Sounding the gavel on a year to remember

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Richard Winterton Auctioneers

THINKING back on this year, the first word which comes to mind is ‘wow’!

Throughout 2024, we’ve been celebrating 160 years since the very first Wintertons office opened in Breadmarket Street back in 1864.

Fast forward 16 decades and our latest venture is the talk of the city.

Located just yards from that first office, The Auction Café at 34 Market Street offers specialist valuations and auction advice alongside delicious coffee and cake, right next door to Samuel Johnson’s Birthplace.

Our milestone venture has 33 covers and outside of the festive season will be open seven days a week, from 9am to 4pm Monday to Saturday and from 10am to 2pm on Sundays.

People can have jewellery, watches, collectables and antiques valued and/or treat themselves to coffee, tea, cakes, cream teas, bread and savoury snacks.

Respected Midlands valuer Georgina Southam FIRV FGA DGA BA (Hons) will be offering free valuations of jewellery, watches, gold and silver at the café on Tuesdays January 7, 14, 21 and 28 2025 – just drop in between 10am and 12.30pm and 1pm to 3pm.

It’s a great opportunity to discuss your treasures with an independent specialist in the heart of Lichfield and discover what The Auction Café is all about.

Looking back on this year, we’ve put more than 35,000 lots under the hammer including Beatles autographs, a first edition Harry Potter paperback and a £100,000 coin collection.

An impressively large 140-year-old oil painting of iconic Scottish landmark MacLeod’s Maidens measuring 42ins by 84ins sold at £35,000 back in May.

At the other end of the spectrum in terms of both age and size, a Pokémon Skyridge master set sold at £18,000 that same month.

Total hammer prices for 2024 came in at £3,569,199 – up on last year by £114,253. Other impressive figures include Richard's personal tally of home visits for valuations – 789 – and a total of 625 house clearances carried out by the firm thoughout the year.

We’ve been delighted to host TV crews numerous times, including ITV news, Celebrity Antiques Road Trip and Bargain Hunt – the latter for both a special edition celebrating sport with Mark Foster, Sally Gunnell, Dame Sarah Storey and Richard Whitehead and two Christmas episodes airing on BBC One this December.

Back to this summer, in July we hosted a big bash at The School House in Weeford to celebrate the amazing 50 years’ service of our accounts head Sue French, who started working for Wintertons in Tamworth on July 8, 1974, aged 17.

August saw an incredibly special moment for the Winterton family – the birth of Richard's first grandchild, Barnaby, and the eighth generation.

In September we were all proud to host the auction for St Giles Hospice's amazing March of the Elephants project.

The sale in Lichfield Cathedral saw around 200 people gather in person, with over 2,000 more watching online from around the world, and raised an impressive £125,000 for vital end of life care services.

We were also delighted to win our sponsored sculpture Henry The Elephant, who’s found his forever home at The Lichfield Auction Centre in Fradley!

October was another massive month in which we launched a new website, won both Best Small Business and the Customer Service Award at the 2024 Beacon Awards and concluded our five-year sponsorship of Staffordshire’s Best Kept Village & Community Competition.

That month also saw our 500th house clearance carried out by the team.

A few weeks later, our jewellery and coins department smashed the £1,000,000 mark in hammer prices of lots sold.

In December, we kicked off the festive season supporting We Love Lichfield's 2024 Christmas grant giveaway.

December also sees our sponsorship of the spectacular Lichfield Cathedral Christmas Light Show – a fantastically festive way to end the year.

The Lichfield Auction Centre and The Tamworth Auction Rooms close for Christmas at 5pm on Thursday, December 19, reopening at 9am on Thursday, January 2. The Auction Café closes at 4pm on December 23, back open December 27-30 and then returns to normal hours on January 2.

In the meantime, special timed jewellery sale is live now until 5pm on Wednesday, January 1.

Next year we bounce back with a new format of one-day sales at Fradley, with the first starting at 9am on Monday, January 6.

Star lots include an impressive single owner collection of jewellery featuring a 5ct natural diamond ring.

This is followed by our first Tamworth auction of 2025 on Wednesday, January 8, starting at 9.30am and featuring toys, autographs, medals and militaria.

Until then, on behalf of everyone at Richard Winterton Auctioneers, merry Christmas and happy new year! See you in 2025.