Murphy’s Law

The Art Newspaper does a follow up interview with Christie’s CEO Steven Murphy. Here are some salient points:

• Transforming the Business for Digital: One department that is profitable, successful and has enormous market share is watches. A Patek Philippe or a Longines has a number on it, the provenance is clear [making it easier to sell online]. At one of our sales in Geneva [May 2011] there were 203 people in the room for a watch sale and 800 bidding online live from around the world, including for over $1m on one or two pieces.

• Private Sales: I expect it will double and then double again. The reason it’s growing and why we’re investing in it is because it’s what our clients (as buyers and sellers) want.

• Guarantees: It’s a healthier environment now. But at the right time, there’s nothing wrong with a guarantee, no apologies.

Preparing Christie’s for a Quantum Leap (The Art Newspaper)