The online store has been replenished with French treasures , so I thought I would share how the products have made their way to Vintagetall. I will also share our mistakes and tips from Amiens.
Our travel plans included a "stride" to France's second largest antiques market in Amiens . On Saturday evening, we took the train and traveled an hour north of Paris so that we would be ready on Sunday morning when the day-long market began. We had heard that 2,000 vendors and 80,000 visitors from all over Europe would be there. There would be a total of 15 kilometers of stalls and the most urgent buyers and exhibitors would start their activities by the light of headlamps already at night. We ourselves thought of setting off in the daylight. However, plans seemed to change at night when the partygoers downstairs woke us up and we mistakenly looked out the window. There, the first ones were already heading to the "playgrounds" with headlamps and carts to pull.
However, we didn't set off until dusk. We had a towable ice pack and backpacks. We planned a route on the map to walk through the streets of the center of Amiens. At first, we sighed because the prices were cheaper than in Paris. The first hour of shopping included, among other things, a large box of wooden letters, a champagne cooler , serving dishes and cutlery .
At first, it was a search for what to buy, at what price, whether there was something even nicer on the next street, something that needed to be saved in the bag. With a strong intuition, items started to accumulate in the bag, and if something else nice came along that didn't fit, I could mail it.
Then a mistake happened that still haunts me, a harsh lesson in the law of supply and demand. Bargaining is always a risk and you never know what the custom is in a particular country. On the same day, the starting price of a set had been 70 euros and the final sale price was 20 euros. So the sellers tried ice with a stick. So I thought I would try again myself, but in the completely wrong place, especially since it was a product that I really wanted to take with me. A REALLY old American football from the mid-20th century. I didn't realize there was another willing buyer next to me who was looking for products for his own shop. He immediately offered the full price and that 100-year-old leather American football is now in the selection of a French vintage dealer instead of Vintagetally. The food didn't taste good for a moment, but I had to reset the order. Isn't that stuff going to run out of stock, or will it?
The balm to the wounds came from some great sports-themed finds, an old leather football and a bunch of antique golf clubs . Our bags started to fill up and we stopped for coffee from time to time to soak up the great atmosphere of the market! We also started to run out of cash and started dragging ourselves towards the train station. Then the last gem caught our eye, an old enamel sign Chocolat Menier, but we were out of 50 euros for the asking price. The sellers, who had had a long day of selling, were already packing up their stalls and whether it was because they were tired or they felt sorry for us, the exhausted Finnish vintage dealers who were digging for pictures, they sold the sign to us. We poured the last few quid into the seller's hands, and we were now officially PA! The sellers also seemed to be finally satisfied with the last sale of the day, as they no longer had to pack the heavy sign with them.
Poor but happy, our bags full, we hopped on the train towards Paris. Perhaps this physically demanding but wonderful day prepared us for the biggest market in Lille.
Tips:
1. Have plenty of cash and small bills ready, cafes and shops do not exchange money.
2. A good pull-along bag/trolley
3. It's worth getting there early, because it gets difficult when the crowds arrive.
4. Negotiate, but in the right place and politely
5. Don't haggle if you want a product.
6. Stop occasionally to enjoy the atmosphere