Asheford Institute Releases 2024 Decorative Arts Survey Results

New York - The Asheford Institute has released its sixteenth annual survey of leading decorative arts purchasing trends from the past year, available both digitally and in print nationwide. This international study, conducted among the Institute's students and alumni, provides crucial insights for industry professionals, offering a snapshot of the current decorative arts market and serving as a key sales indicator for those in the antique and vintage trade.

The school's unique position of having direct access to a substantial number of industry respondents has made the survey a staple for many in the decorative arts community. Tony Drew, the school's lead researcher, says the key to getting meaningful survey results that antique and vintage businesses can actually use to help plan their inventory and buying strategies for the upcoming year is based on receiving actual sales data, alongside item-specific requests from buyers, which can then be used to indicate interest within a particular collecting genre.

As with most businesses this past year, Drew says ongoing worries related to interest rate hikes affected almost every segment of the economy early on, including antique and vintage concerns. "High interest rates forced people to tighten their belts and head out in search of deals - including those related to decorative arts purchases," he said. The knock-on effect was that many of the dealers surveyed indicated a dramatic increase in foot traffic for their bricks-and-clicks businesses, as people hunted down resale bargains, translating into higher sales overall. "The rising numbers were across the board," said Drew, "however, there were some notable standouts when it came to the type of antiques and collectables people were buying."

Amber Shole, who's been compiling survey data for the school for over thirteen years, says poll results showed that while some customers may have turned to the antique and vintage market for interest rate refuge and a cost-of-living hack, they stayed for much more. "It's no longer simply about cost-conscious millennials and Gen Z's scooping up deals on Victorian furniture," says Shole, "but more about buyers looking for long-term decorative commitments, with an eye towards sustainability, uniqueness, and eco-friendly options."

 Shole also noted that while fan favorites like Automobilia, Textiles, and to a lesser extent Mid-Century Modern, continued to prowl near the top of the results board, there was also a strong move towards more traditional antique themes and items, with an early twentieth style that had largely been overlooked in the past decade suddenly surging up the charts. "That's what's really interesting about the surveys," says Shole, "You never really know what categories are going to place where, until all the data is finally in, and even then the results can often come as a bit of a surprise."

Contrary to previous polling samples, Shole says this year's buyers also ran the gamut when it came to age. "For the past few years, it's most definitely been the youngsters pushing the antique and vintage markets forward," she said, "but as more traditional antiques have returned, so have some baby boomers." All of which Shole says goes to prove the old adage about surprises...

For those wanting to view the entire line-up from this year's annual survey results of the best-selling antique and vintage genre categories from 2024, including this year's winners, you can find all the results here.

 If you would like more information about the school's distance learning program on antiques, vintage, appraising, and the decorative arts, you can visit their website at www.asheford.com, email them directly at info@asheford.com, or write to them at Asheford Institute of Antiques, 981 Harbor Blvd. Ste. 3, #275GZ1 Destin, FL 32541, or call them toll-free at 877-444-4508.