While in 2020 many international auction houses experienced one of their worst sales years in a long time, the Scandinavian auction market did exceptionally well. The market-leading Nordic auction house Bukowskis, which last year celebrated its 150th year in business, increased sales by 5% and had a profit margin as high as 20%, corresponding to a profit before tax of SEK 44.2 million ($5.2 million) after an already strong 2019.
These successes undoubtedly resulted from Bukowskis’ early decisions and ability to adapt and lead development with a focus on a digital customer experience. On an international scale, the traditional auction house, which holds 60% of the Swedish auction market for Fine Art, is considered to be one of the auction houses that has succeeded best with their digital transformation.
Bukowskis is one of the few auction houses that has increased both its sales and its profit margin, largely thanks to an increase online with 45% more unique visitors and 25% more sessions, which has resulted in a record number of bidders, virtual reality visits and almost 65,000 sold objects in 2020. The nearly 200 online Fine Art auctions were also important elements in securing their position as the leading auction house in the Nordic region.
“We delivered very strong results for both Bukowskis and our customers during a very special year. In a relatively conservative industry where major global players such as Christie's and Sotheby's more or less began a digital transformation at the beginning of the pandemic, Bukowskis is several years ahead of its competitors,” says Louise Arén, CEO of Bukowskis.
Bukowskis was behind eight of the ten most expensive hammer prices achieved at auction in Sweden last year, with by far the most items sold for over one million SEK ($120,000), several world records and a so-called ‘White Glove Sale’.
Both local and large international auction houses are facing major challenges and digital restructuring to maintain profitability, something that Bukowskis has already managed in an industry with relatively low margins. Over the past four years, Bukowskis has undergone a digital journey of change with a focus on increased quality and profitable volume, a strategy that has been crucial for their successful results.
“For me, it has been important to run Bukowskis as a modern company and create a nice balance between art and business. Knowledge and passion about the objects is the starting point for everything we do, but we have also built an organization that consists of specialist knowledge right through the company. This contributes to a number of approaches, even if in the end it is data and numbers that determine what we prioritize and how we act,” says Arén.
When Sweden was hit by the pandemic during the first quarter of 2020, the company was able to quickly restructure the business with a previously-implemented digital infrastructure and streamline production. A high-quality online offering has also strengthened Bukowskis’ reach internationally to continue meeting new clients through a modern and digital customer experience.
"In 2020, we saw an increased international interest in our auctions and we had bidders from 99 different countries, where over 60% of all bids were placed on mobile devices. The majority of these were placed via Bukowskis’ app, which in 2020 became the industry's highest ranked app globally," continues Arén.
How would you describe Bukowskis today?
Bukowskis today is a data-driven company, which gives us the opportunity to be proactive and analyze our business in real time. All interfaces are digitized to offer a premium experience for our customers regardless of where they are in the buying or selling process, and today we make all decisions based on data, which means that we strengthen our position at the forefront of digitizing the entire auction industry.
What does the Bukowskis brand mean for your business?
Bukowskis is an extremely strong brand, which we always make sure to have in motion. The challenge is to preserve the history and the emotion in Bukowski's brand, but constantly move it forward to reach the next generation of art and design customers.
Given your success and the number of international buyers, are you considering taking your success concept outside Sweden's borders?
Bukowskis is already a global company with customers all over the world, but we are always looking at strategic opportunities to reach a wider audience.
2021 has also opened unusually strongly. Since Bukowskis closed the 2020 auction year, it has had some of its most premier auctions ever and can already boast 31 million listings, and, within Sweden, 14 of the 15 most expensive works sold on the auction market as well as the most expensive work sold in 2021.