ANTIQUES, ART, AND UNEMPLOYMENT

As unemployment is inching towards 10%, a dark cloud hovers over the antiques and arts markets. I have spoken to people associated with auction houses in New Zealand, Hong Kong Singapore, New York, Pennsylvania, and San Francisco. Layoffs continue due to lagging sales, and lower prices at auction resulting in lower profits. The first place to start is by laying off people..No salaries, no fringe benefits, no sick pay, no vacations.

Auction house sales are down to about 65% on average. Big ticket items are not attracting the collector or the investor The $20,000,000. works of art are not attracting bids, and if they are, they are in after market at 50% less. After market translates to an offer after no one bids on the item. A nicely kept secret.

There are trickle down effects. With fewer people buying, galleries have closed. The Chelsea area in New York City, once a mecca for the gainfully employed now has storefronts with going out of business sales. The unluckier ones have already closed down. Dealers are stuck with inventories of "up -and-coming" artists. These artists are suffering because the dealers cannot sell their artwork. Entrepeneurs who run Exhibitions are finding fewer exhibitors willing to spend money on booths. Travel, hotels, insurance, no longer add up to investment spending, when there is no return on the investment. A dealer in Florida in Fine Art, went to Washington D.C., to exhibit. "A disaster" he asserted.

Many publications are seeing lower ad revenues. Fewer pages mean less hiring, more firing.. Newspaper and magazines, dealing in art and antiques, coupled with journalism hard news, are laying off reporters, columnists, graphic artists; "assistants to the" are becoming a thing of the past. It has been reported the Los Angeles Times has laid off more than 50% of its staff of 1100 people. The Wall Street Journal is closing its Boston Bureau. Newspapers and magazines over the past few years have reduced journalism spending by 1.6 billion dollars. That is BILLION, with a "B".

Is there any good news out there? If here is, YOU CAN BET YOU WILL READ IT HERE FIRST. So what is someone to do who has something to sell? Hold on to it, unless you need he money, and if you need the cash, ask me what it might be worth before you give it away, Incidentally, some of he smaller auction house are sending out notices to their clients, that that they will accept up to 15% lower bids on the lowest bid you will accept for your consigned property. In this economic environment, everyone who is hurting, winds up wounding the other guy financially. We are backed up with ll of the inqueries we are receiving from you, but we promise to answer all of those questions quickly.

Remember, be ANTIQUE SMART!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!