For viewers who love Antiques Roadshow, PBS is bringing a new program to primetime. MARKET WARRIORS premieres Monday, July 16 at 8pm. The show follows antiques pickers on a nationwide treasure hunt, scouring flea markets for vintage valuables with an eye toward selling their finds for profit at auction.
Fred Willard (Best in Show, Modern Family) is MARKET WARRIORS’ off-screen host, offering wry commentary throughout the show.
“Who better to guide viewers through the challenges our pickers face than Fred Willard, who brings to the series both his signature improvisational skills and the eye and know-how of a collector,” series executive producer Marsha Bemko said.
In each episode, four pickers travel to different market locations across the country with a set amount of money to purchase certain items. Viewers will learn not only about different objects and their history; they’ll also see the competitors apply their knowledge and skills to real financial transactions. Along the way, we will get to know our pickers, learn about what they bought and why through individual interviews, and discover the current value of the objects as only the marketplace can determine.
“With MARKET WARRIORS, we wanted to turn the lens on the antiques pickers themselves,” Bemko said. “Our pickers aren’t your amateur weekend-flea-market hobbyists. They are pros looking to turn a profit in a highly competitive setting where the element of chance and a little luck sometimes trump expertise.”
The sale of our pickers’ items takes place at an auction on a different day, in a different location. All four competitors will watch the auctioneer take charge of the bidding and the picker whose objects earn the highest total profit at auction is the winner of that episode.
MARKET WARRIORS will air directly after Antiques Roadshow, giving viewers a block of treasure-hunting programming on Wednesday nights.
“MARKET WARRIORS is a perfect complement to Antiques Roadshow, building on our audience’s passion for history and antiques,” John F. Wilson, Senior Vice President & Chief TV Programming Executive, said. “Together they offer an addictive two hours of flea markets, antiques and unique finds.” l
