American Pickers’ Mike Wolfe Once Took A Pricey Gamble On A Set Of Damaged 1940s Coca-Cola Signs – Looper

In the Season 23 installment “The Alabama Slamma,” “American Pickers” staple Mike Wolfe picked up eight antique Coca-Cola signs from the late 1940s. They all seemed to have their original wood frames, and most lacked serious damage, but there was one big problem: one of the previous owners covered them all in black paint. Some were still pretty much coated in it, while others had begun to peel, but in Wolfe’s eyes, despite their condition, they all had potential. Having paid big money for Coca-Cola signage before, he dropped $4,000 for all of them, hopeful to restore them to their former glory.

Given the shape they’re in, surely it would take no shortage of paint remover and patience to get them all back to where they were decades ago. This process would likely cost Wolfe a few bucks, but once the signs were all back in tip-top shape, it stands to reason he could make a pretty penny off of them. Coca-Cola is one of those brands that people love buying up trinkets, bottles, and, of course, signs of, as evidenced by the bustling Reddit community dedicated to such collectibles. Who knows, maybe someone in that subreddit will come to own one of these signs down the road.

Some might look at this bundle of Coca-Cola signs and see a lost cause, but not Mike Wolfe. He sees dollar signs, and it’s that way of thinking that has helped “American Pickers” to thrive for over a decade.