Antique decoy auction company Guyette and Schmidt, Inc established another record year in the sales of antique waterfowl decoys. The total auction sales for 2007 registered $3.25 million more in sales than in 2006, topping out at just under $14 million. Additional online, gallery and private sales are not included in this total.
According to the company’s president Gary Guyette, “Moving our primary headquarters from Farmington, Maine, to St Michaels has been a major contributing factor to this significant increase in sales. Having been located in central Maine, we were just too far removed from our client base. Whereas in Maine we had possibly 20″0 people a year visit our office; in Maryland we now may average that many visits on a daily basis.”
The logistical advantages of having offices in New England and the Mid-Atlantic region, with the company’s principals split between two strategic geographic regions, provides for a more timely response and higher quality level of service to the firm’s customer base.
Recently, the company established a long-term cross-marketing association with New York City- and London-based Christie’s. In 2003 and again in 2007, Guyette & Schmidt, in partnership with Christie’s, auctioned decoys at Christie’s Rockefeller Plaza location in New York City. These two events thrust antique waterfowl decoys into the center of the folk art world and have resulted in measurable crossover of long time folk art collectors to include the antique decoy as a highly collectible and uniquely American folk art form, the firm contends.
This cross-marketing effort will continue to involve the Easton Waterfowl Festival, conducted annually in Easton, Md., and the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition, in Charleston, S.C. Realizing the rich waterfowl history along Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Guyette & Schmidt, Inc has also developed similar associations with local entities, such as “Keepers” Orvis store and The Inn at Perry Cabin resort, both located in St Michaels.
Guyette & Schmidt said the 2008 outlook continues to look extremely bright. In January, with a third team effort between Christie’s and Guyette & Schmidt, Inc, waterfowl decoys will have a strong representation in the annual Christie’s American furniture and folk art sale set for Friday, January 18, during Antique Week in New York City. Guyette & Schmidt, Inc will continue its three major annual sales in the Chicago area, Maine and the Eastern Shore of Maryland, with the latest addition to the schedule being a “Cash and Carry Sale” to take place in connection with the Ohio Decoy Collectors Show at the West Lake, Ohio, Holiday Inn in March.
For information, 410-745-0485 or 207-625-8055 or www.guyetteandschmidt.com .
