Lancer Gallery is a limited liability company that sources and sells a wide variety of South…

Lancer Gallery is a limited liability company that sources and sells a wide variety of South American and African artifacts. It is also a major source of southwestern Indian-especially Hopi and Navajo-authentic jewelry and pottery. Although the firm’s headquarters is located in Phoenix, Arizona, there are currently branch offices in Los Angeles, Miami, and Boston.Lancer Gallery originated as a trading post operation near Tucson, Arizona, In the early 1900 s. Through a series of judicious decisions, the company established itself as one of the more reputable dealers in authentic southwestern jewelry and pottery. Over the years, Lancer gradually expanded its product line to include preColumbian artifacts from Peru and Venervela (see Exhiblt 1) and tribal and burial artifacts from Africa. Through its careful verification of the authenticity of these South American and African artifacts, Lancer developed a national reputation as one of the most respected sources of these types of artifacts.In 2001, Lancer further expanded its product line to Include items that were replicas of authentic artifacts. For example, African fertility gods and masks were made by craftspeople who took great pains to produce these items so that only the truly knowledgeable buyer-a collector-would know that they were replicas. Lancer now has long-term contracts with native craftspeople in Central America, South America, Africa, and the southwestern United States who produce these items. Replicas account for only a small portion of total Lancer sales; the company agreed to enter this business only at the prodding of the firm’s clients, who desired an expanded line. The replicas have found most favor among gift buyers and individuals looking for decorative litems.The company’s gross sales are about $35 million and have increased at a relatively constant rate of 20 percent per year over the last decade. Myron Rangard, the firm’s national sales manager, attributed the sales increase to the popularity of the company’s product line and to the expanded distribution of South American and African artifacts:For some reason, our South American and certainly our African antifacts have been gaining greater acceptance. Two of our department store customers featured examples of our African line in their Chriamss catalogs las year. I personally think consumer tasters are changing from the modern and ahstract to the more concrete, like our products.