Auctionata
{{Short description|Defunct online luxury auction company}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Auctionata AG
| logo = Auctionata English Logo.png
| caption =
| native_name =
| native_name_lang = de
| type = AG
| traded_as =
| ISIN =
| industry = Online auction
| fate =
| predecessor =
| successor =
| foundation = 2012
| founder = Alexander Zacke, Susanne Zacke
| defunct = 2017
| location_city = Berlin
| location_country = Germany
| locations =
| area_served = Global
| key_people = Thomas Hesse (CEO), Alexander Gilkes (CIO), Lucas Hulsmann (CFO), Osman Khan, Jan Thiel, Johannes Riedl,
| products = Livestream Auctions, Online shopping, Online auction
| services = Art valuation
| revenue = $150 million (2015) {{cite web|last=Strauss|first=Karsten|title=A Tale of Two Auction Houses|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2016/05/12/a-tale-of-two-auction-houses-auctionata-and-paddle8-join-forces/#5e696c0656bd|work=Forbes|accessdate=25 October 2015|language=English}}
| operating_income =
| net_income =
| assets =
| equity =
| num_employees = approx. 120 (as of June 2013 excl. experts)
| homepage = {{URL|auctionata.com}}
}}
Auctionata was an online auction house and eCommerce company specializing in luxury goods, art, antiques and collectibles based in Berlin with offices in New York. Auctionata had a team of 250 art experts who worked on commission and were not directly employed by Auctionata.{{Cite web|url=https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/16976209/auctionata-information-folder-for-us-dealers-art-market-monitor|title=auctionata-information-folder-for-us-dealers-art-market-monitor|last=Yumpu.com|website=yumpu.com|language=en|access-date=2020-02-12}} These experts were paid by the minute via PayPal{{Cite web|url=https://www.sramanamitra.com/2014/02/05/from-berlin-bringing-art-auctions-online-auctionata-ceo-alexander-zache-part-3/|title=From Berlin, Bringing Art Auctions Online: Auctionata CEO Alexander Zacke (Part 3)|date=2014-02-05|website=Sramana Mitra|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-12}} for valuing, authenticating, and curating objects including art, cars, watches, antiques.{{cite web|last=Strauss|first=Karsten|title=Online Auctions Hit The Big Time: Breaking The $1.3 Million Andy Warhol Record|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2013/06/24/online-auctions-hit-the-big-time-breaking-the-1-3-million-andy-warhol-record/|work=Forbes|accessdate=19 September 2013}} Since opening in February 2012, Auctionata had evaluated and verified over 21,000 pieces of art.{{cite web|last=Wilkinson|first=Julia|title=New Funding and an Egon Schiele: Excitement at Auctionata|url=http://www.ecommercebytes.com/C/abblog/blog.pl?/pl/2013/4/1365716070.html|work=AuctionBytes Blog|publisher=EcommerceBytes|accessdate=19 September 2013}} Notably, Auctionata's experts discovered a watercolor by Egon Schiele, which was valued at a starting price of $1.3 million (€1 million).{{cite news|title=Auctionata: Sensationeller Schiele-Fund|url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/panorama/kunstmarkt/auctionata-sensationeller-schiele-fund/7899384.html|accessdate=19 September 2013|newspaper=Handelsblatt|date=10 March 2013|language=German}} Auctionata was declared insolvent on February 29, 2017 by announcing it had ceased operations.{{cn|date=October 2021}}
History
Auctionata was founded in 2012 by Alexander Zacke, Susanne Zacke and Georg Untersalmberger with investment capital provided by the Holtzbrinck Publishing Group and the Otto GmbH Group.{{cite web|last=Krisch|first=Jochen|title=Auctionata setzt mit Holtzbrinck und Otto auf Live-Auktionen|url=http://www.excitingcommerce.de/2012/06/auctionata.html|work=Exciting Commerce|accessdate=19 September 2013|language=German|archive-date=9 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130209012608/http://www.excitingcommerce.de/2012/06/auctionata.html|url-status=dead}} The online shop was launched in September 2012,{{cite web|last=Krisch|first=Jochen|title=Auctionata bringt vorab schon mal seinen Shop online|url=http://www.excitingcommerce.de/2012/08/auctionata.html|work=Exciting Commerce|accessdate=19 September 2013|language=German|archive-date=8 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130208181843/http://www.excitingcommerce.de/2012/08/auctionata.html|url-status=dead}} and Auctionata's first auction was held in December 2012.{{cite web|last=Krisch|first=Jochen|title=Auctionata freut sich über 345.000 € bei der Live-Premiere|url=http://www.excitingcommerce.de/2012/12/auctionata-freut-sich-über-345000-euro-bei-der-live-premiere.html|work=Exciting Commerce|accessdate=19 September 2013|language=German|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130211024507/http://www.excitingcommerce.de/2012/12/auctionata-freut-sich-%C3%BCber-345000-euro-bei-der-live-premiere.html|archive-date=2013-02-11|url-status=dead}}
