Online auctions: has the novelty worn off?
An uncertain journey but perhaps online lacks pizzazz, says Simon de Burton
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Mixed results at the year-end auctions in the UK and America suggest that the novelty might be wearing off when it comes to online sales, but continued uncertainty surrounding the future of large public gatherings, local lockdowns and tier restrictions means the houses face something of a logistical conundrum when it comes to planning events during the first quarter of 2021.
Following the reasonable success of its second Geared Online sale in late October, Gooding & Co will continue with the internet-only format for its Scottsdale auction, which will be open for bidding from January 18-22, with a major item already consigned in the form of a Ferrari 275GTB Long Nose. Meanwhile, the first significant sale in Europe will be Artcurial’s newly-named La Parisienne auction on February 5 that will be held “in partnership with Rétromobile” – despite the fact that Rétromobile itself has been postponed until June.
But while uncertainty reigns, one thing seems clear: good cars that are reasonably estimated and consigned by open-minded vendors who don’t set their expectations too high continue to sell well – but anyone clinging on to hopes of recouping prices laid out on popular models when the market was on fire two or three years ago will, inevitably, be left wanting. And that’s regardless of whether bidders are in the room or online.
