CEO reports 70% increase in new houses joining the marketplace in April-May and 277% jump in online hammer as auction rooms closed and bidders headed online
BOSTON, May 27, 2020, the world's leading online marketplace for fine art, antiques and collectibles, today released data showing the sudden and dramatic pivot global auction houses made to online sales when COVID-19 abruptly shuttered sale rooms.
"The auction model predicated on large gatherings of bidders, which has endured for centuries, literally crashed overnight in mid-March" said Invaluable CEO Rob Weisberg. "Auction houses with a strong online presence quickly moved their sales exclusively online and were joined by other houses, new to digital, who have scrambled to catch up.
"April saw a dramatic shift online that continued in May and, we believe, will continue for the next year-and-a-half, if not indefinitely, due to a shift in consumer bidding behavior. Overall, while the auction market remains down, we're seeing early signs of recovery - like double-digit increases in bidders and buyers engaging online. A record number of auctions houses are adopting Invaluable technology to take advantage of that," he added.
Invaluable moved rapidly to assist auction house partners migrating online, waiving more than $150,000 in listing fees in April and May, Weisberg said. "We knew it was critical to help our partners. We're in this together, especially during a global crisis."
The company also joined a host of individuals and institutions supporting artists, donating to and helping raise funds for Artist Relief,which will distribute $5,000 grants to artists facing dire emergencies due to the pandemic.
Invaluable year-over-year data for April-May shows the dramatic industry change to online sales:
- New houses joining the Invaluable marketplace increased 70%
- Sales from those new houses jumped 132%
- Percentage of hammer derived online skyrocketed 277%
- The number of bidders rose 39%
- The number of buyers climbed 52%
In addition, Invaluable has seen record high organic traffic in Q2 2020 - up more than 50% year-over-year as a result of increased online search activity.
Invaluable has now made it easier than ever for auctions houses to support their entire business, offering turn key white-labelhosted web solutions, industry leading cloud-based auction management software, a consignment marketplace and, of course, invaluable.com, offering the largest source of buyer demand in the industry.
For more information on Invaluable, to view upcoming auctions and shop from galleries and dealers, please visit www.Invaluable.com.
About Invaluable
Invaluable is the world's leading online marketplace for buying fine art, antiques and collectibles. Working with 5,000 of the world's premier auction houses, dealers and galleries, Invaluable helps buyers from nearly 200 countries connect with the things they love. With best-in-class online bidding technology, along with a fixed-price retail platform, Invaluable provides sellers with e-commerce and marketing solutions, as well as auction management software. Headquartered in Boston, Invaluable also has offices in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Belgium and Australia. For more information, visit www.invaluable.comor follow us on Twitter at @InvaluableLive