On 22 May 2013, Auctionata announced a strategic partnership with Chrono24, a large specialty marketplace for luxury watches. This partnership included 52 auctions over several years.{{cite news|title=Uhrenauktionen online: Chrono24 und Auctionata schließen Allianz|url=http://www.focus.de/panorama/diverses/auktionsmarkt-uhrenauktionen-online-chrono24-und-auctionata-schliessen-allianz_aid_995999.html|accessdate=19 September 2013|newspaper=FocusOnline|date=22 May 2013|language=German}}
In February 2013, Auctionata raised $20.2 million of funding through investment firms Earlybird Venture Capital, E.ventures, Bright Capital, Edward Shenderovich of Kite Ventures, as well as with previous funders Holtzbrinck, Otto and the Raffay Group.{{cite web|last=Wauters|first=Robin|title=Online auction house Auctionata wins $20.2m from Earlybird, Kite and others|url=https://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/04/02/auctionata-funding/|work=TheNextWeb.com|date=2 April 2013|accessdate=26 September 2013}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.gruenderszene.de/allgemein/auctionata-insolvenz-entlassungen-auktionen-startup|title = Entlassungen bei Auctionata|date = 31 January 2017}}
In March 2015, Auctionata raised €42 million ($45 million) from a group of investors led by Bernard Arnault, the Polish private equity fund MCI Management SA and the Hearst Media Corporation.{{cite news|title=Auctionata Raises $45M To Build Out Its Live-Streamed Auction Business|url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/03/30/auctionata-raises-45m-to-take-its-live-streamed-art-auctions-to-new-frontiers/|accessdate=April 1, 2015}}
According to media reports, Auctionata could not pay its employees in December 2016 after expected financing had not arrived.{{Cite news|url=http://observer.com/2017/01/auctionata-on-the-edge-start-ups-closure-is-imminent-according-to-german-mag/|title=Auctionata on the Edge? Startup's Closure Is Imminent, According to German Mag|date=2017-01-13|newspaper=Observer|language=en-US|access-date=2017-01-31}} Auctionata filed for preliminary insolvency on 16 January 2017 {{Cite news|url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/auctionata-insolvency-proceedings-822965|title=Auctionata Files for Insolvency in Berlin {{!}} artnet News|date=2017-01-19|newspaper=artnet News|language=en-US|access-date=2017-02-01}} and had to let go over 70 employees.{{Cite news|url=http://www.gruenderszene.de/allgemein/auctionata-insolvenz-entlassungen-auktionen-startup|title=Entlassungen bei Auctionata|newspaper=Gründerszene Magazin|language=de|access-date=2017-02-01}} Following the conclusion of its preliminary insolvency proceedings on 28 February 2017, Auctionata had ceased its German operations. The subsidiaries Paddle8 in the US and Value-my-Stuff in the UK were subsequently sold and continued to operate.{{Cite news|url=https://news.artnet.com/market/auctionata-closes-insolvency-proceedings-874583|title=Auctionata Shutters After Failing to Find Investor {{!}} artnet News|date=2017-02-28|work=artnet News|access-date=2017-03-06|language=en-US}} Auctionata is included in a list of the top 189 startup failures.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbinsights.com/research/biggest-startup-failures/|title=189 Of The Biggest, Costliest Startup Failures Of All Time {{!}} CB Insights|date=2020-01-28|website=CB Insights Research|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-12}}
Technology of live stream auctions
Prior to every auction, Auctionata provided information for all items to be auctioned on its website. The auctions themselves were held in a TV-studio and streamed live on the internet using a content delivery network. The auctions were led by a licensed auctioneer and bids are accepted by phone, online, by absentee bid, as well as from the studio floor. Auctionata used a system developed by its founders, Zacke and Untersalmberger, allowing it to transmit the live video stream from the auction using a Real-time operating system without delays.{{cite web|title=Computer System for the Exchange of Messages|url=http://www.sumobrain.com/patents/wipo/Computer-system-exchange-messages/WO2012159665.html|work=WIPO Patent Application WO/2012/159665|publisher=SumoBrain|accessdate=19 September 2013}} According to the founder, Alexander Zacke, the technology of live auctions primarily was developed to compete with multinational auction houses, including Christie's and Sotheby's.{{cite news|last=Strauss|first=Karsten|title=Disrupting The World's Great Auction Houses|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2013/04/15/disrupting-the-worlds-great-auction-houses/|accessdate=19 September 2013|newspaper=Forbes|date=15 April 2013}} Since potential bidders no longer have to physically attend the auctions, Auctionata's online auctions have been criticized for not promoting the same aura as may be found in traditional auction houses.{{cite news|last=Karich|first=Swantje|title=Online-Auktionshaus "Auctionata": Die digitale Wende erreicht die Kunst|url=https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/kunstmarkt/auktionen/online-auktionshaus-auctionata-die-digitale-wende-erreicht-die-kunst-12280263.html|accessdate=24 September 2013|newspaper=Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung|date=15 July 2013|language=German}}
