Breda, NL

Even a gold tooth is worth something

by Yolanda Sjoukes This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Wednesday 28 May 2008

In Princeville in Breda a valuer examines a collection of coins. The South African Botes brothers are particularly interested in gold and in old watches.

BREDA – Combing all of Europe in search of old gold and watches.

Yesterday and today, the South African brothers Botes from RoadshowEU have been sitting in a room at the Princeville Van der Valk hotel, in Breda.

The concept: everyone who has 'old gold', or unusual watches, can exchange them here for cash.

Botes and their people melt the gold down ('Gold is fetching around 900 dollars an ounce at the moment', says Botes) or sell collector’s items to the London jewellery sector or the antique market in London’s Notting Hill.

The watches often do well at special watch fairs. " There’s one every week in Germany ", says older brother Morne Botes, who is wearing a Rolex himself (diver’s version), dating from 1978. "That’s the year of my birth; I kept this one for myself."

He worked in this branch for a long time as an accountant, but decided two years ago to start his own business with his brother and their two wives.

That paid off. "We now earn as much as when we had jobs. Within a couple of years hopefully even more." What kinds of things have been brought in? "Mostly brooches or gold jewellery that has been sitting in the cupboard for decades. And lots of gold coins."

Botes points to a small plastic bag of rings and brooches. Totally out of fashion, a handful at the most. The lady who brought it in got 750 Euros for it. "A little gold can be worth a lot."

Experience has shown that it’s not the people who need money who come. "Its just jewellery they don’t weaStiekeme.jpgr any longer. They think: maybe we can get something for it, we don’t use it any more anyway."

That also applies to Elly and Guust Hessels from Breda. They’ve brought a lady’s watch from 1965, some gold crowns and jewellery and are leaving with 200 Euros. What are they going to do with it? "No idea", Elly laughs.

Elly has carefully pried the gold crowns out of her dental bridge. That’s something new, laughs the younger Botes brother . "Last week someone brought along an entire set of dentures, with one gold tooth in it."

- Also see http://www.roadshoweu.com/ .

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