Andrew Lamberty, Four Rooms

4 May 2011

Age: 41   Owner: Lamberty, Pimlico Road

Andrew is one of the leading dealers of his generation. With a showroom on Pimlico Road, he stocks rare furniture and objects from all periods, creating a James Bond look with an emphasis on 20th Century design. He says has "the most amazing furniture shop you have ever been to."

Andrew actually aspired to become an artist when he was growing up and it was only after leaving Cambridge University that he came to the conclusion if he couldn't paint, he'd set out and deal in art instead.

"I was awful at maths," he recalls. "I forced myself to learn the art of trade. I actually wanted to be an artist. At 17 I came to a fork in the road. I wanted to go to art school but, after a lot of soul searching, I decided to take up my place at Cambridge. After that, I figured if I couldn't make it, I would deal it."

His first job was working as a van driver for an auction house, before quickly progressing to run the furniture department.

Then after two years under the stewardship of a good dealer, he bought himself a van and travelled to different auctions around the UK, "cutting his teeth and selling to those he knew".

Not surprisingly, success came quickly to Andrew and he likes nothing better than finding the sorts of antiques to furnish a Bond villain's lair. If it is a one off object, he will go for any period, so long as he can make a decent profit and his favourite items include an enormous oval gold star burst mirror from a Florentine church, a pair of iconic Barcelona chairs and a bookcase which looks like an Italian [Siennese] palace.

Putting the secret of his success down to "out working the opposition and developing a refined eye", Andrew's love of the rare and beautiful means he now doesn't have to get out of bed for less than a grand.

He says: "My buying style is impetuous - I know immediately. I experience a very visceral pleasure when I see something very good. It's like a fizz up the spine. That has brought me confidence, and brought me belief in the integrity of what I offer".

 

Q&A with Andrew Lamberty

Why did you want to do Four Rooms?
I felt it was a chance to update the profile of our business because it is either presented as a ‘grandmother's attic with someone spivving around for a few hundred quid' which I find pretty meaningless, or as old fashioned stuff on the Antiques Roadshow - one is unrealistic and the other is unrepresentative of modern living.

Have you enjoyed making this show?
Yes I have, but it has been far harder than I thought. It has been quite demanding doing the research, finding buyers and getting the items sold. It is like being in a bubble, but at the same time you have to retain a commercial business view.  We are spending our own money and often quite a lot of it.

Do you think the sellers were canny?
Yes far more than I thought they would be. In fact, some were a bl**dy nightmare! I wouldn't say they were greedy, more delusional. They had unrealistic expectations what something was worth and I don't think any of them thought about hard cash in a recession. I offered one seller 10k for an item and they turned it down. I couldn't believe it. We, as dealers, regularly take short profits to get things moving. The value of someone offering you a fat cheque is the licence to move on.

How did you get on with the other dealers?
Well, but I know them all anyway, and we've all earned the professional respect we have for each other.

Do you see TV as a new avenue for you?
Possibly, but I am not giving up my day job because I like it too much.  I'd be honored to have a cameo on "Grumpy Old Men"....

Are you ready for a new challenge and TV fame then?!
I think one does get ready for a new challenge at my age - a mid-life crisis and all that! Fame? I am totally unprepared. It will be a learning curve.

You are hugely successful. Have you always been ambitious?
I have always wanted to be the best. You find with this business, if you like what you do, you just want to deal in the finest things and get people to appreciate them. It is addictive.

Are you a shark when it comes to striking a good deal?!
Laughs. I am not a pushover. I like to be fair. When you are a dealer, you have two people you are serving, one either end, and you are in the middle. It is not the easiest of jobs.

What's been your best ever buy?
I bought a pair of Empire marble console tables in an antiques shop in Nice that I made a one thousand per cent profit on.

Any mistakes?
Yes. We all have! It's a learning curve and part of being a dealer.

We gather you won't get out of bed for less than a grand...
Well that makes me ten times cheaper than a supermodel! That is the daily cost of running my business, so we're talking break even. I won't sell up. It is a job for life and a way of life that I enjoy.

Do you hope viewers watching will become more interested in antiques?
Yes! And I just hope people come to understand the wonderful creativity of mankind. Amazing things have been produced and you don't have to break the bank. You can pay £100 - which is the price of a pair of jeans - for an Egyptian artefact that is 2,500 years old.

And finally, do you have any tips for viewers hoping to bag themselves a bargain?
Always buy something you like. The clue is to look at the material. If something is made in 24 carat gold, then you know it is not rubbish.