When a knife wins an award, does its value really go up?

[RogerP]

This is a point that I've pondered from time to time. I'd be interested in the views of any and all - makers, dealers, collectors.

When a knife wins an award at a show - Best Bowie, Best Forged Blade, Best Damascus etc... does the value of vlaue of that particular knife go up? I realize that "value" is a bit of a shifting concept defined by the point where the "willingness" of buyer and seller coincide, but does the seller generally expect to receive more and are buyers generally willing to pay more for an award-winning knife?

Makers - when you are in the fortunate position of having received an award, does your asking price for that particular knife suddenly jump (in the unlikely event that it wasn't already sold)?

Collectors - when an award-winning knife is made available for sale, is that particular knife more desireable to you than, say, a very similar knife from the same maker. And if so, what sort of premium are you willing to pay to have it 10% - 20, 30 more?

Dealers - do you find that award-winning knives consistently command a significant premium, or does their status simply make them sell faster for more or less the same money?

For what it's worth (and I suspect mine may well be a minority view) I have always regarded knife awards as casting an element of prestige upon the maker himself (or herself) rather than upon the particular knife. The judges have recognized elements of design, fitment and finish that are reflective of the maker's talent and present in all his work, as opposed to being uniquely present in that particular knife. Put another way (and in the context of assessing value) the award-winning knife doesn't become 30% better designed, better finished or better made than it was before it received the award, so I would be disinclined to pay 30% more for it. I might well be very inclined, however, to order a similar knife from the maker, or purchase a similar knife by that maker from another source.

Any thoughts?

Roger

[marcel54]

I think the value of a knife comes mostly from the materials used, the design and the (reputation of the) maker. So I agree with you that I wouldn't pay 10-30% more for an award winning knife. But I would get more interested in the maker and in buying one or more knives from him or her.

[Buddy Thomason]

Maybe I'm naive, foolish and wasteful - but, for sure, I'll pay more for an award winning knife! (assuming it's a knife I really want to own) It's called 'provenance' and it makes a knife more valuable to me at the emotional level and at the point of resale. Yeah, I know, I don't buy knives to then sell them either, but the fact is many of us will eventually want or need to sell one or more knives from our collection. One rule I employ is this: an award winning knife must have paperwork supporting the 'award-winning' distinction. This could be a formal certificate, a copy of a magazine article or even a note from the maker - but for lots of reasons including insurance-related issues - proof is necessary.
How much 'more'? Tough question - I'd say anywhere from 10-30% depending on the prestige of the award. Actually, I've paid double a knife's 'market value' at auctions where a maker who's work I wanted to own donated a nice piece I also wanted to own for a cause I wanted to support, usually after a couple of glasses of wine and a good meal!

[hammerdownnow]

Thru history, the most valuable knives are the ones with a verifiable history. Every knife has a story. The better the story, the more coveted the knife. A knife kept as a conversation piece is more interesting/valueable, the longer the conversation can be held about it.

[Terry Primos]

I'd say that technically the true value would be whatever someone was willing to pay, but even looking at it realistically, I'd say that the knife would be more valuable to most people.

It is a one-of-a-kind, even if the winning knife is part of the maker's standard line. For example, if a hunter wins Best Hunter at the 2004 Spirit Of Steel show, it will now and forever until the end of time be the ONLY knife EVER to win Best Hunter at the 2004 Spirit Of Steel show. Accompanied by documentation certifying that it was the winning knife and possibly a photo of the knife with the award, I don't see how it could not be more valuable.

I'd think that the same might hold true for a knife featured in a magazine article, or one with a cover shot on a magazine. With signed and dated documentation from the maker certifying that the knife was the one on the cover or featured in the article, that would make it more valuable to the collector I'd think. Again, it would be a one-of-a-kind deal.

Of course, the true value depends on you the owner, or a prospective buyer if you choose to sell the knife at a later date.

Value is a strange bird. There are many who would not even consider paying me $325 or more for a small hunter. There are also those who think it's such a good deal, they almost burn the tip off their ball-point pen writing out a check before someone else can get it.

[Terry Primos]

ADDENDUM:

There was another angle in this thing that I did not address. That was whether or not I as the maker would ask more for the knife. Tough call. I am not an award winning smith. I seriously doubt that I ever will be. The shows that I attend are always attended by the big award winners. Folks like Harvey Dean, Jerry Fisk, Ron Newton, John Fitch, J.W. Randall, Mike Williams, Joe Flournoy, etc. As my skills increase, so do theirs.

If I ever did win an award, it would certainly be more valuable to me personally. I imagine that I would probably end up keeping the knife and putting on display in my house along with the award, unless someone just made me an offer that I couldn't refuse.

Now I have sold knives that appeared in articles in Blade, Knife World, Knives Illustrated, the Knives annuals, and u-m-m-m, oh shoot, that really nice French magazine. So far they all just went for whatever my going price at the time was.

[hammerdownnow]

I remember Tim Lively's knife he made on the video sold within the first 15 minutes when he posted it for sale. Two people were in the running to get it. I'll bet there is more to that story. I would imagine it would be cool to have the knife in hand and watch it come alive on video.

Would that be the ultimate in "provenance" ???