Langfords, Vaults 8 and 10
The display shelves in Langfords are laden with an incredible collection of Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Russian, French, American, and English tea things in classic, Queen Anne, Georgian, Victorian, Arts and Crafts, and Art Deco styles. There are exquisite tea jars and caddies, caddy spoons, strainers, silver trays, cow creamers, sugar baskets, an elegant set of silver-and-gilt cream jug and sugar dish with tongs inside its own satin-lined box, and even a boxed silver-plated afternoon-tea picnic set. The choice of teawares here is captivating, and the knowledge accrued over 87 years by three generations of Langfords makes for fascinating and enlightening conversations about the provenance and history of the pieces on show.
Current owners, Joel Langford and his brother Adam, followed their parents and grandparents into the silver trade. In the early days of the business in the 1940s, the boys’ grandparents had a shop in Newbury, south of Oxford, and rented storage space in London at the Silver Vaults. Joel explains, “At that time, the only people with enough money to buy precious silverwares were United States Army and Air Force officers and their wives, who were mainly based in London.” So, the Langfords invited potential clients down into the Vaults to view their treasured stash of silver items. They were the first to set their vault up as a shop, and this started a trend that led to what the Vaults are today. Joel explains how the market has changed since those days: “In the 1970s, before Maggie Thatcher came to power, Brits tended not to have much spare cash for luxuries, but North Americans did, so they made up around 90 percent of the trade. During and after Thatcher, the British became more affluent and started buying again. Today, American customers still make up an important part of the business, but it’s a much smaller part. And since Brexit, we have fewer European buyers, but more and more Chinese are now very interested in buying.” The Internet has become an important hub for buying and selling, and as a result, the number of in-person customers has dwindled, but the Vaults are still an important destination for interested buyers who know that there is an exceptionally wide choice in this underground treasure trove.
