Power in Numbers-the Antique and Collectible Gang

When I started in the Antique business it was as if the whole world was against me.

Other dealers didn't want to share their information with me because they considered me competition. And sellers were leery of me because I was new in the business.

There were no computers to give me the information that is available today and the books that were in print were limited. It was a different world back in the sixties. Today their is more information than a person can absorb. With the many articles in Maine Antique Digest, Antique Trade and the Antique Weekly you can stay on top of todays trends and current auction prices almost on a daily bases. Books such as The Kovel's Antique Price Guide and Dictionary of Marks prove to be invaluable to me.

Still there is a need to have people that you can work with on a personal level. This may have a solution in the formation of a new club called [ The 31 Club ] that will put people in contact with each otherso that needs can be met. If they are selling or buying antiques or collectibles, they can share information and ideas with the group.

They will have their own marketplace that will be advertised for them on their website. I think that this is the wave of the future where people will join together and take control of the market. This community might be like the farmers co-ops developed in years past. There always has been strength in numbers and that is no different today. I am very thankful that this idea is coming of age and I was able to help develop it. I think that it is here to stay. Please let us know your feelings pro and con on this new approach to the business.