Aussies race to the kitchen as CorningWare prices soar
<p dir="ltr">For decades, CorningWare’s collections have been a staple of kitchen cupboards all across the country. </p>
<p dir="ltr">And now, those family favourites have collectors everywhere reaching for those old casserole dishes, with prices skyrocketing online.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The news may come as a surprise to some, given CorningWare’s US-based parent company Instant Brand’s announcement - just a few days prior - that it had initiated the process for voluntary court-appointed bankruptcy. The brand encompassed the likes of Instant Pot, Corelle, Pyrex, and CorningWare.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Its products could be found on the shelves of major retailers all across the country, but with the rising challenge of inflation in the market and a reported $500 million USD in debt, Instant Brands had to make the difficult decision.</p>
<p dir="ltr">And while some may have assumed things would go downhill from there, CorningWare items had other ideas, as people took to online marketplaces to list their old collections with never-before-seen price tags on the wares. </p>
<p dir="ltr">When one seller listed their “Wildflower Spice of Life” casserole set on eBay, they asked for a staggering $25,000 - a price that topped the previous online auction high of $10,000. Another dish from the range was asking for much less, and still more than many would have bargained for - $13,000.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Other dishes included more ‘rare’ designs from CorningWare’s previous collections, with its 1971-1972 “Floral” pieces making an appearance. A 5-piece L’Echaloto would given its next owners more than a few dishes to choose from, as long as they had another $25,000 to spare to get their hands on the set in the first place. </p>
<p dir="ltr">And as one seller - who dipped her toes into the CorningWare online marketplace realm a few years prior - told 7News, the success of the dishes was certainly a surprise, though not a bad one. </p>
<p dir="ltr">The items she’d managed to sell were off to a better life, too, as they’d just “been gathering dust in our home for years.”</p>
<p dir="ltr">“I sold off a few pieces - with my mum’s blessing, of course - and have made about $9000 so far,” she said. “I have another one listed at the moment, which I’m hoping to get around $2500 for.</p>
<p dir="ltr">“I would never have thought that it could be so valuable. When I was younger, I thought it was just daggy. </p>
<p dir="ltr">“Now it’s making us more money than I ever dreamed.”</p>
<p dir="ltr"><em>Images: eBay</em></p>
