A group of us were discussing "collectibles" the other day..We all came from an era that knew Lenox, Wedgewood, Hummel, Waterford, Rosenthal, Spode, and even Fitz and Floyd.
Lenox Group (which also owns Deparment 56, Dansk and Gorham)
filed for bankruptcy in November so it does appear to be an 'across the category' issue.
All those brands stood for quality and limited editions. IMO 4 elements changed the collectible world:
1. China (the country, not the material). Knock offs and overproduction made each of the premium brands less special.
2. eBay. Buyers held a belief that the limited editions would appreciate over time. (Think Antique Road Show.) But, live auctions online quickly proved that the values were often over-inflated.
3. Costco. When premium brands started showing up on the shelves of Costco & Sam's Club at deeply discounted prices, the uniqueness/coolness factor was slipping away.
4. Lifestyle. Formal living rooms and dining rooms are shrinking or disappearing entirely in newer homes. In their place are 'entertainment' areas with open kitchen/dining/family rooms for casual, comfortable gatherings. In general, we're less formal. You can see that in attire, too as suites and ties gave way to "business casual".
Back to china, I still have a fine china in boxes. they have been in those boxes for 20 years.
I haul ours out for special occasions, but it takes extra effort. None of it really should go through the dishwasher so the added clean-up time makes me think twice - but it sure is pretty.
This generation does not want "what everyone else has". They don't care about crystal and china and flatware. They want very individualized choices. They want a custom look.
Maybe. Could part of the equation also be that parents have had more disposable income to continuously indulge kids with 'new'.
<dinosour mode>Way back when, most kids had 2 or 3 pairs of shoes - a couple for 'everyday' and a set of 'good shoes' for church. Many shoes cost more in the '70s & '80s than they do now
so we all had to take good care of them or bear the wrath of our parents.
Enter third-world manufacturing and international distribution and today you can run over to Payless and fill a closet for $100. Who cares if they're ruined on the first wear? They're cheap and considered 'disposable' by the standards for 30 or 40 years ago.
Explode that shoe analogy to many things we buy today. For a lot of kids, their live has been filled with 'disposable' or 'easily replaceable' so the notion of 'collectible' is far off the radar screen.</dinosaur mode>
With declining incomes, it will be interesting to see if kids gain a bit more appreciation for the "things" in their lives.