Page 16 - JOA-Oct-21

Antiques Business Benefits From

Vintage Infusion

From the Asheford
Institute of Antiques

Street Antique Mall,
Fort Worth, TX
or many dealers of a certain age, it seems just a few scant years ago furniture, until the 21st century’s second decade, millennials had
that prognosticators everywhere were signaling the death knell of completely reshaped the collectible nature of the decorative arts market.
Fthe antiques business. Opinions at every turn summed up the For the older antique dealer this move marked what appeared to be
demise with a sobering prediction that “old” would never return. But a renaissance of collecting, but one that was hard to track and difficult
within a few short years, a new generation of buyers and sellers to predict. Were the market changes real, or just a fad? Was the younger
appeared, and so did the predictions. generations’ interest in the past here to stay or just a fleeting fancy?
For those who remember the antiques industry in the mid-nineties,
the outlook couldn’t have appeared more grim – stainless steel and For Those “In the Know”
modern motifs were on the rise, while “brown wood” and anything For most industry insiders, the answer came around 2010 with the
associated with the last vestiges of the Victorian era were being ditched growing influence of massive vintage buying and selling sites such as
faster than a firehouse-freebie sale. Etsy and Bonanza. Recognizing the surging interest in collecting by the
However, after witnessing a decade of declining sales and changing upstart millennials, many long-established dealers began to segue from
tastes, a funny thing happened on the way to the antique market … period pieces to more consumer driven commercial objects from the
millennials began to take an interest in their past. Not the far flung past midpoint of the 20th century onward.
mind you, but the past associated with their parents and grandparents – Multi-generational dealer Susan Collier, whose parents had started
the funky looking Danish credenzas in the living room and starburst their antique business in Portland during the 1970s, believes firmly that
clocks on the kitchen walls. Little by little, the interest spread upward and the early millennial generation not only single-handedly saved her parents
outward to include 1960s bean-bag chairs and ‘70s space-age modular business, but were also responsible for a renewed interest in authentic

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Restor r--A-Finish is the per rf fect alter native for those custommers who don’t
want to strip and refinish. Kitchen cabinets can be r re estored in an hour
r
with a can of Restor r- -A-Finish. It fills a niche by having thee unique ability
to penetrate wood finishes and enhance the luster and deppth of grain. It
will bring back color and luster to faded finishes and blendd out scratches
ocess.
and blemishes with an easy wipe-on, wipe-of fff pr ro
Av vailable in nine colors to match almost any wood finishh tone;
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Neutral, Maple-Pine, Golden Oak, Cherry , W alnut, Mahoogany ,
Dark W alnut, Dark Oak, and Ebony Brown

Removes whitee heat ringse heat rings
Removes white

Restores origginal finishginal finish
Restores orig
Call (800) 266-9545 or V w. .HowardProduccts.com
Viisit www
Yo
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14 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles