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Antique dealer
Antique dealers buy and sell old objects and collector items.
Average salary (a year)
£0.0
Starter
£0.0
Experienced
Typical hours (a week)
39.0 to 41.0 hours
variable
Work Hours
freelance / self-employed
away from home
How to become
Explore the different ways to get into this role
You can get into this job through:a university course; a college course; working towards this role; turning a hobby into a job
University
You could study for a degree in fine arts or art history, although this is not always essential.
Entry requirements
You'll usually need:
  • 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
More Information
equivalent entry requirements|https://www.gov.uk/what-different-qualification-levels-mean/list-of-qualification-levels
student finance for fees and living costs|https://www.gov.uk/student-finance
university courses and entry requirements|https://www.ucas.com/
College
You may be able to start by taking part-time or short residential courses to build up your knowledge.
Courses include
antiques, history of art, fine art, decorative arts
Entry requirements
There are no set entry requirements for this route.
    Work
    You could work in an antiques shop as an assistant to learn on the job.
    You could also start in a salesroom or auction house as a porter, clerk, cataloguer, valuer or auctioneer.
    Other Routes
    You could collect and research antiques as a hobby and then
    get a stall at an antiques market or fair, buy and sell on the internet, open a shop
    Some of the larger auction houses, like Sotheby',s Institute of Art and Christie's Education, run short courses in art history and the arts market. They also offer more in-depth postgraduate study aimed at graduates wanting to work in the commercial arts market.
    More Information
    Career Tips
    You'll need a good knowledge of antiques and the market. Sales skills, the ability to spot items that will sell and having money to start up are likely more important than formal qualifications.
    Further Information
    You can discover more about working in antiques through The British Antique Dealers' Association.
    You can also find out more about working in creative careers from Discover Creative Careers.
    What it takes
    Find out what skills you’ll use in this role
    Skills and knowledge
    You'll need:
      The ability to sell products and services
      Persuading and negotiating skills
      Excellent verbal communication skills
      Customer service skills
      To be thorough and pay attention to detail
      The ability to use your initiative
      The ability to work well with others
      Business management skills
    Digital Skills Level
    to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device
    What you will do
    Discover the day-to-day tasks you’ll do in this role
    Day to day tasks
    As part of your day-to-day work, you could
    buy items from salesrooms, auctions, markets and private owners, sell items to the public from shops or from stalls in antique centres, negotiate purchases and sales, buy and sell items online, carry out minor restoration work, research the identity and value of objects, value antique objects for insurance or sales purposes
    Working environment
    You could work at antiques fairs, at a store or from home.
    Career Path & Progression
    Look at progression in this role and similar opportunities
    You could progress to become a specialist dealer, valuer or auctioneer.
    Job profile data provided by The National Careers Service.
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