Notable auctions
In December 2012, Auctionata auctioned the painting "Roses II", which is attributed to Oskar Kokoschka. Though the painting had been sold to the Bremen tobacco entrepreneur Wolfgang Ritter for 80,000 deutschmarks in 1966 (approx. €151,469 / $204,679 taking into account inflation), and Kokoschka himself wrote a handwritten note of authenticity for the painting, the painting's authenticity was later being questioned by the Oskar Kokoschka Foundation. Auctionata published the Foundation's critique immediately upon receiving it and the painting eventually sold for only $9,975 (€7,500).{{cite news|last=Kronsteiner|first=Olga|title=Auctionata: Kalkulierter Aufreger|url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/panorama/kunstmarkt/auctionata-kalkulierter-aufreger/7488844.html|accessdate=19 September 2013|newspaper=Handelsblatt|date=6 December 2012|language=German}}
Auctionata also auctioned a newly discovered watercolor, "Reclining Woman" by Egon Schiele.{{cite news|last=Ruthe|first=Ingeborg|title=Auktion: Millionenbild im Altpapier|url=http://www.berliner-zeitung.de/kultur/auktion-millionenbild-im-altpapier,10809150,22012772.html|accessdate=19 September 2013|newspaper=Berliner Zeitung|date=6 March 2013|language=German}} The painting was sold for $2.4 million (€1,827,250), the highest grossing piece of fine art sold at an online auction.{{cite news|last=Strauss|first=Karsten|title=Disrupting The World's Great Auction Houses|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2013/04/15/disrupting-the-worlds-great-auction-houses/|accessdate=19 September 2013|newspaper=Forbes|date=15 April 2013}}
=Online auction world record=
On June 23, 2015, Auctionata sold a rare enamel, ivory-mounted, and paste-set musical and automaton clock from the late 18th century for 3.37 million euros ($3,8 million) to the Shanghai-based billionaire and art collector Liu Yiqian.{{cite news|last=Forrest|first=Nicholas|title=Auctionata: at the time Liu Yiqian set the online auction record|url=http://www.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/1185258/auctionata-liu-yiqian-set-asian-art-online-auction-record|accessdate=25 October 2016|newspaper=Blouinartinfo|date=23 June 2015|language=English}} A new online auction record was achieved in August 2020 when RM Sothebys sold A Ferrari 550 GT1 Prodrive which achieved $4.29 million.{{Cite web|last=Block|first=Fang|title=A Ferrari 550 GT1 Prodrive Sells for a Record $4.29 Million in Online Auction|url=https://www.barrons.com/articles/a-ferrari-550-gt1-prodrive-sells-for-a-record-4-29-million-in-online-auction-01597782038|access-date=2020-11-01|website=www.barrons.com|language=en-US}}
Notable mergers and acquisitions
On September 25, 2015, Auctionata bought the London-based valuation website Valuemystuff.com, founded by Patrick van der Vorst, one of the largest online valuation companies in the world with over 469,000 valuations and 400,000 customers (stats as of November 2017).{{cite news|last=Treija|first=Leva|title=Auctionata acquires valuemystuff and pursues international growth trajectory|url=http://www.eu-startups.com/2015/09/auctionata-acquires-valuemystuff-and-pursues-international-growth-trajectory/|accessdate=25 October 2016|newspaper=EU Startups|date=25 September 2015|language=English}}
On May 12, 2016, Auctionata and Paddle8 announced that they will merge. The merged company had a turnover of more than $150 million.{{cite news|last=Douglas|first=Sarah|title=Auctionata and paddle8 merge in sign of consolidation in online art market|url=http://www.artnews.com/2016/05/12/auctionata-and-paddle8-merge-in-sign-of-consolidation-in-online-art-market/|accessdate=25 October 2016|newspaper=Artnetnews|date=12 May 2016|language=English}}
Awards
At the 2012 Digital Life Design conference Auctionata was awarded the Digital Star Award as one of the most promising German internet start-ups.{{cite news|title=Digital Star Perspective: Auctionata "Den Kunsthandel online bringen"|url=http://www.focus.de/digital/internet/dld-2013/digital-star/digital-star-perspective-auctionata-den-kunsthandel-online-bringen_aid_899629.html|accessdate=19 September 2013|newspaper=Focus Online|date=17 January 2013|language=German}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{official website|auctionata.com}}
Category:Online auction websites of Germany
Category:Companies based in Berlin
Category:German auction houses
Lalique glass car mascots valued at Auctionata / Paddle 8 by expert G.G. Weiner