Bonhams

Bonhams

File:Bonhams, Mayfair, W1 (7017927535).jpg Bonhams located in Mayfair, London, U.K.
Company type	Private
Industry	Auctions, Valuations
Founded	1793 (1793) London, United Kingdom
Founders	Thomas Dodd and Walter Bonham
Headquarters	101 New Bond Street, London, United Kingdom
Number of locations	66 locations globally (as of 2012)
Key people	Chabi Nouri (CEO) Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard (Chairman) Alex Lejeune (CFO)
Products	Fine arts, luxury watches, high-end jewellery, Asian art, motor vehicles
Owner	Epiris
Number of employees	1,200 (2024)
Divisions	Bonhams London Bonhams Paris Bonhams New York Bonhams San Francisco Bonhams Los Angeles Bonhams Hong Kong Bonhams Sydney Bukowskis, Stockholm and Helsinki (acquired January 2022) Bruun Rasmussen, Copenhagen (acquired March 2022) Skinner Boston (acquired March 2022) Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr (acquired June 2022)
Website	bonhams.com

Bonhams stands as a privately held global auction house and ranks among the oldest and most prominent auctioneers specializing in fine art and antiques worldwide. It was established through the November 2001 merger of Bonhams & Brooks with Phillips Son & Neale. This union combined two of London's four remaining Georgian-era auction firms—Bonhams, founded in 1793, and Phillips, initiated in 1796 by Harry Phillips, who had previously served as a senior clerk to James Christie.

Currently, the unified company conducts auctions featuring art and antiques. Bonhams maintains two main salerooms in London: the former Phillips location at 101 New Bond Street and the original Bonhams venue at Montpelier Galleries on Montpelier Street in Knightsbridge. Additionally, it operates a saleroom in Edinburgh. Internationally, auctions take place in cities such as New York, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Paris, Boston, San Francisco, and Sydney. Annually, Bonhams organizes upwards of 450 sales across more than 60 collecting categories including Asian art, paintings, automobiles, and jewellery. The firm employs over 1,000 staff members who are among the leading experts in their respective specialties.

History

The origins of Bonhams trace back to 1793 when Thomas Dodd—a dealer in antique prints—partnered with Walter Bonham, a specialist in books. By the mid-19th century, the firm had broadened its scope to encompass a wide array of antiques including jewellery, porcelain, furniture, arms and armour, as well as wine. In the early 1950s after World War II service, Leonard Bonham acquired land in Knightsbridge where he constructed a saleroom on Montpelier Street; this venue hosted its inaugural auction in June 1956.

In the year 2000, following acquisition by Brooks auction house—a firm founded in 1989 by Robert Brooks who had formerly led Christie's car department—Bonhams was renamed Bonhams & Brooks. Brooks specialized in classic and vintage automobiles and pursued an aggressive acquisition strategy aimed at building an international fine art auction enterprise.

A year later in 2001, Bonhams & Brooks merged with Phillips Son & Neale to create a new UK entity operating under the Bonhams name. Phillips Son & Neale was headquartered at 101 New Bond Street, which subsequently became Bonhams' main base. This building comprised seven separate freehold properties and was once described as resembling "a Dickensian rabbit warren." One of the earliest acquisitions included Blenstock House—an Art Deco building located at the intersection of Blenheim Street and Woodstock Street—fully acquired by the company in 1974.

Bonhams continued its expansion through acquisitions; notably in 2002 it purchased Butterfields—a prominent West Coast auction house founded in 1865—and rebranded it as Bonhams & Butterfields. Malcolm Barber from Brooks took on the role of CEO for the American division while maintaining the Bonhams brand internationally outside the US.

By late 2003, Bonhams was conducting more than 700 sales annually with revenues reaching $304 million. Its global presence included two major London venues along with nine additional sites across the UK plus salerooms located in Australia, Switzerland, Monaco, Germany, and the United States. That year also marked Bonhams & Butterfields’ first East Coast sale featuring Edwin C. Jameson's collection of classic cars and antiques in Massachusetts.

Further growth occurred during 2005 with new offices opening in Paris alongside a fresh saleroom launch in New York City. In October of that year, Bonhams regained full autonomy by repurchasing a 49.9% stake previously held by French luxury conglomerate LVMH.

