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Top selling Antique and Vintage Categories of 2022

Released by Ashford Institute

or industry insiders, the wait is finally over. Now in its fourteenth Survey Results Across the Ages
year, the Asheford Institute’s annual survey of top decorative arts The survey results are broken down by Antique and Vintage
Fbuying trends from the past twelve months has just made its way Business Proprietors Aged 20-40, Aged 40-60, and Aged 60-80. Here
to fans, dealers, and readers who want to keep up with the trends. are the Top Ten favorite fields to buy and sell in order from one to ten

for each category.
About the Survey
The survey was conducted from January 2022 to December 2022 by Antique and Vintage Business Proprietors Aged 20-40
the research staff at the Asheford Institute. The survey consisted of a 1. Textiles
sampling of over 2,264 current students and past graduates that are 2. Waterfall Edge and Art Deco Revival
actively employed or working within the antiques, collectibles, and 3. Art Deco
vintage marketplaces within the United States and Canada (both urban 4. Mid-Century Modern
and rural areas). All those who participated in the survey operate their 5. Kitchen and Barware
own antiques and vintage, or estate sale/appraisal businesses (including 6. Space Collectibles
online concerns) and were listed as “proprietors” in the survey. 7. Victorian: Early, Mid, and Late
8. Early Americana/Canadiana
Economic and Supply Chain Issues 9. Lucite and the 1970s
As with virtually all business this past year, Harper says ongoing sup- 10. Lighting

ply-chain issues continued to have an effect on almost every segment of Antique and Vintage Business Proprietors Aged 40-60
the economy - including certain genres within the decorative arts field. 1. Art Deco
“In 2021 we were all still recovering from Covid, but this past year, 2. Textiles
buyers, dealers, and collectors were out en masse, in-person, and were 3. Automobilia/Petroliana
literally snapping up everything in sight.” Harper says that by the end 4. Mid-Century Modern
of summer, many dealers were complaining about a lack of available 5. Victorian: Early, Mid, and Late
and affordable inventory. “It wasn’t just one category of collectible,” 6. Costume Jewelry
says Harper, “it was virtually anything from folk art to baseball cards." 7. Art Nouveau
Similar tales have surfaced in previous years, but Harper says those sce- 8. Lighting
narios were not even close to the severe shortage of available stock that 9. Paintings/Sculptures
many antique and vintage dealers faced in 2022. Harper believes that 10. Vinyl Records
some collecting categories in this year’s poll may have risen or fallen not
necessarily because of a lack of popularity, but because of a lack of stable Antique and Vintage Business Proprietors Aged 60-80
inventory. However, he does acknowledge one upside to all the market 1. Chinese Antiques
uncertainty – for most dealers, sale prices rose sharply. 2. Mid-Century Modern
Fan favorites like Art Deco and Textiles continued to boom says 3. Toys and Board Games
Shole, while other perennial favorites such as Mid-century modern 4. Georgian (style) Furniture
began to show signs of weakening. In other areas of the survey, there 5. Art Deco Period Jewelry
were also some pleasant surprises as once again an unexpected (but 6. Victorian: Early, Mid, and Late
familiar) era of collecting shot back up the charts to a respectable place- 7. Watches (both Antique and Vintage)
ment for the first time in over twenty-five years. Furniture. The cause? 8. Silver
Well, according to Shole, it’s all about a younger generation that’s 9. Architectural Antiques
turned frugal-collector. “Young people are looking for inexpensive eco- 10. Ephemera
friendly choices and sustainability,” says Shole, “and the antique and
vintage market is giving them that.” Shole believes that the creation For more information on Asheford Institute of Antiques—the
of new trends in the decorative arts market is more of a symbiotic world’s largest Antiques, Vintage and Appraisal Distance Learning
relationship than anything else. “When Millennials and Gen-Zers need School—visit asheford.com Here, you can learn more about the school,
something, and we’re able to supply it to them,” she says, “and it’s that gain information on how to start and antiques and vintage business,
practical aspect that’s driving the creation of some of these new trends.” how to conduct estate sales, and more

16 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles