Picking Vehicles Over The Years

A picker's vehicle is one of the most important tools he/she has.  These have been my "pickermobiles" over the years.

Late 1980s - early 1990s

(1) late 70s/Early 1980s 4 door Chevette

&

(2) 1980s 4 Door Pontiac Acadian 

(Essentially a Pontiac badged Chevette)

I fit 5 to 6 eight foot banquet tables worth of inventory into this car, and even then the inventory was crammed on my show tables.  

Even managed to haul a 12' long Texaco sign and a gas pump in these cars!

Acadian is shown wrecked after an accident. Walked away from it, luckily, with just bruises...some big bruises, but just bruises.

1990s

Late 1980 Dodge Ram Half Ton

With a cap on the back, this vehicle served me very well. Did lots of picking in this truck. Again, shown as it was, written off by MPIC, after a kid, driving his father's brand new truck, hit it on glare ice....marooning me & my girlfriend at the time in Shoal Lake for the better part of a week!

1980s Ford E150 Van

The first van I bought, and which hooked me on Ford full size vans.

Reliable, durable, but rust prone as they age..... But, "pretty" is not what a picker should be after when it comes to a vehicle!

Had another full size passenger van that I used temporarily inbetween these two.  

2000s

Another late 1980s E150

Put the back mounts of the leaf springs through the rusted out floor by hauling too heavy of scrap metal loads...couldn't close the back doors by the time I took it off the road.

Early 1990s Ford E250

A 3/4 ton van, this one cost me a fair bit in repairs, etc, but overall served me well.

1990s GMC Sierra

Used this as a temporary measure, but the 3/4 size box wasn't very utilitarian. The crew cab was ok for hauling stuff you didn't want to get dusty, but overall the truck was limited as far as using it for serious picking went.

2017-2018

1998 Ford E350

As of this posting, I am using a 1 ton Ford passenger van with the rear passenger seats, carpeted flooring, and assorted plastic interior trim removed. It was what I was able to find when I needed a van. The gutting took a bit of time, but it now serves its purpose. This one is a little more expensive when it comes to repairs, but it handles weight just fine. Has the usual Ford body rust issues, but it will have to do for awhile.   It isn't pretty, but it does the job.

I should note, I owned all these vehicles outright. No leases, bank loans, etc. They also were my "daily drivers", not just my picking vehicles.  

So, what is/was/were your pickermobile(s)?

TRANSFORM!

The whole business is undergoing a change, and frankly, we really should not be surprised.

The antiques & (true) collectibles market is self adjusting, and always has been. 

Supply and demand dictates much of what we do. Certainly we have had events that cause some manipulation of the markets, and the TV hype & focus on the buying and selling aspect of the antiques/collectibles business is a media reaction to hard financial times. The media is responding to the current market.....and that market is the general public who want to know of other ways to make money, rather than relying on the traditional financial system, which in their view has failed them.

We are also seeing another major change related directly to the same principle of supply and demand.

We have a bulge in the population (the Baby Boomer generation) which have been starting to slowly sell/dispose of more vintage things than they buy. At one time, not that long ago, that situation was reversed. The collecting segment of Baby Boomers has dominated the antiques & collectibles market for some time, and they now are in the process of selling their collections. Add to that the fact that their parents are now at an age where they are entering  retirement condo complexes,  independent/assisted living  personal care homes, passing on. So the now those same  Baby Boomers are liquidating their parents belongings as well. Adding even more inventory to the market. 

Plus, the upper level of the Baby Boomers are doing those same nearing the "end of life" adjustments themselves.

So, who is consuming this burgeoning supply?  Financial conditions are not exactly ripe for consumption of non-necessities en-masse.  Also, the what well may be the majority of the items being dumped on the market are not being received by the majority of the current collecting population with open wallets. Do most 30-somethings care about a 1950s tin toy? Yes, some of them think they are neat, see their appeal, but for most of that generation, their own childhood memories are rooted in the late 1970s and 1980s. Plastic Transformers tower over tin toys when it comes to what that generation recalls from their childhood's past.


Collections sought after by previous generations will change in desirability as the consumer base changes in age. wealth, priorities and interests.

Can we manipulate the interests of the collecting consumer?

Yes, we can, but only somewhat.  Employing media based ideas such as celebrity endorsements or other such manipulations will end with mixed results, some positive, some negative, some with no effects at all.

Dealers need to adapt, change, and bend with the trends.  Survival of the most adaptable and most flexible, and those willing to twist, turn, manipulate and add to their knowledge.

We should all strive to be Transformers.

(***This post started out as a reply to posting on another blog - Viewable at:  http://www.urbanartantiques.com/2011/can-lady-gaga-make-you-buy-antiques/ )