Someone is Looking for Your Old China

Jennifer — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 04:26:28 +0000

Like many baby boomers, Sarah Vick and her husband decided to downsize to a smaller home after her two sons went off to college. When they started sorting through their belongings, Vick realized she had 22 sets of china. Some she’d bought herself, while others had been inherited from her mother, grandmother and aunts.

“I was overwhelmed,” says Vick. “I had china patterns I didn’t even know the names of from the 1920s and 1930s, and I also had crystal, silver and collectibles. Really the only time I used my fine china was during the holidays, so I didn’t need all these collections, but they’re special to me.” Vick knew she wouldn’t have room at her new home for all of her pieces, meaning she would have to get rid of them.

“I felt so guilty having all these patterns I couldn’t use, but I just didn’t want to sell them at a yard sale; they mean so much to me,” she says. “That’s why I wanted to help someone else who might be looking for these same pieces to complete their own set of their family china.”

But where could she turn to for help? In the past, Vick had purchased pieces from Greensboro, N.C. based Replacements, Ltd., the world’s largest supplier of discontinued and hard to find china, crystal, silver and collectibles, so that’s the first place she checked.

“We not only sell tableware, we buy pieces as well,” says Randy Foster, Replacements’ vice president of product operations. “We are really able to help customers like Sarah out in that we’re able to bring two needs together. We connect those folks looking to sell something they don’t want or need anymore with someone who may be searching for a special piece in their grandmother’s pattern they never thought they’d see again.”

Other sellers include those going through lifestyle changes, such as Susan Dubois, who decided she no longer wanted her wedding china following her divorce. “Selling my china marked a way to start healing so I could move on with my life and start over,” reflects Dubois. “It really wasn’t about the money, but I’m a single mother of two teenage sons, so the extra cash really did help out.”

Foster says Replacements also hears from folks who stumble across forgotten treasures stuffed in a closet or hidden away in the attic. With spring cleaning around the corner, would-be sellers need to keep in mind that the company is looking for quality merchandise, and doesn’t buy every pattern. Inspectors need to physically examine pieces to make sure they’re in good condition before making a final offer. “Obviously we wouldn’t buy anything that is chipped or cracked,” says Foster. “I also think a lot of customers are surprised to find out we buy by the individual piece, they don’t have to have the entire set.”

Vick says it’s not a problem if the seller is stumped and doesn’t know the name of their collections. Replacements’ free pattern identification service can help figure out that information. “I put some of the patterns I couldn’t identify in a box and sent them over to Replacements’ research department,” Vick remembers. “They were not only able to identify the pieces, they told me what they were willing to pay for them.”

Replacements research team identifies approximately 65 patterns every day. To find out more about selling to Replacements, Ltd., contact the company at 1-800-REPLACE or visit www.replacements.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Quest For Replacement China Awakens Family Memories

Jennifer — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 19:54:54 +0000

(ARA) – Merry Anderson knows that a set of dishes is more than something to grace the table on special occassions — it can be a link to a family’s history and heritage.

Anderson explains, “Sometime in the late 1920s or early 1930s, my grandmother, Florence Herbst, bought six Mayflower dinner plates, intending it as the start of a complete set of dinnerware she could pass on to her daughter and down the line.” The Great Depression came along and Herbst was not able to buy any more pieces; however she gave those precious six plates to Merry’s mother, Kathryn.

With a growing family and the ensuing need to provide glasses, shoes, books, food and other necessities, the goal of completing the china set took a back seat. Nonetheless, those six plates were passed on to Anderson when she moved away from home. The plates traveled with her as she left her small hometown of Colombus, Wisc., following her dreams to Milwaukee and then to New York as she pursued her career.

“One day I re-discovered those six plates hidden in a cupboard,” says Anderson. Although she had all but forgotten about them, the dishes fueled a need she had been feeling to connect to her family’s past after years of living far from her roots. “I began writing to every place I could find that might be able to help me locate this beautiful old dinnerware. Soon it became a quest as I began to look for my own roots and place in this crazy world.”

Anderson’s search led her to Replacements, Ltd. — and her quest was over. The Greensboro, N.C. company specializes in helping customers track down discontinued and hard to find china patterns, glassware and silverware. The company has more than 11 million pieces of inventory from more than 250,000 patterns.

“Customers looking for a specific pattern can either call us, or visit our Web site,” says company spokeswoman Lisa Conklin. “We have more than 600,000 digital images on our site to help folks identify their pieces. If they don’t see their pattern, that doesn’t mean finding it is out of the question. We have a research department dedicated to helping people track down their patterns.”

Anderson — along with her complete set of Mayflower china — has moved back to Wisconsin, and now lives in the house that once belonged to her parents. The china is part of the family’s special occasion celebrations, but, Anderson says, she uses them throughout the year as well. “They’ve lasted this long, I feel that they shouldn’t be put away most of the year — they’re meant to be used,” she says. Anderson continues to add accessory pieces she finds through Replacements, and will continue the legacy by passing her set of Mayflower dishes on to one of her nieces when the time is right.

“To customers like Anderson, a set of china is more than just a collection of plates, cups and saucers — it’s about bringing families together to reflect on past memories and creating future traditions,” says Conklin. “We do more than replace dishes. We connect our customers with their most cherished memories.”

For more information, or to find your china pattern, contact Replacements at 1-800-REPLACE (800-737-5223) or visit www.replacements.com.

Courtesy of ARA Content

Collectibles - Stamps, Coins, and More » China Sets

Someone is Looking for Your Old China

Quest For Replacement China Awakens Family Memories