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Discover Mid-America — December 2005

Getting the goods at auction

Auctions have been a traditional and favored inventory source for dealers in antiques and fine collectibles. Unfortunately, the competition for auction inventory has become keener in recent decades.

In this eBay era when everyone fancies himself a dealer, inventory that would once have made its way to a local auction house is now being hawked to the world. At live auctions, there is increased bidding competition from decorators and interior designers. Collectors, too, are cutting out the "middle man" and going direct to auction – whether online or on the ground - for both sales and collection acquisitions. Auction-goers have come to dread the phrase "phone bidder" because it usually translates as "deep pockets."

Luckily, though, there remain some local and country auctions where it's still possible to get good inventory by bidding - and behaving - well.

Do unto others

In an era when inventory is getting scarce all around, auctions are a place where temptations for buyers to behave badly are perhaps accentuated by the palpable air of competition that surrounds such events. Some might just call these "the tricks of the trade," but, arguably, they're a violation of auction etiquette if not of ethics.

Some buyers, for example, mess with the box lots during preview. In this sleight of hand, a buyer arranges his or her own box lot by surreptitiously switching items between boxes previously arranged by the auction house. In this way, the buyer amasses a lot he'd like to take home - enabling him to cherry pick at a box lot price. (One imagines there would be some rather strong peer pressure against this practice, not to mention the monitoring by auction staff.)

Dealers have even been known to talk down merchandise in which they're particularly interested so as to discourage other bidders and acquire a valuable resale item on the cheap. Hardly sporting, is it? Sort of like hunting corralled deer where you're the only hunter.

Although its style is distinctly Asian, this multi-colored transferware plate was actually made in Maastricht, Holland by Petrus Regout and Co. in its "Timor" pattern. The "Sphinx" trademark on the base with the name P. Regout dates the firing to late 19th-early 20th century. Part of a larger china set, it's worth about $20-$25 all by its lonesome and is the sort of modest little treasure you might find in an auction box lot. (photo by the author)

Know thyself

At the auction preview, it's a good idea to decide how much you'd be willing to bid on any given item, then to stay strictly at or below that level. If you really want the item for resale, you can't be so much in love with it that you'd be willing stay married to it -which is just what will happen if you bid it so high you'd have to price it for resale far above its value to any potential customer.

Reining in one's bidding horses in the heat of the adrenaline rush is, apparently, easier said than done. More than once, I've heard a sheepish dealer confess, in referring to a particularly high price tag on one of his items, that he paid way too much for the item at auction.

The limitations on a dealer's bidding capacity for items intended for resale are a matter not just of money, but also of expertise. How much do you really know about what you're bidding on?

Auctions always involve a certain element of risk. But if you know Arts & Crafts furniture by its reputation more than by your own expertise, you could find yourself the top bidder in brisk competition for a Gustav Stickley that turns out to be a Martha Stewart.

Cast your bread on the waters

Resist the urge to spend beyond the limits you've set for yourself prior to the auction, yes, but also be realistic about the maximum you'd be willing to pay. If you're willing to settle for less than a 200% margin on resale (and don't laugh; I know more than one dealer who routinely prices that way), you might be able to afford to pay a modest but respectable price for it at auction.

My father and I recently attended a New England auction that featured a number of older, scarce items of Fenton Art Glass, in pristine condition and highly desirable to any serious Fenton collector. To his delighted surprise, my dad was able to buy pretty much every Fenton he wanted at this auction, at a low fraction if its value and despite his limited bidding capacity. Naturally, I was more than happy for my father! Still, it seemed a missed opportunity for the trade, especially since 2005 is the centennial year of America's oldest continuously running glass company.

This Diamond Lace epergne is part of my father's Fenton collection. At a recent New England auction, he found a bowl and a pair of candlesticks in the same pattern and was able to buy them and several other scarce and desirable Fenton items for little money after others dropped out of the bidding early. (photo by the author)

Make a joyful noise

Being able to get an auctioneer's attention with a subtle tug of an earlobe or a barely discernible nod of the head may look cool, but it won't always work as a strategy for getting the auctioneer's attention.

In a crowded auction hall, or late in the auction when the auctioneer's energies are beginning to flag and he/she feels a certain urgent compulsion to get this thing over with and go home, you might just have to forego being Joe Cool and sing out your bids.

Take it from whence it comes

Customers of the trade always want to know, when they find an interesting item in a shop or at a show, where the items came from. Yet provenance is, sadly, more often than not missing from price tags.

Auction acquisitions give a dealer a unique opportunity to obtain provenance information. Even when the auction isn't billed as an estate sale, the auctioneer or his/her staff will sometimes know where an item came from. So ask! Then put what you learn on the tag.

This oil on canvas was bought for a song at a charity auction. Its title (from verso) is "Mt. Mansfield at Night." The winter scene of a well-known Vermont landmark makes the painting desirable to a Vermonter like me [photo by the author from her own collection].

Even when you don't know exactly where the item originated, the fact that you bought this unmarked pottery vase at an auction in Michigan or that oil on canvas in Massachusetts will at least give the buyer a clue as to the general geographic area from whence the item originates.

Provenance provides a marketing edge on resale. So sharpen your pencil, hone your curiosity, and have a great day at the auction!

Peggy Whiteneck is a writer and collector living in East Randolph, VT. If you would like to suggest a topic she can address in her column, email her at allwrite@sover.net.

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