Crunchy credit and luxury goods

One thing I have realised in the past 6 months. Credit is crunchy. Its brittle and fragile; its no longer cheap or perhaps no longer there. The mounting bad debt meant the banks tightened their purse strings in line with their sphincters. Cue stock market crash, rising unemployment and a global recession. What a great time to open an art gallery. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't.
What I know from buying and selling stocks is that you should never run with the crowd. You're already looking at the ground rushing towards you with the other lemmings if you do that. By the time you have sold, the losses have been realised and you are likely to have lost on the rebound. The art industry at all levels has not been immune to the crash in the FTSE and DOW.
On November 6th Christies had a load of lovely paintings by Picasso, Monet, Renoir and Braques up for sale. The whole lot was expected to sell over £10 million. Of the 10 pieces auctioned, 6 were returned to their owners and the ones that sold brought in less than £1 million. Okay so this is at the top end and features buyers whose jewellery alone could feed Africa for a year. If the past masters are struggling to sell, what hope is there for other contemporary artists?
Well there is good news and more good news. Firstly companies (even art galleries) can change what they sell and how they sell it. Tesco has changed its product mix to include more of their basic range. Supermarkets have also started to inform customers of how their products go together. Genius, feed your family for a fiver. Like Tesco, mooch has changed its offering. Introducing the "Collectibles" means people can buy original art from £30 which is less than a print from a high street store. We still focus on original artwork but see it as an introduction to buying into the artist. I see it as a trip to the cinema to see whether it takes your fancy rather than blowing a fortune on a posh meal or a holiday. The second bit of good news is that the economy will recover, as will peoples bank balances. It is always darkest just before the dawn. Maybe what people need is something to brighten up their day and inject some life into their homes.