Bucks county estate traders. Big ebay storefront but you can go to their warehouse to look in person and discuss pricing. I bought a table there. Call ahead so they can pull out the item you're interested in. I search for items on ebay within driving distance since I want to check over used furniture before purchase.

Well, you should really come to Charlotte! It is only about an hour away from Hickory and a very easy drive. HOWEVER, we are hosting the Democratic National Convention so you may want to avoid that week depending on when is your trip because you probably will not be able to get a hotel. Probably the biggest place I would recommend is called Sleepy Poet Antique mall. It is 50,000 square feet of individual booths. It has a mix of everything, from larger furniture to smaller pieces and art. I will think of a few others. You also might want to see what's on the Charlotte or Hickory CL since many shops advertise there. If you want to go about an hour the other way from Hickory, you can always go to Asheville. I don't have any specific recommendations there. Here is a link that might be useful: Sleepy Poet

Well, at least I got that you are experienced with auction houses than I am. May I ask, what *was* the point of your post, since I said in my original post that I was having trouble really getting at the meat of the auction-selling experience, despite having perused some websites? I don't want to call any houses without getting better armed first. I'm sure you know that there's always more to something like this than appears on the surface to outsiders/first-timers. So, with all your experience buying, do you have any selling experience or information to share? For instance, is my reading right that not only does the auction house collect a premium from the seller, they also collect a premium from the buyer, so they end up making money from both sides? Or did you just want to say that I should look at the websites?

Designers could produce a space plan and concept design for you, but they aren’t going to shop for used stuff that equates to that concept. You’d pay way more than you would getting them to purchase new from to the trade sources. And new to get trade sources would be the better option if you want a style coherent look and can’t DIY create that yourself by your own thrift shopping.