Hello, That is a great idea for an article. It would be easy to do a survey on my website. I can tell you from being into the hobby for over 20 years, Things have started to slow down a little here in Ontario Canada. I was restoring and selling around 15 pumps per year, but the last two years I find things have really slowed down in the pump restoration business. That is only in my area and from my experience. But I do follow many auctions in both the U.S and Canada and things such as signs, oil cans and ephemera are still holding there value at the moment in both countries. I also attend many swap meets and auctions in both countries as well, this includes vintage motorcycle swap meets, Hershey and Carlisle automotive swap meets, and I probably don't need a survey to tell you that the majority age of the petroliana collector is between 45-80. There are some young people that are getting interested in the hobby, but only because they have had a parent that took them to the swap meets etc.
Unfortunately, things have changed, the economy has gotten softer, a lot of great paying jobs in Canada and the US have gone to Mexico or China, the older collectors are also starting to sell off their collections as well. From my observations from selling pumps, most millennial's have no real interest in the hobby. If I am wrong, I would love someone to let me know. The whole hot rod car culture has softened, as well as the antiques markets. So, My personal opinion is if more young people don't get involved in the hobby, I think it is only a matter of 8-10 years time, before the hobby goes the way of the horse and buggy.
