While antique shops have massively closed their doors in recent decades, a new generation of antique dealers is observing a strong enthusiasm among young people for antique furniture and objects.
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“It’s not the 80s, but we’re going up the slope,” rejoices Karine Belzile, owner of Chic Shack Antique & Vintage in Saint-Basile-le-Grand, in Montérégie, and host of the series. “Auction fever” on the Historia channel.
Photo provided by Karine Belzile
The 1970s and 80s were lucrative for antique dealers, many of whom set up shop, notably on Notre-Dame Street West in Montreal or on Saint-Paul Street in Quebec City. Times have changed, but the popularity of vintage and the Mid-Century Modern (MCM) style is gradually bringing young people back to antique shops.
Photo provided by Karine Belzile
“Young people like to recycle objects and stand out. Instead of buying furniture in supermarkets that looks like everyone else’s, they like to have eclectic, ecological, durable and beautiful objects,” says Ms. Belzile, whose parents were also antique dealers.
Antiques dealer Steve Deshaies observes the same phenomenon. “Antiquity is currently going very, very well. Four or five years ago, it was said that it was falling and that there was no more succession. It’s wrong. We are a small gang of young people and it works,” enthuses the 45-year-old man who opened his business, Antiquité SG, in Vieux-Terrebonne, barely a year ago.
Photo provided by Steve Deshaies
In addition to Mr. Deshaies, Mathieu Bourguet of G&M Bourguet in Quebec, Alexandre Lalonde of Chez l’manouche in Montreal and Maude Rochefort of Antiquités Benoit Rochefort in Sainte-Eulalie, among others, are training the new generation in this field.
For some time, Karine Belzile has been trying to change the concept of antiques. The population has often had the image of this merchant who displays his products in a shop where brown, luster and dust are omnipresent and where space is limited.
“I move away from this image. In showrooms, I prioritize white, turquoise and brown. In addition, my antiques are presented in a more refined way where the object becomes a work of art”, explains the one who sells only online or in exhibitions.
Photo provided by Karine Belzile
For his part, Steve Deshaies wants his shop to be well lit and not cluttered with antiques. “People say it’s like visiting a museum. I have as many compliments on the products as on the way they are laid out. Before, people went to antique shops and didn’t even see the pieces. They had difficulty getting around in the shops,” says Steve Deshaies.
In addition to working on the appearance of his shop, the owner writes a description of it on each object. “I want customers to know what the history of the coin is and what it was used for.”
Photo provided by Steve Deshaies
To stand out in the antiques market, however, it is not enough to present the products well in shops and showrooms. You also need to be active on social media and the web. “Since the pandemic, we have sold a lot more online”, mentions Karine Belzile on this subject.
