Investment trends and advice for the next decade
Buying and selling collectibles, antiques and artworks
At the dawn of a new year, AntiqueSage.com is unveiling its crystal ball in terms of significant trends for antique investors.
Items from the 70s and 80s.
They will begin to be regarded as antique. It generally takes 40 to 50 years for an object to be regarded as antique. With the arrival of 2020, 1970s objects will be widely accepted in the pantheon of antiques. The 1970s with its wild combinations of sleek modernism and textured abstract naturalism, will certainly appeal to the most experienced connoisseurs. Not to mention some items from the 1980s, “notorious years of excess and folly”, will find their way into the hands of collectors. We are talking about objects with daring geometric patterns, primary colours and neon lights.
Antiques
While traditional investment markets are struggling to generate returns, the Antiques market is set to explode. We are speaking here of superior quality antiques, made of precious metals , exotic woods or glittering gemstones. Investors appreciate this alternative form of investment because it is tangible.
Precious metal
The prices are rising and will remain so, affecting the antiques market such as coins, jewellery, watches, silverware, fountain pens made of precious metals. It is therefore no exaggeration to believe that an increase in the price of gold and silver will lead to a definite enthusiasm for these quality objects.
Collectibles
Since 2008, the “collectibles” market has been on the decline. We are talking about memorabilia, glassware, trinkets, porcelain, and large antique furniture. The middle class, which used to be the mainstay of the collectibles trade, has been decimated by the poor economic situation.
Eighteenth century antiques
They will become the new 17th century antiques: at the moment, high quality late eighteenth century antiques – the 1770s, 1780s and 1790s – are still available on the market. But these antiques are currently at least 220 years old. And, at the dawn of the 21st century, the 18th will disappear more and more in the mists of the past. In fact, the 18th century – with all the wonderful Rococo, Neoclassical and Georgian antiques of that era – will soon seem as far from us in time as the 17th century. In the next decade, fewer and fewer of these beautiful 18th century antiques will be available to collectors. As availability decreases and this tendency is acknowledged, prices will rise on a predictable basis.
The extinction (or almost) of antique dealers
Picturesque small antique shops, once omnipresent in small towns and America’s countryside, will finally disappear forever. The decline in the population of these regions, high commercial rents and the persistent weakness of the economy will make it impossible for most of these antique stores to survive. Of course, there will always be antique shops in large cities, although much less than in the past. And the thrift and secondhand stores will also persist. But most antique transactions will be done on the Internet via eBay, Etsy, Ruby Lane or other online sales platforms. This will be a major – and permanent – change in the way antiques are purchased and sold.
Smaller antiques are popular
The 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s were acknowledged as a period of flagrant excess and unrepentant materialism. This was expressed in the slogan: ” Bigger is Better”. People wanted to own huge SUVs, huge houses and as many “things” as they could hope for. Oversized Victorian furniture, paintings and monumental sculptures were quickly sold in this setting.
But recently there has been a return to the simple pleasures of the diminutive. People now live in smaller spaces, such as condos, townhouses or modest single-family homes. They have neither the time, nor the money, nor the patience to struggle with gigantic works of art or antiques. Quality antiques, compact and portable, perfectly meet this thriving need for small-scale art. So the investment trends in antiques is clearly for smaller and more delicate furniture.
Antique dealers’ mid-range market
This is where the action will be.We have been assaulted in recent years with endless articles and stories about important antiques and other works of art setting multi-million dollar auction records. This gave the distinct impression that art objects and antiques are restricted only to the wealthy elite. However, most of this demand for high-end antiques has been fuelled by the vigour of the securities markets. But the next decade will probably be marked by a period of considerable chaos in financial markets. Under this scenario, the purchase of antiques from the very wealthy will decrease considerably.
Middle-class people will turn to quality antiques as a means of hedging the risks associated with traditional paper assets. This means that the mid-range of the investment-oriented antiques market, with prices between $250 and $5,000, will become the ideal item. Reasonably priced antiques in this category have already doubled or tripled in value since the turn of the millennium. And there is every reason to believe that these neglected investment treasures will replicate this exploit over the next 10 years.
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