Adrian Burns first began attending auctions as a small child in upstate New York, accompanying his grandfather, a lifelong wheeler-dealer and accumulator of old stuff. A surprise discovery of a gold-plated pocket watch in a box of tools and junk planted a seed that would lead to a lifelong interest in rare, unusual, surprising, sentimental and valuable items. It wasn’t long before Adrian was working as a ringer, runner and all-around gofer at the auction house of a family friend. Adrian often brought home armfuls of items from these auctions and from meetings with old-timers. Adrian’s growing collection of tube radios, military items, bottles and other antiques soon began to overflow the shelf space of his childhood bedroom.

The love for the auction, and the stuff, continued to grow as Adrian went off to college, where he received bachelor’s degrees in history and journalism. Following his arrival in Northeast Ohio to work as a newspaper reporter, Adrian began selling many of the things he had accumulated as a child – and for good money, too! Soon, Adrian realized he could go out to Ohio’s many estate auctions, buy up the sorts of things he had previously been given, and then sell them for a profit to pay off student loans and generally support the thrill of discovery that the antique trade can bring. Over time, that buying and selling led to sending items to auction, selling at antique shows and, later, earning an Ohio license as an auctioneer. Eventually, Adrian left his full-time career as a journalist, and later as a business consultant, to pursue his dream of running his own estate auction company.

While the really cool stuff still gets Adrian going, today he’s focused on providing a valuable services: to help overwhelmed executors and administrators sell and empty estates.

Adrian is married to Gretchen Burns, who holds a degree in photography from Ohio University. Gretchen keeps the home fires burning, takes photos and helps with auctions. Cora Burns is our pride and joy, and is very interested in our toy auctions, especially in the sale of Barbie doll collections. She often accompanies Dad to weekend meetings, which she says she enjoys, as long as we can go to the trampoline park afterward.

Adrian continues to write frequently on the subject of estates, grief and loss, and the meaning that material possessions play in all of our lives. He also conducts appraisal events and speaks to groups about downsizing, estates and managing through the difficult process of letting go.

He even gets on TV once in a while, perhaps most notably on a Good Morning America segment broadcast nationally.