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Antiques & Collectibles: Rumors of the Sky Falling are Greatly Exaggerated
I have been involved in Antiques and Collectibles for over forty years, and from the day I started, there have always been doomsdayers in this industry who get stuck on negative information and reports. My question today about the barrage of negative industry articles is, “So, what else is new?” People have been saying that the baseball card craze is over, yet in May of this year, a 1958 Bowman Mickey Mantle Rookie card brought in more than three times its estimated price, selling for $162,000and recently, the highest price ever paid for a baseball card was achieved when the T206 Honus Wagner card sold for $2.3 million.
Back in the 1980’s, I was hearing that there would never be fine paintings selling again at the kind of prices they were seeing at that time. Fast forward to 2007, and we see Andy Warhol’s 1963 Green Car Crash (Green Burning Car I) bringing in $71.72 million at Christie’s, not to mention the sale of Mark Rothko’s 1950 piece, “White Center (Yellow, Pink and Lavender on Rose)," selling through Sotheby’s for an astonishing $72.8 million, an all time record for postwar art.
I think it’s time for all of us to study the facts. High quality paintings and fine Antiques will always be one of the best investments a person can make. Even those rare collectibles will prove to be a shrewd investment for those that have the knowledge to distinguish their value. Nothing has kept up with inflation like these high quality items. A Picasso painting bought in earlier years for a few thousand dollars or a Faberge Egg initially acquired for several thousand proves that the best will always increase substantially in value.
The question to ask is, “If I bought it today, will it be a great investment today? You see, the great thing about the Antique and Collectible market is that if you study it and have patience, you can still buy choice rare pieces at wholesale or less. Often, if you buy paintings or other high quality pieces, you can sell them immediately and cash out with no risk, doubling or tripling your money. Then you can start the process all over again. This is much better buying something and having to hold it for a substantial number of years to get the same result. Let some bank tell you that they can match that performance.
When I was growing up, the number one stock to buy was General Motors. This purchase might not look so good to the person that bought General Motors at $125, now that the stock only has a value of $37 a share. It can be very misleading to say that General Motors is a failed company from an investment perspective, because there are those who bought the stock at $18, and I’d imagine they are pretty happy with their investment today.
The Fine Art, Antique & Collectible Markets are well and thriving. Only the people who haven’t kept up with the trends of this market are continuing to talk poorly of it. I do feel compassion for them, but if they won’t adjust their thinking, look for the new opportunity, and change the way they do business, according to the times we now live in, success in this industry will always be beyond their grasp. All industries experience shifts and changes requiring adjustments, often times major adjustments.
I am, also, constantly encouraged and believe that this market is going to continue to draw new people to it as long as there are people. Justin, an eleven-year-old boy, just contacted us at the 31 Club, to share how he is starting an after school club to follow the 31 Steps I wrote about in my book, “31 Steps to Your Millions in Antiques & Collectibles.” On the other side, I have spoken to men and women in their seventies and eighties who are excited to begin their new venture into the world of Antiques and Collectibles. Keep the ball rolling, and turn a deaf ear to all that say the sky is falling.
About Daryle S. Lambert:
Daryle S. Lambert is President and founder of 31 Inc., www.31Corp.com , a company that teaches wealth building within the antiques, collectibles, and fine art markets and maintains a growing marketplace and gallery. The company aims to create industry millionaires through its wealth accumulation methods set forth in Daryle’s book “31 Steps to Your Millions in Antiques & Collectibles. He is leader of the 31 Club, a wealth building club and community based upon his book, and is author of "The Guy in the Red Tie" antiques blog. www.31corp.com. He resides in the Chicago area with his wife and son.
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October 22nd, 2007 at 10:36 am