When you decide to part with a USM Haller unit, a Togo or a Cassina armchair, two questions come up at once: how much, and when. The two arrangements most specialist dealers offer, firm buy-back and consignment, answer them differently. One gives you a known sum straight away; the other a higher sum on a date nobody can promise. Neither is better in the abstract. The right choice depends on your timetable, on the piece itself, and on how long you are prepared to wait.
Firm buy-back: a known price, paid now
With a firm buy-back, the dealer buys the piece, pays for it and becomes its owner. Everything that follows is their concern: transport, any restoration, photography, listing, the time it takes to find a buyer, and the risk that the piece sells for less than expected. That work and that risk have a cost, and it shows in the gap between the buy-back price and the resale price.
We publish ours. A firm buy-back usually sits between 30 and 50% of the likely resale price, and we give you that resale price together with the offer, so you can check the arithmetic. Payment is made by bank transfer.
Buy-back suits situations where timing matters more than the amount: a flat to hand back on a fixed date, an estate to settle between several heirs, a move abroad. It also suits anyone who would rather not think about the piece again once it has left the house.
Consignment: a better price, with no date
On consignment, you remain the owner until the sale. The dealer shows and sells the piece on your behalf and takes a commission. The commission and the public price are agreed together in advance and written into the contract. You receive a much larger share of the final price than with buy-back, but only once the piece has sold.
That "once it has sold" is the real unknown. A sought-after piece in good condition, sensibly priced, can go within a few weeks. A less familiar one can take several months. This is why a consignment contract provides for a price review if no buyer comes forward. With us, a first reduction usually happens after two to three months, and you are paid within thirty days of the sale.
Consignment makes sense if you do not need the money quickly, can live without the piece for the length of the arrangement, and accept that its price may be revised when the market does not respond.
What tips the balance
In most cases, three questions settle it.
- Timing. If you must be paid, or clear the space, by a set date, buy-back is the only arrangement that guarantees it.
- The piece. A model in steady demand and in good order sells quickly, so consignment carries little risk. A rare but little-known piece, or one that needs restoring, sells more slowly; buy-back spares you that wait.
- Your appetite for risk. On consignment the final price is not guaranteed. If the prospect of a reduction after a few months would bother you, better to know before signing.
There is a third route for very rare pieces, or those above €10,000: a direct introduction to an identified buyer, outside the catalogue. It applies to few pieces, and the circle of buyers is narrower.
Preparing the request
Whichever arrangement you choose, it starts with photographs. Take them in daylight, without flash: one from the front, one at three-quarters, one from behind, then a close-up of every label, serial number or stamp, even a half-worn one. Show the faults from the start. They will be seen anyway, and an estimate made with full knowledge rarely moves much at the final offer. Note the dimensions and, for a modular system such as USM Haller, the number of elements. Finally, tell us what you know: bought new and in which year, inherited, found at a dealer's. Documented provenance has a bearing on price.
Be wary of an estimate that looks too good. A generous figure at first contact, cut back on collection day, is a common practice. A serious estimate is given subject to inspection, and it only changes if the piece does not match the photographs.
What sells under neither arrangement
Some pieces find no taker with a specialist dealer under either formula: recent reissues, which sell new at close to second-hand prices; copies and pieces with no markings or inconsistent materials; and furniture whose restoration would cost more than it would be worth afterwards. It is better to find out early, rather than leave a piece on consignment for months to no end.
At LAPIERRE MARKET
We offer both arrangements, anywhere in France. From photographs, we reply within 24 to 48 hours with an estimate and an offer, and we tell you which arrangement fits your situation. Our ranges and the pieces we take are set out on the sell a piece page. Private sellers will find the steps on selling as a private owner; companies and estates on the professional disposals page.
By
LAPIERRE MARKET
