The centres, near Gainsborough in Lincolnshire, attract more than a quarter of a million visitors every year.
They have 300-plus dealers trading from four buildings on the site. The selection of stock on the centres’ website runs to more than 3200 listed items, and this will rise to 5000 in the next few months.
Miller believes he can continue to grow the website, which has been redesigned so that dealers can now upload their stock on their own pages. “There are many websites on the internet selling antiques but many do not have a bricks and mortar presence as we do,” says Miller. “We believe this gives us a huge advantage.”
Looking at a few of the current and varied individual entries in mid-January from 200-plus dealers, some – such as York Minster Antiques – have 100 pieces illustrated and described. Others have 20, like Morbid Curiosities, while Paul Scholes has two.
It all adds up to a greater emphasis on the stock available to potential buyers from the centres.
