Oh.Ma.Gawd OMG!

OK, so I have this chair, right? I bought this chair at Goodwill about 5 years ago for $3. I LOVE my chair. (I'm sitting on it right now, actually.) I have used it as my desk chair since I bought it. It's a little uncomfortable to sit in for long periods of time, but that helps me regulate my computer time, lol. Well, I was talking to Pimpin' D about it a few days ago and was trying to find a picture of it online. I didn't think it would be that hard to do. I know the company and the model # (1004), but I could not, for the life of me, find a picture of it. (It looks similar to the pic here, but imagine an upholstered seat and only one bottom cross brace.)

Well, out of pure curiosity, I e-mailed the sales department at Emeco and asked them for some more information about the chair. I got a response a couple days later from the office manager saying that she couldn't find any information on that particular model, but she would have someone get back to me after his vacation.

I started to think that, most likely, the chair was a reproduction, or an out and out fake. I figured it couldn't hurt to take it to a local antique shop where a friend of mine works. She identified it as an authentic Emeco, but was wary to put an actual price on it. (In the hopes I wouldn't make her buy it, I think, lol) She did say, though, that it would probably price above 3K, maybe into the 10s. Exciting...n'est-ce pas? tres.

This morning I got an e-mail from Gregg Buchbinder. He is the CEO of Emeco. (Mr. Big Pants)

Dear Matt,

You do have a rare piece!

The 1004 Side Chair is part of the Emeco Management Series launched in 1947. All other chairs in this series 1001 Arm Chair, 1002 Side Chair, 1003 Swivel Chair, 1005 Swivel Chair we own and are part of our collection in the Emeco Museum. I have been looking for a 1004 for some time and have only seen photos.

While I can not give you a firm price on such an item, I would imagine it to be upwards of $10,000. Condition in a case such as this would be nearly negligible in it's effect on value. I wish we could afford to buy it from you. We will gladly accept a donation to our museum!

Best regards,
Gregg

Holy effing shit. I don't even have the words to describe how awesome this is, lol. Considering the condition of the chair is nearly perfect, I am almost afraid to imagine what it could be worth. The only condition problem is that when I bought it, the original vinyl covering was torn completely off of the seat and I recovered it with fabric. I don't even know what other condition problems there could be. Emeco gained their reputation by building the 1006 chair for the US Navy - and those chairs last for-fucking-ever. Click here and check out the 'About Us' section to see the process of how these chairs are made. (77 individual steps!)

I almost feel guilty not offering it to their museum...but I LOVE my chair. :( And to imagine I have been sitting my little fat ass on a 10K chair for the past 5 years...dayum.

So, what do you guys think? Should I donate it to the Emeco furniture museum? Should I sell it and rejoice in the money? Or should I keep the chair I love and be happy in the knowledge of it's value? Let me know by clicking your choice in the Mini-Poll box on the sidebar.