Wagga antique collector back to ignite old life

He left the world of antiques two years ago when his shop was demolished to make way for the Dan Murphy’s liquor superstore.

After watching from the sidelines for a while, he has broken back onto the scene with a salient message: old is good and new is not.

“You never see anything that has a history anymore,” he said. 

“Tastes are changing. People aren't seeing a need for anything that is old.”

His wife, Barbara, is equally as concerned and worries that a thirst for the “cheap and nasty” is polluting the environment at a rate never seen before.

She pointed to furniture purchased at retail giants such as Ikea that arrive as “flat packs” and leave in the crusher.

“People should be buying for the quality,” Mrs Wigg said.

“That’s all young kids need to do these days – buy one decent piece of furniture and you would have a whole house full – and it lasts a lifetime.

“It just annoys me to think people don’t appreciate old furniture as much as they used to."

The reopened John Wigg Antiques, located in the Neslo Arcade on Baylis Street, contains furniture that when combined adds up to thousands of years of history.

Among them is a 19^th century bronze eagle and Victorian era church lead light.

Mr Wigg said he couldn’t stand being out of the game and was itching to return following a case of boredom.

The antiques were holed up in storage for the two years he was closed down.

During Mr Wigg’s time away from the market, he found he was still attending antique shows and collecting items from contacts.

He picked up nearly 50 Japanese plates in one ambitious exchange.

“I realised I was getting bored,” Mr Wigg said.

"I wanted to get straight back into it quite soon after I left. 

"There's a real need for furniture like this and we’re already experiencing quite a bit of interest in the five days we’ve been open."