£300k funding boost for Scottish start-up looking to shake up artwork resale market

Project is the culmination of several years work but was put on ice because of the pandemic.

Investor Moray Martin of Tricapital with Bob Corsie and Brian McCrindle of Trademylux. Picture: Ian Georgeson

A Scottish start-up has landed a £300,000 investment as it looks to shake up the artwork resale sector.

Trademylux has secured the cash injection from Tricapital Angels and Scottish Enterprise as it launches the first in a series of luxury goods resale platforms. Trading as sellmyartworks.com, the first venture will focus on the art resale market and is said to be a prelude to rolling out other luxury goods resale platforms as the business matures.

Company founder Bob Corsie said the few existing UK online art resellers typically focus on a limited number of well-known artists at the top end of the market, meaning there are tens of thousands of art works overlooked. His new online platform aims to fill this void and the business anticipates first-year sales of more than 300 art works followed by a “strong growth trajectory”.

He said: “This is a project we have worked on for several years but was put on ice because of the pandemic. There is a real demand for an easy-to-use, secure and equitable art resale service with thousands of people wanting to dispose of art for multiple reasons - downsizing, unwanted gifts, inheritance or just simply they’ve fallen out of love with the piece. Similarly, there is burgeoning demand on the customer side which we can satisfy easily and cost effectively.

“Often with auction house sales, the hammer price is a poor reflection on the actual value and once high costs and commissions are deducted, the buyer is shocked at the total they have to pay, while the seller is left disappointed.”

Kerry Sharp, director of entrepreneurship and Investment at Scottish Enterprise, said: “Trademylux has a unique proposition, deploying modern technology to support the continued success of an age-old industry. We look forward to witnessing the company’s progress as it launches its online platform.”

Trademylux said stringent checks to establish proof of identity, ownership rights and authenticity of the art work listed on sellmyartworks.com were in place and the platform would adhere to UK government and international guidelines.