Daniel Loeb is pushing for three seats on the board at Sotheby’s, preparing for a proxy fight to wrest additional control of the company for his Third Point Hedge Fund. “All shareholders will benefit from further depth of experience in Sotheby’s key business building block: luxury customer relationship development,” Third Point said in its regulatory filing this week. (more…)
William Ruprecht, the Chief Executive for Sotheby’s, saw a 10 percent decrease in pay last year, taking home $6.3 million, after the auction house saw a 37% drop in profits. Sotheby’s took home a final profit of $108.3 million in 2012, while auction sales dropped 10% to $3.8 billion and its stock price rose 17% in 2012. (more…)
Despite contracting markets in Asia and the Middle East, Christie’s International has announced a 10% increase in sales for 2012. This growth over the previous year was led by the increased interest in post-war art and living artists, as illustrated by Mark Rothko’s “Orange, Red, Yellow” selling for $86.9 million last year. According to Steven Murphy, Christie’s chief executive: “Existing clients are spending more, and many of our new bidders have previously bought from dealers and art fairs. They like the transparency of auctions.” (more…)
Japanese artist Hiroshi Sugimoto has unveiled his new design for the Tokyo office of Christie’s Japan. Situated in a pre-war stone building in Tokyo’s prestigious Marunouchi District, the new office design emphasizes its gallery space and entranceways, all based on Sugimoto’s adherence to Japanese heritage and literature. “Mr. Sugimoto, a globally renowned artist, successfully created a space where the East and the West harmonize, and the past and the present blend together seamlessly.” Says Managing Director Ryutaro Katayama.
Sotheby’s total sales for art and antiques appear to be down by 10% this year, according to the figures on Sotheby’s website, says the Telegraph. The auction house realized $4.4 billion in auction sales this year; however that figure does not include private sales, which increased significantly this year. Last year the auction house realized $5.8 billion in total sales, with around $800 million of that from private sales. (more…)
William Ruprecht has been appointed the Chairman of Sotheby’s Board of Directors. He will keep his post as President and Chief Executive Officer as well. The previous Chair for the past 13 years, Michael I. Sovern, will continue to serve on the board as well. Ruprecht started as an administrator in the Rugs department 32 years ago, and has since developed a strong client base in emerging international markets, grown the business’s art-related financing, private sales and online presence. (more…)
With record $3.5 billion in revenue in just the first half of 2012, Christie’s chairman of postwar and contemporary development, Amy Cappellazo, has developed new ways of business origination. “When I think about auctions, I think about the democracy of the marketplace and how great that is. Whoever has the most money will win,” says Cappellazo. (more…)
Although Sotheby’s revenue increased, it has posted a loss for this quarter. Quarterly revenue rose 18% to $68.5 million. The company typically sees a small profit or loss in first and third quarters, as the largest sales happen during the second and fourth quarters. This year, the third-quarter loss increased by 10%, in an unfavorable comparison with an $11.6 million tax benefit in the third quarter of 2011. (more…)
