The classic car auction house Gooding & Co, managed by David Gooding, and Christie's are joining forces, according to the press release: "Christie's reaches agreement to acquire leading classic automotive auction house, Gooding & Company". Christie's and Gooding & Co have therefore agreed that Christie's will take over Gooding.
This closes a circle, as David Gooding, who founded his auction house together with his wife and Dawn Ahrens in 2003, worked at Christie's earlier in his career before joining RM Auctions for a short time.
Guillaume Cerrutti, CEO of Christie's, was delighted with this "return". "We have long admired the company that David and his exceptional team have built, as well as their business approach," explained Cerrutti.
For Christie's, the acquisition will enable it to gain strategic positions in the fast-growing classic and collector car market and extend its market leadership in the wider luxury sector.
Gooding & Co became the official auction house for the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elégance early on, expanded into other areas of the USA and finally began to gain a foothold in Europe a few years ago.
Over the past 20-plus years, David Gooding and Charlie Ross have repeatedly achieved sensational auctions and record sales.
"When we founded Gooding & Company 21 years ago, we did so on the pillars of integrity, quality and passion/enthusiasm in the collectibles environment. I am proud of the great growth in this industry and confident that the acquisition by Christie's will create further development opportunities as a global market leader," said David Gooding.
What exactly will change with the takeover, what the future appearance will look like and whether anything will change in the business model will probably be announced at a later date.
The original version of the press release can be read on the Christie's website.
