The two young entrepreneurs, Mads Hallas Bjerg and Johan Laidlaw, have launched their online service that helps people find the value of art and antiques, called mearto.com.
The interest for art and antiques is rising. Countless tv-shows captivates people at home when the hunt for valuable treasures sets in. It has increased the public interest for finding the potential value of their belongings.
Mearto connects them with experienced experts and provide an online valuation of their art and antiques within 48 hours for $15. Since launch, the startup has so far valued more than 16.000 items from more than 100 countries.
“Lots of people choose to share their valuations. Because of that, interesting stories can be found among the online items. We have had rare paintings, valuable watches, jewelry and iconic design pieces among the submitted items.” says Mads
Popular tv-shows increase online interest
Just in Denmark, there are over 14 different programs with the topic of finding the value of antiques and art. Many of the tv-shows has been live for several seasons.
“We see that these tv-shows has boosted the research and interest online. That is one of the reasons to why we launched this online universe. There is a huge global interest for this topic. It is not only in Scandinavia that we go treasurehunting in the attic.” says Mads
Most people want an online valuation because they want to understand the potential value before they sell on marketplaces or auction houses. Others are just inspired by the tv-shows, while some wants a second opinion before they buy something expensive.
