Antique Dealer, Shop/Mall Owner: I own two antique shops/malls, a eclectic resale shop and am a certified personal property appraiser.  Actually, I have been dealing in antiques and collectibles since the late 70's when I moved from being a book collector to being a book scout and then became a dealer. Through the years I have "gotten into" a wide variety of collectibles and antiques.  While much of my early experience was on the side as I worked at regular fulltime jobs, I did really get involved with it and spent an enormous amount of time learning about antiques of various kinds.

I went from selling in flea markets and small shops to really getting involved in eBay in 1999. A few years ago I was running two to three hundred auctions a week.  That also meant attending up to 4 auctions a week which really added to my education.

Now I own the Antique Mall of Beaumont (2 locations) and the Tattered Suitcase.  At the mall I have 24 dealers who rent space from me and at the Tattered Suitcase, I have six.  It is really more fun that I deserve.

Estate Sales: I am a member of the most popular Estate Sales team in southeast Texas.  We have an estate sale almost every week and sometimes handle two at once.  Last year we handled 61 sales.  While the other team members do this full time, I merely help out as needed and as I have time.  That often means helping with pricing, transporting tables & supplies, and, of course, helping with the sales on sale day, when needed.

Personal Property Appraisals: I am a Certified Personal Property Appraiser and an active member of the Certified Appraisers Guild of America.  This is a fast growing business and is beginning to become more and more "interesting".

I appraise personal property including antiques, collectibles, books, artwork, and estates on a regular basis.  Much of these appraisals are for insurance purposes but also include needs for divorce settlements, gifts to charities, and to settle estates.

I finished my training and became a Certified Appraiser in August of 2006.  It has amazing potential. It only took a few months to pay for all the training expenses - including the week in Branson, Missouri for our classroom hours and the final exam. I haven't had time to promote the services that much since I spend so much time with my shops, but that part of my business is growing.

Hopefully, I will have time to expand this in the upcoming year.

Web Site Design & Hosting: My secondary business is Web Site Design & Hosting which I have done since 1995.  I build and develop web sites for every conceivable purpose and business type.  My largest niche was with fishing charters and guides, but antique related sites are now a strong and growing area.  The sites range from small sites for individuals to huge sites with online stores and the very latest features and techniques.

It is a fun job that I have been doing since 1995.  At one point it probably took up about 75% of my working time and made up a good portion of my income.  However, for the past few years I have been phasing out of all that to a large extent.  I have moved away from the fishing web sites and have gone from 175 hosting customers to a few dozen.  It really was taking too much of my time as I was getting more and more into growing as an antique dealer & appraiser.

I do still enjoy doing the web sites but am concentrating on antique related sites and am doing so more on a part time basis.

eBay: I also sell on eBay and have since 1998.  I have over 1900 feedbacks (99.7% positive) and try to keep a few auction going but that is getting harder and harder due to other demands on my time.

I also train others on how to sell on eBay and sell things on consignment.  For several years I was a Power Seller, but haven't had time to keep that level of activity going lately.

Miscellaneous: Being self-employed, I look for just about any opportunity to make money.  That often means buying and selling just about anything as well as a lot of different computer related activities.  I do a lot of internet marketing with affiliate programs (basically I get paid to refer customers to a business which pays me for any sales I generate.).  I also design brochures, business cards, and signs.  In the past year, on consignment I sold a house, several cars, a huge boat ($77,000), lots of artwork, etc.

As should be obvious by the information on this page, I am not exactly in a rut.