Mark and I haven’t known each other long but as avid art collectors we crossed paths online.
We soon discovered we had the same issue with the art market: commission rates to buy and sell art were too high. If we wanted to sell an artwork we would have to take, in almost all cases, a 25% haircut.
In the age of the Internet, you can trade stocks online for $9.99 where it used to cost over $100. But the art market hasn’t changed much – Consignment fees remain unchanged and stubbornly high.
These high consignment fees basically kill the liquidity of the art market because a collector is forced to hang on to their artworks as long as 5 to 10 years to wait for appreciation to break even or make a profit. Often art collectors wish to sell an artwork to make room for a new piece, to make a small profit off of a great buy or simply need money for something else. With the current consignment climate this was near impossible to do without losing a huge chunk of one’s investment in the short-term.
To solve these issues FineArtCollector.ca was born.
We decided to “open” an online gallery that had little overhead, and promoted itself through Internet searches, word of mouth and creative marketing and social media campaigns, leveraging Mark’s background in Media & Communications and my Business background. In doing so, we have managed to create a new business model in the art world that will result in what we believe are the lowest commission rates in the Canadian art market:
Mark and I never set out to compete directly with Heffel and Waddington’s, with their huge resources and massive marketing budgets. But we did want to offer an affordable alternative to both art buyers and sellers. And we think art collectors are ready for an online art gallery. In fact, we think it’s the way of the future.
By keeping our costs low – no fancy gallery sitting on prime real estate — we are able to charge low commissions. In turn, this allows sellers to consign at lower rates and end up with more money in their pockets.
In an art market, where comparable sales prices are published, buyers are knowledgeable and know a good price when they see one. We let our good prices speak for themselves; we don’t need expensive advertising campaigns and fancy catalogues.
To find out more about our consignment process visit us at www.fineartcollector.ca/selling
Clayton
