December 2007 sales of antiques and collectibles show 19% increase over 2006

TIAS.com today released data for their December 2007 sales of antiques and collectibles, which show a 19% upturn in sales volume when compared to December of 2006. TIAS.com has tracked online sales data for the antiques and collectibles merchants within their online mall since 1995. Their data is based thousands of transactions that took place on the Web sites of hundreds of TIAS merchants.
Many Internet based antiques & collectibles merchants have reported significant decreases in online sales volume over the past 3 years. The December 2007 increase is important because it is the first significant sign the antiques and collectibles market may be recovering. At the height of the online market for antiques and collectibles from 1998 to 2004 there appeared to be a “gold rush” attitude about making money online. It seemed that everyone was dumping merchandise onto the Web, hoping to make a quick buck. This worked for a while, but as the market became flooded with inventory. On-line and off-line merchants were forced to lower their prices to compete.
“What we have witnessed is that many merchants just pulled out of the market entirely because they could not get the returns they needed to stay in business. Brick and mortar antique shops and malls have closed at an alarming rate. We’ve also seen a large number of On-line merchants just pull out of the market completely” said Phillip Davies President of TIAS.com “These new December numbers may signify that the devastating market correction we have witnessed over the past 3 years, is finally coming to an end.”
A good indication that December 2007 numbers represent a market shift, will be the TIAS.com sales volume results for January 2008. TIAS.com will have these numbers in early February and will post another report at that time.
Accredited media interested in scheduling an interview to discuss this press release or other issues related to the online sale of antiques and collectibles are encouraged to contact Phillip Davies at [email protected] or call 1-516-294-3161
About TIAS
TIAS serves approximately 160,000 unique customers a day. About 530 merchants sell through the TIAS system, listing well over half a million items for sale online. The company has been building e-commerce systems for merchants who sell antiques and collectibles since 1995.