Antiques Road Trip expert gobsmacked by £20 item's staggering profit
Antiques Road Trip experts Irita Marriott and Mark Hill continued their road trip around England in their classic car.
Antiques Road Trip: Routemaster bus signs make £220 profit
The pair were scouring low and high on every shelf possible to find the perfect treasures that will give them the most profit when at auction. In a recent episode, the Antiques Road Trip experts were excited as Irita dug deep into a 200-year-old regency ornament, whilst Mark made a staggering profit on some vintage London Bus signs.
Beginning the episode, Irita was way ahead of the game as her piggy bank held a whopping £570.80, whilst Mark trailed behind with his £114.78.
Looking around the many shops, Mark came across an interesting find which immediately caught his eye.
Picking up the signs, he explained: "I think I know what these are. I think these are off of a London Bus and these would have sat on the front inside a frame telling you where the bus was going.
"Inside there would have been a little handle where the driver would turn to change the destination.
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"So what have we got? Romford, Romford Station, we have got Cambridge Heath, we've got a bit of an East London theme.
"I can see these would be interesting to a lot of people and I am loving this East End vibe going on.
"Imagine cutting these up and then framing them all and displaying them on a wall and they are not that common either.
"There is quite a lot of them here though and I wonder whether I could do a bulk discount, a plan it hatched."
He also found a box of anatomy models and a brass lamp which he asked the shop owner what sort of deal she could give him.
Thinking about it, she first said: "For all three? About £100," but as Mark begged her to bring the price down, she settled on £70: "I really want you to win, absolutely."
Individually, the signs only cost Mark £20, and it was time for them to shine at the W&H Peacock Auction Centre.
Auctioneer Lindsay Taylor began: "We have got tonnes of bids on commission. I'm going to have to start at £140."
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Mark threw his hands over his face in shock and exclaimed: "What! I'll take that!" as Lindsay continued: "160, 170, 180."
Irita excitedly quipped: "God! Mark, this is amazing!" before the price of the signs climbed to £200.
"Oh my goodness!" Mark expressed before the auction came to an end and Lindsay confirmed: "220 here now.
"220 on commission, 240 clears me now, at £240 now. All the bids are online for these. Last chance... £240 sold."
Irita clapped at Mark's find and said: "That was amazing!" as he agreed: "A good buy I think."
At the end of the day, Irita, unfortunately, lost out on money during the auction and had £438.28 in her piggy bank.
However, pulling himself back in the game with a profit of £220 on just one item, Mark finished on £420.62, catching up to Irita.
Antiques Road Trip airs weekdays at 3:45pm on BBC One.