Christie’s To Expand Interior Sales

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The New York Sun

The art world may be spending the weekend partying in Miami, but Christie’s is keeping its eye on the shop. In an effort to expand its presence in the world of decorating (what is sometimes referred to as the “middle market”), Christie’s will announce today the creation of a monthly global sale called Christie’s Interiors.

“Global” may sound overly broad when describing sales that will take place in London, Paris, and New York, but it is a part of an effort to create a steady flow of customers who can bid on furniture, jewelry, silver, rugs, porcelain, and even art. It speaks to Christie’s ambition to expand beyond connoisseurship and become something closer to a global lifestyle emporium.

Christie’s Interiors builds on the successful House Sales that began in 2002. These sales, with their shelter magazine-like catalogues, appeal more to decorators and clients seeking an overall effect than to those interested in the details of provenance. The sales in New York generate about $25 million each year. Christie’s South Kensington outpost — its London location dedicated to selling “middle market” material — did $150 million in sales in 2006. That’s good money, but only a fraction of the house’s $4.6 billion in sales last year.

At that level, the middle market does not get the same attention as the evening auctions of contemporary art. As a strategic effort, though, it does move against the recent direction of the industry. Less than a decade ago, Phillips de Pury & Company was founded on the idea that an auction house no longer had to cater to every category of fine art and collectible. Sotheby’s and Christie’s have numerous departments, each stocked with experts conducting sales that are not necessarily big money earners. Anyone who has seen the displays of duck decoys or the rare book auctions will know that the workaday world of an auction house isn’t as glamorous as the sale of a $70 million Rothko painting might suggest. Although Phillips de Pury continues to grow as an auction house, there’s no evidence that this strategy has made significant inroads into the Sotheby’s and Christie’s duopoly.

“We try to service our clients and match their needs,” Christie’s U.S. regional director, Heather Barnhart, said. “We think it’s important to commit resources and invest in the high end of our business and emerging markets. In today’s world, people don’t just collect one thing.”

Christie’s may see the need for many of the less talked-about departments as a way to service its customers’ interests, but the Interiors sales are more about broadening its customer base. Even though the big-ticket art auctions have seen a huge influx of new collectors, the auction house has a long way to go before it can consider itself a lifestyle brand.

That may explain why the growth of the Interiors department has gone hand-in-hand with Christie’s efforts to bring the “theater of the auction” to the Web. When Christie’s wanted to try out its LIVE system that links the Internet to traditional hammer-and-cry auctions, it began with the House sales. In July 2006, 11 bidders signed up to watch the auction on their computers via the Internet and submit their bids with keyboards instead of paddles. Those buyers made 61 bids and walked away with $20,000 worth of merchandise. Eleven months later, in mid-June, nearly a quarter of the bidders in a House sale were using the LIVE system. They made more than 1,000 bids and won $250,000 worth of merchandise.

“We have so many new clients who find it so much easier to bid this way,” Ms. Barnhart said. The company is aiming to expand its customer base by uniting London, Paris, and New York with the Internet bidding system. If growth keeps on that trajectory, it may really have a shot at finally getting beyond the ultra-luxury category and into the mainstream of what mere mortals might be able to buy.

“The interiors concept has been very successful,” Ms. Barnhart said, “in getting the message out and proving to people that it fits in with the Christie’s brand.”


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