Oscar Wilde’s quote about “Knowing the Price of Everything and the Value of Nothing” is highly relevant within Old Tools. Hopefully, this article will also help some people think about the value rather than the price of things in many aspects of what we do in life.
Over the years we have become accustomed to comparisons based on price only but what is often forgotten is the importance and fundamentals of the knowledge that supports the product or service with that said price. Some of us remember the past when you could walk into a specialist’s shop or showroom knowing not only did they know in detail about what they sold but often they had the skills and backup to solve any issues that may arise in the future. When the internet took off, how many went to these shops for advice before searching online for cheaper alternatives? Sadly as we have seen, the high street has declined and shoppers now have to rely on online reviews that have no real meaning or in-depth knowledge. This is our future if this trend continues if specialist knowledge is continually undervalued.
A little Rant first! Large corporations prefer it that way but we have seen what has happened over the past few years when worldwide supply chains are disrupted. With an ever-increasing reliance upon corporations, we have already seen how they abuse their power with higher charges. I feel that large corporations have used smaller businesses for in-depth knowledge to benefit their online sales, this was only possible by standing on the shoulders of the previous generation’s shoulders of ingenuity.
I don’t believe large corporations build or make things that last and for this reason, they have a much bigger carbon footprint than they announce, and offsetting it with paying for geoengineering carbon credits is highly unethical, especially when it is hidden from the public, not only do we have to put up with the sewage in our rivers, we now have the chemicals in the air so the corporation CEO’s can on paper tick the boxes of Net Zero. Since when did they make a claim to our air?
I can say 100% I think our planet should be preserved for future generations and waste has to be reduced but for this people need to learn how to appreciate and look after what they own. They do not need to refurnish their homes every five years because the fashionable junk they bought wasn’t built to last and this is why I think the Antique and vintage upcycling market is so important because when it’s done well it’s highly unique and imaginative.
We can see large corporations are frothing at the mouth with the thought of adopting AI to eliminate the need for workers who aren’t valued, profits over ethics every time, and yet people still willingly use them, go figure! The price people will pay will be much bigger than the value it brings to society.
I could go on and on regarding many aspects of the too-big-to-fail Western system, what I’m highlighting here is a point about the hidden value and the price people pay for things.
So let’s get back to old vintage usable tools, what do I mean about “knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing” when I’m talking about this subject? I shall start with hard-earned knowledge through experience, is it, and should it be free? In some ways yes, we learn from reading what others are willing to say on a subject, for example, I list old tools on this website at a cost to us for maintaining the website and many people use it to learn what tools are but also use it as a price guide. This doesn’t pay for that service, people are freely using it to list their tools elsewhere, how unfair is that? but we accept it as par for the course to run this business. However, we know what we are selling and what is involved in bringing these tools to the website knowing how they relate to the prices charged. The untrained eye will not know this, they will not understand the finer details and their importance to each tool.
I see firsthand what is happening in the Antique and vintage tool marketplace. I saw what happened during the pandemic and how sellers often charged the same prices if not more without the efforts or knowledge needed to bring the tools up to standard, it’s still happening today but they got away with it until now because there was a supply and demand problem. We did not take advantage of the situation and continued building our customer base and we refined our standards for the end product we sold. Our customers’ needs come first and it will always be this way, those who appreciate what we set out to do return because of the unseen value our knowledge and setup brings.
I often speak about how not all bread is the same but can look similar, the ingredients can be very different, and how hidden additives benefit the manufacturers rather than the bread buyers. The illusion of quality is easier to deceive the untrained eye in a price-driven market and the quality takes time to understand its true value.
Good value for money comes when you can buy old tools that can compete in quality and performance with the best quality tools you can buy today. When these old tools can and do offer better qualities than new it stands to reason why the vintage tool market is so important to users of tools.
We must ultimately decide to value what is important in the long term and appreciate those who see the value of what they do over those who are just interested in the profits without investing in their knowledge obtained through passion and experience.
The value of the pound note is a great example, once upon a time it was redeemable for 1lb or 16oz of pure silver trading today at £23.79 per ounce. Is it any wonder the prices of houses etc have risen so much over the years when a paper pound note really should be worth £380.64 in buying terms? The delusion of value has been manipulated over the years as have so many other things.
Since the pandemic, prices of raw old tools have fallen due to less demand and a steady supply whilst every other business costs have risen which has widened the costs between tools that are ‘as is’ and those that are fully refurbished. These extra inflated costs of time, materials, power, transport, business premises, etc are the hidden costs involved in adding the value of ‘ready for use’.
I have written about how things would change for the old tool market in this blog and again I will make this prediction for the years ahead. New tool inflation will continue at a rapid pace in the years ahead because of the inflation of raw materials, labour, and all other costs associated with running a business. This will have a knock-on effect on the used tool market as demand will rise once again because of this. This reduction we can see in the demand is temporary which means it will be a tough year or so for us old tool dealers who do this for a living.
Every industry needs leaders who possess a deep understanding of the topic and hopefully, we have done enough over the past few years for our customers to understand how valuable we will be to them in the future.
As for the collectable antique tools market, I’ve said before that there has never been a better time to buy them as a long-term investment because this area has not been well served over the past few years because of how they are sold and because very few understand their true values. Prices have declined over the past 30 years and many antique tools have more value to users. The importance of dealers to this topic is as important as the collectors themselves and a big part of the problem is VAT related to turnover, private collectors also do not want these added tax charges. The profit margins are very small because everyone owning these antique tools usually knows what they have and often wants a higher than market price for them, hence why they usually go to auction. It’s a race to the bottom or to where users value them higher than collectors.
It’s been a difficult area for us in recent years and one I’ve been pondering over because it requires to my detriment a hell of a lot of investment and development which I have now been paused for the time being. Supply and demand are paramount and that demand is where it needs igniting through a better understanding of the value of these antique tools which could be obtained from a community of fellow collectors and dealers through events to help build investor’s confidence. It could be said that people know the price of everything and the value of nothing in this specific part of this subject! Saying that there are some who overprice some antique tools in today’s marketplace.
Value is far more important than price when all things are considered, our health and well-being depend on making the right choices. If you suffer from stiff joints it’s probably the missing magnesium and other minerals that were once in our vegetables, it’s seems crazy but even our peas & carrots are not what they seem nowadays!
