Introduction
Sotheby’s has let go of 100 employees from its New York offices, including back-office employees, junior staff and specialists in various departments, confirmed ARTnews a statement released Wednesday. The move comes as the auction house grapples with a tough market environment and looks toward more international retrenchment.
“A Sotheby’s spokesperson said: “Considering the challenges that the market has experienced this year, we have reviewed our business and staff levels carefully to ensure that we perform well and grow going forward.” We have a world class team with incredible expertise and abilities in departments and locations around the globe, and we are hyper-focused on providing best-in-class services to our clients.” Further layoffs and potential international office closures are apparently also in the works.
Internal Unrest and Market Turmoil
Though Sotheby’s has not issued an internal statement about the layoffs, they were reported earlier this week by Artnet News and Puck. The layoffs included positions in business development and senior specialists in the Impressionist, modern, antiquities, Americana and Japanese art departments, Puck’s Marion Maneker reported. Sotheby’s rejected those claims, calling them “unsubstantiated.”
The layoffs come after a rough year for Sotheby’s, which reported $533.1 million in its marquee sales of Impressionist, modern and contemporary art in New York in November, a significant decline from $1.2 billion in 2023. It marks a decline that mirrors wider fragmentation in the auction market.
The Downtrodden and Strategic Industrial Complex
In recent months, worries about Sotheby’s financial health have increased. In May, it laid off 50 employees across its London offices. In September, a leaked report showed 88 percent plummet in core earnings and 25 percent drop in auction sales for early 2024. The Wall Street Journal also reported that Sotheby’s had postponed payments to art shippers and conservators.
In August, Sotheby’s announced an almost $1 billion investment by Abu Dhabi’s ADQ sovereign wealth fund, an investment that was completed in October. The investment marked a reprieve for the auction house, which was weighed down by $1.8 billion in debt from the ownership of the billionaire telecom magnate Patrick Drahi. Drahi’s businesses have a cumulative $60 billion of debt, with major repayments coming due in 2027.
Property Growth During Restructuring
Sotheby’s has faced several financial challenges but has nevertheless made hefty real estate investments this year. On Nov. 1, it will complete the $100 million acquisition of the Breuer building, the former Whitney Museum of American Art, in New York. The purchase, which was financed in part with a $35 million mortgage from Barclays Bank, when Sotheby’s signed a 15-year lease. Internationally, the auction house grew with the addition of a 24,000-square-foot maison in Hong Kong and a 10,800 space in Paris.
Comparisons with Christie’s
Reports suggest that Christie’s has also laid off staff, but fewer than Sotheby’s. A spokesperson for Christie’s denied there were any significant staff changes, saying, “Christie’s currently has no personnel move of note planned. Like all businesses, we regularly review our global resourcing requirements to ensure that we continue to be agile.’ In a time when global expansion, financial restructuring, and the world’s myriad demands are colliding at an unprecedented level, Sotheby’s path is worth watching for the years to come.
Contributing report by George Nelson/artnews
Feature image: Representational; generated by Dall.I
Contributor
