to the actuality of our enterprise, than to rely on these on-line sites, that are as riddled with inaccuracies and bogus embellishments, surely not to be taken as gospel; especially posting them in your venue, to bolster authenticity and justify the asking price. I have turned down many vintage and antiquarian books, because there was an insert from an online book co-operative, that had no serious relevance to the book in my hands. Books are judged on many characteristics of condition, from the dustjacket to the surface of the back cover, such that a print-out of another book, which may be in better condition, has no relevance whatsoever. Even as a reference guide, these inserts are visual examples of "fobbing-off" responsibilities, by not showing the dealer's own research skills, and ability to differentiate between what is being sold on-line, and what is in the hands of a customers needing our guidance. Asking prices for online antiques and collectables, are just that! "Asking prices." The same as when an ebay listing is quoted, or other online sales venue. These do not reflect a fair and honest appraisal, as would be offered by an insurance appraiser dealing with replacement value. The range of asking prices or starting bids, on these sites, is wide to the point of absurdity, and the selling prices are not always attainable for reference purposes. You can ask a million bucks for something, but what was the eventual selling price, if there was a sale even completed?
     The business that I entered back in the mid 1970's, would have been to some veterans of the industry, a watering down period as well, according to their standard; and the fact more young people like me, were changing the character of a storied profession. I understand the often violent rigors of change because I double as an historian. Yet, by my own close reckoning, the past twenty years have seen a dramatic transformation of the antique business, especially noticeable by the almost unbelievable escalation of asking prices in shops and mall booths, which in my opinion, threatens the future prosperity of this very old, and very traditional enterprise. There is little if any excuse for these sometimes massive price escalations, because what is being priced in the nose-bleed category, more often than not, can neither be proven as rare, or a good investment; such that it will increase in value at some point in the next century. More likely, they will drop in value five inches out the front door of the shop.
     In my early years, selling to collectors was a big deal, home decorators not so much. In fact, back then, which was the early 1990's, it was always about 60 / 40, the lower side being sales directly proportional to home decoration. Collectors wanted the best of the best in their area of expertise, and this is how we shopped every week to fill the shelves. We bought items of course, for our general audience, but when it came to making a profit, it depended on the target merchandise we were able to ferret out, on our hunts, and the quality characteristics of individual pieces. Today, this is completely reversed, to the point where collectors make up less than ten percent of our trade, here from our Gravenhurst shop. Profit is profit right? When you've apprenticed forever and ever, in a profession that was thriving, largely because of collector interests, looking to improve their lot, it is a little unsettling now, when decorating and re-purposing are the market movers. Today, at least in our neck of the hinterland, the hunt for antiques and collectables, is far less investment-driven, collector-dominant, than when I took on this industry, as the one to companion me for the rest of my life.     The scholarly side, which was always weighted on my collection of old books, has dwindled now to the support of casual readers, and believe it or not, decorators, who want to give a scholarly impression, on the book shelves they fill with books that look old and seem important. This is not what I signed up for, or worked to achieve, although it wouldn't be the first time, I had to suck-it-up just to make a buck; and if all customers want is a pretty picture, the good company of a book that looks old, and a table that gives off a warm antique hue in a condo decorating scheme, then I shall gladly cash the cheques and go about my merry way. But if I had to do it all over again, I think I would open a museum, and rely on historic significance to drum up business. Maybe I'd starve, or maybe I'd find a good response to old fashioned history, served like an open-face sandwich.
     I may quit altogether, or spontaneously combust the day I am forced to sell my 1850's "Boston to Montreal" railway map, to someone who wants it, to create an air of sophistication in their high-rise condo. Not that they don't have the right to do this, if they pay my asking price, just that it would break my heart to have it used for design, instead of the heritage resource, it so respectfully presents; such that we might learn from it, as a preamble to the present chronicle of the modern railway, versus a vintage graphic, that contrasts the upholstery of a livingroom couch. Is this what the antique trade has become? For show only? I remember the good old days, when it was about the preservation of artifacts and related relics, of all descriptions, for their inherent historic, and investment potential. Today, I don't get it! I just play like I do!