ValueMyStuff, based in London, was founded in 2010 by Patrick van der Vorst, the former director of Sotheby's Europe. The website now has over 500,000 users and provides customers with online valuations of their art, memorabilia, wine, watches and other assets in over 48 collecting categories. A team of 62 experts who have worked for top auction houses like Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Phillips, manage the estimations, guaranteeing the highest standard.
Often described in the press as ‘Antiques Roadshow online’, the site helps customers understand the items they already own and assists buyers that want to continue to build their collections. Over the past eight years, ValueMyStuff has discovered a wide range of objects of which the most noteworthy include a Claude Monet painting valued at $2 million, a medieval chastity belt valued at $2,700, a mid-19th century golf ball valued at $27,000 and a Chinese blue and white Kangxi bowl that sold for $240,000.
ValueMyStuff’s ethos is to deliver more than what is expected, and as a result the company has gone from success to success. Van der Vorst adds, “Today we have private customers using our services, but also a large section of the art business community finds our services invaluable. Both dealers and auction houses use us to tap into further expertise to compliment their existing brands.”
Barnebys Group is the world’s leading search service for art, design and antiquities and was founded in 2011. Other recent acquisitions are US-based, including Simple Auction Site and Collectors Weekly.
The purchase of ValueMyStuff allows Barnebys to strengthen one of the major components in its client offerings, providing a more efficient and faster service for every user in the market. Pontus Silfverstolpe, co-founder of Barnebys, adds, “Most of the mail that reaches Barnebys is for valuation requests. For us it is important to be able to meet our customers' wishes, and in recent years we have seen an increased need to help our visitors get fast valuations for items ranging from Picasso paintings to ceramic vases and old corkscrews."
Van der Vorst says, “I have been watching the rise of Barnebys in the art space over the last few years and am delighted to be a shareholder in their company and further assist them in an advisory capacity going forward”.
Click here to get an online appraisal on your items from Barnebys.
