Auction houses and art galleries turn to technology

Scotland’s oldest auction house, Lyon & Turnbull is one of the firms embracing clever techniques to attract customers unable to visit the salerooms

Auction houses and art galleries turning to technology to help them survive have witnessed a boom in business.

Scotland’s oldest auction house, Lyon & Turnbull is one of the firms embracing clever techniques to attract customers unable to visit the salerooms with potential buyers taking part in virtual walk through tours and viewing the items on sale in the showroom.

The lots displayed in the showroom are filmed then uploaded to the website so viewers on laptops can stroll around, stopping to click on objects for more information.

“Online is essentially the main way of selling now,” says Gavin Strang, managing director. “Everything has become digital and the number of people that have engaged in auctions has increased enormously over the course of the year as a result of covid conditions.

"There has been a mini boom in the auction business and our figures show that visitor numbers, and buyers were on the increase thanks to the digital format.”

With increased engagement levels thanks to the technology that was first used by estate agents, Scotland’s oldest auction house has seen a rise in bidder numbers by 40% compared to last year and 60% of auction purchases are now made using online bidding options, a rise of 25% on 2019.

This includes a record breaking £125,000 for a rare first edition of Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone.

“The Harry Potter first edition was at the height of lockdown, bought by someone on the other side of the world, bidding via one of the platforms that feed into us,” says Strang.

“The software has been around but the use of it by auction houses and galleries has increased exponentially this year.”

Since lockdown all of Lyon & Turnbull’s sales have been live