RM Sotheby’s Palm Beach Auction — quickly switched to an online-only format in response to the Coronavirus pandemic — was a rousing success, with a sales total of $13.7 million and more than 900 bidders from 44 countries.
The sell-through rate was 69 percent.
The auction opened for online bids on March 20, and lots closed to bidding on a staggered schedule from March 25 through March 28.
High sale was a 1996 Porsche 911 GT2 at $891,000. The second-highest sale was a 2019 McLaren Senna at $847,000.
“This was an unprecedented online collector car auction in terms of both value of cars offered over four days and the speed at which we had to pivot from the regularly scheduled South Florida auction,” said Kenneth Ahn, President, RM Sotheby’s, following the auction. “The decision to shift our long-established physical auction to our online platform was not without its complexities. However, as the industry’s largest market maker by total sales, we had many clients who were counting on us to sell their cars in this market and significant bidder interest gearing up for the physical auction.
“The COVID-19 virus pandemic is clearly a new challenge for our industry and business. We were able to quickly mobilize and adapt to the changing environment, allowing us to continue to serve our clients in a meaningful and effective way. We have received tremendously positive feedback from our clients and industry participants over the past several days, and we will continue to refine and improve our digital platform based on this experience. The management team and I are truly thankful for the support from our clients who entrusted us to sell their cars online on a scale we have never attempted before, and for the dedication of our team members.”
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