When I begin to think I have heard or seen everything, that is precisely the moment I get the biggest surprises. I've been sharing my views of the Antique and Art market with all that will listen for over six months now through this Blog and news articles. Not only have I stated where I stand, I have given examples to my readers of just how good this market is, where I see it going, and how it's better than ever before in history.
Yet, I am continually surprised to read "leaders" in the field of Antiques & Art say there are no great deals to still be made. Even though I share with them from time to time, my personal examples of transactions I make on a continual basis, negativity still rules. My heart aches for their readers who take this negativity into their mind and heart. I'm dizzy already, shaking my head from side to side.
I feel safe in saying that having an affinity for past eras is an integral part of each one of us who deals in this market. Even the furnishings in our homes and the items in our workplaces probably reflect the times of bygone eras. And, if we're really truthful with ourselves, we might even go so far as to say, in our quiet moments, we romanticize times long gone, especially when the present era can seem so difficult and uncertain. I admit, I do some of this myself from time to time. But when I do, I rarely let my mind stay there very long.
You see, I accept life is always in motion. That change happens. And whether we like it or not, there's not a lick of anything we can do to control that. If we can release the feelings of uncertainty and fear we might have when we notice a change coming on, we free ourselves to grasp the opportunity that lies underneath this change. Making this mind adjustment frees us to move forward, joyfully learning and striving for something better.
But, change is hard for most, and that's quite natural. We're creatures of habit. We like to cocoon ourselves with comfort and familiarity. Something or someone we can count on. This is a false security. It is also our human condition. But, the one who stays in the cocoon, fighting the inevitable forward movement of time, not growing or striving, eventually writes his own epitaph.
There is no question that the Antique market has changed. And if you're working the same way, selling the same middle to lower end items you've always sold, it's time to change. Every business market has changed. It's the nature of the beast. The last time I went to retrieve my car from a garage in Downtown Chicago, I put my claim ticket into a machine, slipped in my credit card, walked to my car, and got through the gate without ever once having to deal with an attendant. That business, too, has changed.
In our business, the opportunity is in the more rare and valuable items and in the upper end of the market. This is what sells like hotcakes. I've said that time and time again. I know it's hard to let go, but why would anyone want to continue to battle the trend trying to sell what people don't want to buy?
Know the trends. Know your customers. If they don't want what you sell, why are you still trying to sell it? If you can hardly sell items now for what you paid for them earlier, why are you still holding onto them? Sell them at a loss if you have to, and get your cash moving in what people want, that quickly sells. If you must deal in fewer items because they cost more to buy, so what? They sell faster, and at greater prices. When you re-circulate the money into buying even more valuable items the next time, you make even more money when you sell.
No one comes into your shop anymore? Higher end items are where it's at. Do you have any? Is your shop in an area that will attract high end customers? Do you even need a shop to sell high end items?
Many people have had to change their methods of doing business to take advantage of this upsurge in the upper end of this market. Those who have made the choice to change, prosper. Have you make that choice?
The book I've written is a step-by-step method of succeeding in the high end market. Have you read what it says inside? Does shifting into the higher end market take some work? Yes. Is it necessary to grow in knowledge. Yes. Are you willing?
I recently bought a painting for $240 and sold it at auction for $3,700. The average person trying to make a few extra dollars in this business would think that this return was exceptional. Even an old time dealer might agree. $500 just bought a friend of mine a painting, that by all the records, shows promise for selling for over $25,000. These examples aren't million dollar trades, but these are happening every day. How do you think all these records are being established? By people who’ve increased their knowledge to know a good piece when they see one, doing the research, and selling them to people who are ready, willing and able to buy. Do you think that the Warhol painting that sold this year for approximately $71,000,000 was purchased for $50,000,000? I doubt it. It could have very easily been purchased for under a million dollars.
I would like for all these negative writers to raise their collective heads to see and feel the sunlight. In fact, I would like to see our journalists interview some of the people who are experiencing these record sales, rather than quoting the doomsdayers. When I hear a baby cry, I pick him up and try to comfort him. If you, as a collector or dealer, hear someone complaining, why not share with them a positive message?
If you are a dealer who has fallen prey to this negativity, can you possibly see the glass as half full? Can you decide to adjust your thoughts. When you can, you’ll soon see yourself emerging out of that cocoon, the butterfly God intended for you to become.
We collectors and dealers are the luckiest people in the world. We meet wonderful people, our time is on our own schedule, and we have the opportunity to make unlimited amounts of money if we are wise enough to see it, take the action necessary to increase our knowledge, and go out there and do something about it.
I personally wake up each and every morning with a spirit of adventure in my heart, knowing this could be the day I have found a great painting bought well, or a painting I sell for over $100,000. Maybe even $500,000. Maybe higher.
Discover how the 31 Club together with our book can be the tool that helps you build more personal wealth dealing in the rare and valuable upper end markets, rather than the conventional methods of stock, bonds, and real estate investing. You won't find these kind of results with your bank or your stock broker! Find out more about joining our growing community of antique and art wealth builders
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