POLAND.- In a month’s time it is going to open a gallery in Berlin, and soon afterwards in Los Angeles, London and Dubai. Abbey House SA operates in the very niche market of works of art, currently estimated at 300 million zlotys. In a few years’ time, however, it may grow up to 6 billion zlotys. The total figures related to sales of paintings in Q1 2011 in Poland raise optimism. Works of art worth over 10 million zlotys have been sold, which makes it possible to predict a year-end result of 40–50 million zlotys, i.e. 40 per cent higher than last year.

Abbey House SA strategy
The strategy of Abbey House SA consists in the close collaboration with a group of selected artists with which the company signs agreements for several years. The company promotes the artists and their work and earns money selling it. Only one painting is put up for sale each month, however, while the others remain in the Abbey House safe and their value grows. The company’s operation is based on a model that is innovative from the point of view of the Polish market, i.e. the combination of an auction house and a gallery. Abbey House plans to participate in auctions organised jointly with the most prestigious auction houses in the world, such as Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Phillip de Purry & Co.

Financial results of Abbey House SA
The company currently derives its revenues primarily from the sale of paintings in auctions. In 2010 the company achieved a net result of 1.5 times the net profit. In 2011 the company’s forecasts assume that sales of paintings will bring over 2 million zlotys. This is confirmed by the results for Q1 2011 in the amount of 1,059,000 zlotys, much higher than the forecasts presented in 2010.

Outlooks for the future
The outlooks for the coming months and years are good for the art market. After an adjustment, the market continues to recover and is on a good way to achieve growth in the 2010–2013 period. In the first six months of 2010, the total price obtained for the ten most expensive works in auctions held by Christie’s exceeded 400 million US dollars. It is estimated that 80 to 90 per cent of growth of the entire market over the next three years will be generated by developing markets.