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RAPAPORT... Christie’s auction total jumped 12 percent year on year to $4.47 billion (GBP 2.69 billion) for the first six months of 2014. The sales increase by dollar value rose 22 percent as the British pound strengthened during the period. Christie’s strong results were primarily driven by higher values for artwork. Digital engagement and new buyers coming into the market have continued to drive growth for the company with new clients representing 24 percent of all buyers and 15 percent of the sales total during the first half. Christie’s sales from the jewelry, watch and wine category jumped 11 percent to $455.5 million.
Steven Murphy, Christie’s CEO, said, “Christie’s continued position of leadership is evidenced again in our half year results. Yet more important is that we are meeting our goal of serving more clients than any other art business globally and at all levels of collecting. Our strategy to engage this growing audience for art through auction, private sales and digitally has been validated and again welcomed many new buyers. We continue to lead the top levels of the art market, particularly in the Post-War & Contemporary Art area, while also successfully serving the broad variety of interests through all our categories and online sales. It is a new era of excitement and engagement about art and for art. By putting the art first, Christie’s has captured the imagination of our clients and served them in their quest to connect with the art itself.” Art auction sales rose 13 percent to $3.6 billion, with 51 works of art selling for over $10 million each. Online-only auction sales jumped 71 percent year on year to $14.4 million, with a diamond ring, mounted by Van Cleef & Arpels, selling on Christie’s LIVETM, achieving $2,792,863 (CHF 2,517,000) in May.
Christie's opened two new exhibition spaces in China during the first six months of 2014. Christie’s Hong Kong and Beijing are now home to permanent exhibition spaces – after New York, London, Paris and Amsterdam – for uniquely curated exhibitions, lectures, art programs and private sales. Christie’s also launched the company’s first retail model platform with the "Watch Shop," where one third of clients have been new customers and the average watch price is $10,218.
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