As part of its strategic international growth plan, Bonhams established an office in Hong Kong in 2007. Seven years later—in 2014—it inaugurated its East Asian headquarters and saleroom within One Pacific Place in Hong Kong. The firm's East and Southeast Asian operations also encompass offices situated in Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, and Singapore.

In March 2008, Bonhams relocated its New York salerooms to a new site at the corner of 57th Street and Madison Avenue, occupying premises formerly used by the esteemed Dahesh Museum of Art. The debut auction at this location featured furniture and decorative arts from the twentieth century.

In 2013, a newly designed headquarters was unveiled at 101 New Bond Street, created by architects Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands; two years later—in 2015—the Knightsbridge saleroom underwent an extensive multimillion-pound refurbishment. In 2016, Bonhams conducted its inaugural solely online auction featuring watches from a European nobleman's collection.

September 2018 marked a significant change when UK-based private equity firm Epiris acquired Bonhams.

In January 2022, Bonhams expanded further by purchasing Nordic auction house Bukowskis for an undisclosed amount.

Continuing its acquisition strategy during March 2022, Bonhams acquired US-based Skinner Inc., forming the combined entity known as Bonhams Skinner. In that same month, it also obtained Danish auction house Bruun Rasmussen for an undisclosed sum.

Locations

Bonhams operates through a global network comprising offices and regional agents across 25 countries. Within the United Kingdom, it maintains three auction venues: two prominent salerooms located in London—New Bond Street and Knightsbridge—and one in Edinburgh. Additionally, regional branches throughout the UK provide valuation and consignment assistance. Across Europe, auctions take place in France, Monaco, and Belgium. In the United States, Bonhams conducts sales in New York, Los Angeles, and Boston. The Asia-Pacific region hosts auctions at Bonhams’ Pacific Place saleroom in Hong Kong, as well as in Sydney and Melbourne.

In 2023, Bonhams reported a 14% increase in revenue, reaching a total turnover of $1.14 billion.

Notable auctions

• La fête d’anniversaire by Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita set a new auction world record for the artist when it sold for £7,096,250 during the Impressionist and Modern Sale at New Bond Street on 11 October 2018.
• A highly significant and extraordinarily scarce collection of four huanghuali folding chairs fetched £5,289,250 at the Fine Chinese Art Sale held at Bonhams London on 9 November 2017.
• A blue and white garlic mouth vase bearing the Yongzheng seal was sold in Hong Kong for HK$76,280,000 (£6,244,187) in 2014.
• The 1962–63 Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta achieved $38,115,000 at auction in Quail Lodge, California in 2014, holding the world record for the highest price paid for a motor vehicle at auction until August 2018.
• Fragonard’s portrait of Francois-Henri, 5th Duc d’Harcourt commanded £17,106,500 in London in 2013; it remains the most expensive French Rococo painting ever auctioned.
• A fancy deep-blue 'Trombino' diamond ring was purchased for £6,201,250 in London in April 2013.
• The ex-Juan Manuel Fangio 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R sold for £19,600,000 at The Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2013.
• Madonna Laboris, a work by Russian painter Nikolai Roerich, realized £7,881,250 in London during 2013.
• An exceptionally rare Vincent Black Lightning set a new benchmark as the most valuable motorcycle sold at auction when it fetched $929,000 (£651,715) including buyer’s premium at Bonhams’ annual Las Vegas Motorcycle Auction in 2018.

Further reading

• Darwent, Charles, "Bonhams Breaks With Tradition," Management Today, July 1997, p. 56.
• Meyers, Laura, "Bonhams Goes Global," Art Business News, January 2004, p. 42.
• Moeran, Brian, "Jousting at Bonhams, London," Ceramics Monthly, January 1990, p. 18.
• Stanbridge, Philip, "A Hot London Summer," Ceramics Monthly, October 1991, p. 28.
• Windsor, John, "Stop Press! Art Market Says Size Does Matter," Independent, 8 May 1993, p. 34.

External links

• Template:Official
• Bonhams at 101 New Bond Street
• Bonhams in Hong Kong
• Motorcycle Department at Bonhams