LAURENCE AND SALLY MARTIN “The Wild Cards” Antique Experts, Auction Specialists

Series: “Baggage Battles” Hometown: El Segundo, CA

Laurence and Sally Martin have appeared as regular appraisers on A&E’s “Storage Wars” and in the one-hour special, “Storage Wars: Unlocked.” They demonstrate their strong partnership, business sense and years of experience in Travel Channel’s “Baggage Battles.” The original series provides a glimpse into the very profitable business of bidding, buying and reselling unclaimed property by following three teams of auction experts who travel to some of the top auctions around the world – including airport auctions, unclaimed freight and shipping auctions, police and seizure auctions, vehicular auctions and estate auctions, where their bids are based on sight-unseen instincts.

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Laurence Martin became an avid collector at a very young age beginning with antique ephemera, postcards, stamps and anything with a postal history. He even had his own museum when he was just a school boy. Together with his wife of 22 years, Sally, Laurence continues to collect and buy to this day. The couple has co-owned Studio Antiques in El Segundo, CA since 1987. Laurence’s specialty in the antique business is his keen skill in spotting a unique or rare item that others tend to overlook. He is known in the industry as being slightly eccentric and an “Andy Warhol type.”

Before owning Studio Antiques, Laurence spent 20 years in the aerospace industry as a scientific engineer and designer. He studied at Bournemouth College in Bournemouth, England, and has always been an avid traveler spending time in countries including China, Australia and Mexico. As a part of making his avocation his vocation, Laurence spent over 10 years importing containers of antiques from across the globe for Studio Antiques.

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Sally Martin is the co-owner of Studio Antiques, an old-fashioned antique store in El Segundo, CA. She and her husband, Laurence, have owned the business for over 25 years. Sally oversees the customer service and communications for Studio Antiques – both in the shop and with online customers around the world.

Prior to being in the antique business, Sally worked in the cable television industry for 15 years for such companies as The Disney Channel, Media One and Continental Cablevision. While at Continental Cablevision, Sally earned a Cable Television Advertising and Marketing Award for print communications. She holds an M.B.A. from the University of Southern California and an undergraduate degree in fine arts from California State University – Long Beach, where she graduated with honors. # # #