When iconic hotels that have welcomed guests for decades go out of business, we can handle the liquidation sale. When those hotels bring us extra-valuable items, we help their owners get top dollar for the most exquisite pieces by bringing them to auction, instead.
Historic hotels can be an amazing cache of art, bespoke antique furniture, vintage serving sets, signage, and more. Sometimes the story behind the hotel can add to collectors’ interest in them.
One of the most famous recent sales was the Gramercy Park Hotel liquidation sale in New York City. That storied hotel opened in 1925, which shows that one doesn’t need to go back to the 1800s to find incredible pieces – and high interest in those pieces. The public had an overwhelming desire to purchase memorabilia, and chose to buy everything from “soup spoons to entire beds, and curtain tassels to sensual artwork.”
What would make a hotel liquidation exciting to the public?
A hotel auction or liquidation sale is more likely to draw attention if:
- Famous guests have stayed at the hotel in the past, especially if there are autographed photos of the guest at the hotel.
- Historically significant events took place at the hotel. (E.g. a famous speech, a well-attended reception, an assassination or other death, etc.)
- The hotel was a cultural or historic landmark for many years.
For example, we’d expect the Omni Parker House hotel in Boston to generate serious interst if it ever went to auction: it was a favorite of Charles Dickens, who did his very first reading of A Christmas Carol for members of the Saturday Club literary group right on the hotel grounds. John F. Kennedy proposed to Jackie at a table at Parker’s Restaurant, and Malcom X once worked there as a busboy.
We’d also expect a lot of excitement over the Fairmont Copley Plaza. It’s been iconic since 1912, has hosted every major U.S. president since Taft, and has hosted celebrities ranging from Frank Sinatra to Tom Cruise. It also has a comeback story to tell due to surviving a tragic fire in 1979.
Hotels like those are still alive, well, and in business, of course. They also demonstrate the types of auctions that would be able to generate incredible interest even from individuals who don’t normally invest in antiques or collectables.
As you’d expect, chain hotels generally are not the kinds of hotels we are discussing here.
Is your old hotel checking out soon?
If you are in charge of the liquidation, you’ve got a daunting task ahead of you, but we can help. We can help you appraise all the pieces in your hotel and decide which should go into a liquidation sale and which pieces should go straight to live auction or online auction to fetch the highest prices. Of course, we will also help you plan and market the sale or auction.
Call Central Mass Auctions at 508-612-6111, or email us.
