A growing number of auction houses are positive on Hong Kong’s outlook, including Phillips Auctioneers which is reportedly adding headcount and establishing a 52,000-square foot Asia headquarters.
Phillips Auctioneers is expanding its staff by 40 percent from around 70 to over 100 by the end of 2023, according to a «Bloomberg» report citing the film’s Asia chairman Jonathan Crockett.
Phillips will also relocate its office from Hong Kong's Central district to the West Kowloon Cultural District. The new space will act as the headquarters for Asia and it boasts six storeys with 52,000 square feet. It will open in March and become Hong Kong's first auction house to have a permanent purpose-built exhibition space, cafe and VIP lounge, alongside other facilities.
Record Sales
In 2022, Philipps registered a record $1.3 billion in sales. Clients in Asia accounted for 34 percent of sales, of which nearly 70 percent were from the Greater China region.
«In the short term, we may see less activity coming out of the mainland itself, but even at the end of last year, we had significant mainland Chinese activity,» said Crockett, adding that Chinese citizens who have moved to Hong Kong and Singapore also contributed to sales.
Auction House Growth
Other auction houses are also looking to expand in Hong Kong with new spaces. Christie’s will move to a 50,000-square foot location in 2024 while Sotheby’s will open new spaces totaling 60,000 square feet, also in 2024, including an exhibition space in Central.
«I don’t believe there is another alternative to Hong Kong as far as what we do as a business. There is nowhere else we can be,» Crockett added.
Phillips was founded in 1796 in London and is currently owned by Mercury Group, one of the largest distributors of lux goods in Russia.
