HISCOX Online Report 2020: online-продажи art. Part 2
ARTinvestment.RU   09 июля 2020

AI continues to analyze the report online-рынку art from the company ArtTactic

the First part of the article can be read here.

the Second part of the HISCOX report Online Report published on 7 July 2020, is devoted to the forecasts for the future market of online-продаж from the direct participants of the process — sellers of art online: auction houses, galleries and trading platforms. Here are the main hopes and fears that have contributed ArtTactic, and then traditionally, provide their own comments:

Art-рынок in the medium term (2020-2021)

• the Vast majority (80 %) of respondents believe that the crisis caused by the pandemic in the next 12 months will continue to drive sales at online-рынке (despite the fact that the art market in General, it will have a negative impact). Interestingly, in a survey conducted by ArtTactic in March 2020 (when the world health organization announced the pandemic. — AI.), a positive Outlook for the 12 months gave a smaller number of players in the art market — 74 %.

• the Majority (65 %) online-платформ believe that the current crisis will lead to fundamental changes — in particular to the fact that the Internet will become a natural part of any business for the sale of art objects and collectibles. Some players fear that the growth of online-продаж will be uneven, likely prolonged economic recession will make inefficient business for platforms with a higher current expenditures. According to them, online-рынок is the beginning of a broader redistribution of power and he was waiting for a loud merger, not less high-profile failures, the emergence of new major players and innovative solutions.

• combining the companies in the partnership, or even merging them expect 67% of respondents in 2020 (it is interesting that in a relatively stable 2019, this figure was even higher: 71 %. — AI.). Despite the projected overall growth online-продаж, some platforms may face difficulties in attracting external financing. Thus, according to CBInsights, venture capital investments and equity investments in the first quarter of 2020 decreased by 13% compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. In the coming months is expected to further reduce the attracted private capital, so companies are obliged to think in two directions: how to create innovation, able to demonstrate a stable cash flow (a continuous source of income), and how to significantly reduce the cost of operating a business.

• Purchase of small companies will become an attractive target for major strategies such as the auction house Christie's or Sotheby's. Wanting to expand his own presence on the Internet, strategists acquire a ready-made business with a client base focused on niche segments in the field of art and luxury;

Art-рынок in the long run (2021-2025)

• Combining several key players.

the Vast majority (67 %) online-платформ (compared to 76 % in 2019) believe that in the next five years the market will be dominated by a few global platforms. Now on ten the largest players online-торговли art accounts for about 68 % of the total sales of the whole market, the top five account for almost half (46 %). As mentioned above, the crisiscan provoke excitement among the stronger players, including the traditional auction houses who are interested in strengthening presence on the Internet.

• Top-галереи could rise to the top-онлайн-платформы.

63 % available online-платформ believe top players non-public art-рынка (galleries and dealers) with the development of technology can become leaders in the Internet-сегменте. In parallel with their digital projects leading dealers (Gagosian, David Zwirner, Hauser & Wirth) today we see technologies that simultaneously maintain a large number of galleries that do not have the ability to create your own custom solution. In particular, this applies to virtual classrooms and exhibitions, which you can add to existing web-сайт, — from Artlogic, Kunstmatrix, V21 Artspace and V-Art. According to ArtTactic, digital solutions for e-Commerce (transactions, logistics) can temporarily give way to a more pressing issue for — to raise the flow of potential customers in your own gallery.

• the art Market will evolve around certain segments of the online-продаж.

More than half (56 %) of respondents (compared to 62 % in 2019) believe that online-рынок will be-прежнему focused on collectors (in other words, the emotional component at the head of the purchase and not an investment or social. — AI.). Certain platforms will dominate in certain segments (such as photography, printing, furniture or objects of design).

• the Arrival of new players can attract a new generation of buyers.

Nearly half (48 %) online-платформ (compared to 46 % in 2019) suggest that the existing company, re-focused on the art (e.g., Amazon), or a startup with cutting-edge technology can infuse "new blood" buyers on the art market and collecting. Today art-рынок sees competition from trading platforms, such as StockX with annual sales of over $100 million, starting with the sale of collectible sneakers, StockX expanded the range of objects of design from the KAWS and Takashi Murakami. According to ArtTactic, marketplace with transparent prices is exactly what you need online-рынку art to attract a new generation of buyers.

• Local and regional online-платформы.

41 % of the respondents believe that platforms can provide substantial support to regional markets, and the online-рынок of art will remain fragmented, in terms of geography (apart from-за the limited capacity of international logistics, but from-за awareness of national identity among the inhabitants of the countries caught in the quarantine. — AI.). Today platform online-аукционов such as and Saffronart and AstaGuru, have achieved leading positions in India and South Asia, Lauritz.com — in Scandinavia, indicating the presence of viable regional online-моделей. Another noticeable trend is the increasing number of collectibles in the segment of luxury goods (platform TheRealReal) and the growth of interest in interior design (platform Charish).

Review AI: despite the paralyzing art-рынок shock caused by a pandemic and the closure of physical spaces andevents, most of the online-продавцов art by July 2020, reported an increase in visitor traffic and — more importantly — sales. Realizing that the Internet remains the only viable channel for implementation of works of art, the sellers, meanwhile, are wondering: with the end of the quarantine will develop online-экспансия art-рынка or the world will return to the usual formats of sales? The HISCOX report Online Report on this question cannot give an objective answer by definition: it focus group — online-платформы who need to maintain their own status in the eyes of investors, buyers of goods (collectors of art) or technological solutions (galleries using virtual offices). Accordingly, when all the fear, the response of interested players will be "Yes". On the other hand, surveys conducted by, say, art-ярмарками or auction houses, would show the opposite picture — the desire of the market to return to physical sales (and such materials are, without a doubt, coming soon). HISCOX, showing objective the growth of the Internet-сегмента never said how much I lost in auction houses, galleries and dealers, deprived of worldly sales — and just as Art Basel and UBS do not recognize how much art-рынок would be able to earn, to develop it technologies since their appearance, not the appearance behind him of fried rooster named COVID-19.

We can only focus on a given. Today it is this:

—, the term "pandemic" is not only stored in our memory, but also on the pages of Economics textbooks as one of the causes of recessions — therefore, they will be ready;

— by the end of 2020 possible decline in tourist activity — from-за medical inhibitions, phobias, the consequences of the economic crisis, etc. the money and the desire to act the majority of collectors will stay;

— while art-рынок since the beginning of 2010-х chased Generations X and Y, with a break to hunt for followers of the cryptocurrency in 2017, suddenly it became clear that there is a Generation Z — with their interests, abilities and habits.

All three of these trends in relation to art-рынку mean one thing: sequel online-экспансии art is inevitable.

Denys Belkevych, AI