Sotheby’s (NYSE:BID) today announced that it has acquired the art
advisory firm Art Agency, Partners (AAP), managed by Amy
Cappellazzo, Allan Schwartzman, and Adam Chinn. With this
acquisition, Sotheby’s, takes a decisive step toward implementing
the strategy outlined by President and Chief Executive Officer Tad
Smith. Cappellazzo, Schwartzman and Chinn will begin
immediately, reporting to Smith, and will be based in New
York.
Smith stated, “AAP’s profitable business helps
drive initiatives that are imperative for Sotheby’s growth –
improving our leadership position at the high end of the fine art
market, bolstering our private sales capability, giving us new
growth opportunities in advisory services, and reinforcing the
client-first culture in all we do. The AAP leadership team is
widely known for its expertise in fine art of the past two
centuries, especially in the realm of post-war, contemporary and
modern art. The principals maintain deep relationships with
top collectors around the world, and are unsurpassed at executing
the complicated financial transactions that are integral to today’s
art market. Most important, however, is AAP’s unique approach
to client service in all areas of its advisory work, from art
consulting and private purchases and sales to art-related estate
planning, museum development, and art investment. All of these
practices have joined consignment advisory and auction services as
important strategic growth areas for Sotheby’s.”
Schwartzman and Cappellazzo will join Sotheby’s
as Chairmen, taking leadership roles in a newly formed Fine Art
Division focused principally on 20th and 21st century art. They
will also have responsibility for private sales and the development
of the advisory business within Sotheby’s. Chinn will assume the
role of Worldwide Head of Transaction Support, leading the
company’s deal-making efforts on a global basis.
Smith continued, “The AAP team will supplement
an extraordinary pool of talent within Sotheby’s, and complement
other key hires made in recent months in business development,
technology and operations, digital development and marketing, and
human resources."
“Having devoted my career to helping build great
collections, and to tending to the diverse needs of great
collectors, I am excited to join Sotheby's, where my colleagues and
I from AAP can extend our approach to full-scale service to a much
wider client world,” Schwartzman commented. “Today's rapidly
evolving art market opens the way toward remarkable opportunities
for our clients and the company that serves them. We intend to be
nimble and innovative as we help Sotheby's realize its vision of
expanding into a broader art business."
Cappellazzo noted, "Ours is an industry poised
for change, and the conditions are perfect for a preeminent auction
house to transform itself into a premier, client-centric art
business. The addition of AAP to the deep strength of
existing talent within Sotheby's promises to make this enterprise
first-rate in ways that are unprecedented in the field. I am
excited personally and professionally by the opportunity to help
shape this venerable organization."
“The financial, legal, and art specialist
spheres have become intricately linked in today’s art market, and
Sotheby’s has been at the forefront of providing advice in all of
these areas,” said Chinn. “I look forward to further deepening the
range of services we provide to art collectors and being a part of
setting a new standard for doing business in the art market.”
About AAP
Cappellazzo, previously Chairman of Post-War
& Contemporary Development at Christie’s, and Schwartzman, an
advisor to many of the world’s most important art collectors,
announced the formation of Art Agency, Partners in March 2014.
Chinn, a co-founder of the boutique investment bank Centerview
Partners LLP, joined AAP as the third partner in October
2014.
Amy Cappellazzo previously served as a market
leader in contemporary art during her tenure of more than a dozen
years at Christie’s, where she rose to be Chairman of Post-War
& Contemporary Development. While at Christie’s, she oversaw
the sale of some of the most important collections of our time,
served as a pioneer in private sales and online auctions, and acted
as an advisor to numerous families, foundations, and trusts.
Cappellazzo began her career as an art advisor and curator and was
a key figure in the establishment of Art Basel in Miami Beach.
Allan Schwartzman, a founder and principal of
Art Agency, Partners, has almost two decades of experience in
advising some of the world’s most influential and sophisticated
contemporary art collectors and museums. Previously, Schwartzman
was a founding staff member of the New Museum of Contemporary Art
and director of the Barbara Gladstone Gallery. He has written
extensively about art in numerous books and for publications
including The New Yorker and The New York Times.
Adam Chinn was a co-founder of the boutique
investment bank Centerview Partners LLC and a former partner at
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. He has been closely
involved in many significant merger and acquisitions transactions,
including transformative deals in the financial services, media,
and entertainment sectors, over the course of his career in banking
and law.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains certain “forward-looking
statements” (as such term is defined in the Securities and Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended) relating to future events and the
financial performance of Sotheby’s. Such statements are only
predictions and involve risks and uncertainties, resulting in the
possibility that the actual events or performances will differ
materially from such predictions. Major factors, which
Sotheby’s believes could cause the actual results to differ
materially from the predicted results in the “forward-looking
statements” include, but are not limited to, the overall strength
of the international economy and financial markets, political
conditions in various nations, the ability to recognize the
benefits of the Transaction, competition with other auctioneers and
art dealers, the amount of quality property being consigned to art
auction houses and the marketability at auction of such
property. Please refer to our most recently filed Form 10-Q
(and/or 10-K) for a complete list of Risk Factors.
Investor Relations
Information
All Sotheby’s Press Releases and SEC filings are
available on our web site at www.sothebys.com. An outline of the
conference call will be available at
http://investor.shareholder.com/bid/events.cfm.
Sotheby’s will host a conference call at 9 AM
EST on 11 January 2016, to discuss this acquisition. The call will
be hosted by Tad Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer, and
Dennis Weibling, Interim Chief Financial Officer. The call
will consist of a brief discussion by the Company followed by a
question and answer period. Domestic callers should dial
888-371-8897 and international callers should dial
970-315-0479. The call reservation number is 23802472.
Please establish a line approximately 10 minutes prior to the
scheduled start of the call.
To listen to the conference call via web cast,
please go to:
http://investor.shareholder.com/bid/events.cfm. You
will need Windows Media Player or Real Player to access the
call. Please download either of these programs before the
call begins.
About Sotheby's
Sotheby's has been uniting collectors with
world-class works of art since 1744. Sotheby's became the
first international auction house when it expanded from London to
New York (1955), the first to conduct sales in Hong Kong (1973),
India (1992) and France (2001), and the first international fine
art auction house in China (2012). Today, Sotheby's presents
auctions in nine different salesrooms, including New York, London,
Hong Kong and Paris, and Sotheby's BidNow program allows visitors
to view all auctions live online and place bids in real-time from
anywhere in the world. Sotheby's offers collectors the
resources of Sotheby's Financial Services, the world's only
full-service art financing company, as well as private sale
opportunities in more than 70 categories, including S|2, the
gallery arm of Sotheby's Contemporary Art department, as well as
Sotheby's Diamonds and Sotheby's Wine. Sotheby's has a global
network of 90 offices in 40 countries and is the oldest company
listed on the New York Stock Exchange (BID).
New York | +1 212 606 7176 | Lauren Gioia | Lauren.Gioia@Sothebys.com | Dan Abernethy | Dan.Abernethy@Sothebys.com
Jennifer Park | Jennifer.Park@Sothebys.com |
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