In the midst of all we’re going through, Netflix and Amazon must see their internal servers heated to white hot, with all the binge watching. Include us in that number, to be honest. Mind you, I’d like to be ameliorating the effects of my own binge watching, with my mid-section these days becoming form-fitting with the easy armchair in front of the television, but alas, the gyms are now closed- for the second time.
What though has become a favorite, or a renewed favorite, amongst binge-ophiles, is ‘Downton Abbey’. As I have written so often before, there is nothing in the series not to like. The beautiful settings at Highclere, as well as those specially designed and highly atmospheric sets, to say nothing of the wonderful performances from actors whose characterizations they have made entirely their own, and an enthralling storyline packed with incident- what more can I say?
I know that the binge watchers for this particular series are out in force, as we’ve received another wave of queries from my gentle readers and others about any increase in interest in period furniture and artwork. As before, I would repeat my former answer- well, maybe. Always assuming that my readers and our cadre of frequent punters are interested in the financial health and survival of Chappell & McCullar, my answer is generally poised to address sales of the period furniture and artwork we have on offer, and that, so far, has been pretty good this year. Not a banner year, but we’ve had worse. Is this related to ‘Downton…’ though? My guess has been that it might have more to do with folks sheltering in place, and taking the time to browse our website. Interestingly, the number of visits to our website is not up significantly over this time last year. The time each site visitor remains on our website, though, is up over ten fold. And, I say with some modesty, the time spent in reading my blog page has increased, too. An entertaining voice of reason? Or just a lack of something else to do? You be the judge.
The site browser who follows through with a purchase has seen a gratifying uptick, with a number of new clients added to the fold. We had thought that this might be limited to purchases of smaller, easier to ship items, but frankly, no sooner do we sell a pair of candlesticks than we field an enquiry for a bookcase.
All this though continues to beg the question ‘What of “Downton Abbey”?’ and for the moment I have no real answer beyond what I’ve said earlier, that the questions posed to me about the series have lately ticked upward. Perhaps it is that, with our own period material, ‘Downton Abbey’ is representative of an historic period that, while not free of challenging incident, is nevertheless certain and unchanging, and a welcome relief from the unpleasant uncertainty and never-ending changes in our own time. Perhaps it is too that purchases from us of period material provides the buyer with a touchstone in literal terms, a soothing reminder of the certainty of an earlier time.