Seoul Auction Cuts Buyer’s Premium from 18% to 10%... Launches Premium Membership "The Chamber"

A Private Platform for 30s?40s Collectors
Building Connoisseurship through Fees, Art Tours, and Lectures

Seoul Auction, an art auction house, announced on the 9th that it has launched a premium membership program, "The Chamber," which lowers the buyer’s premium for offline auctions from the existing 18% to 10%.

Seoul Auction launches private membership "The Chamber". Photo by Seoul Auction

Seoul Auction explained that it designed the membership with the goal of fostering long-term collectors, rather than focusing on short-term transactions, in response to changes in the art market where the share of new collectors and the young rich in their 30s and 40s has been rapidly increasing.

Members of The Chamber receive a preferential flat buyer’s premium rate of 10% on all successful bids in offline auctions, with no separate upper limit. In addition, they are provided with a dedicated one-on-one concierge service that supports all aspects of collection management, including artwork transportation, installation, framing, and restoration, as well as a collection portfolio creation service.

The membership program is structured around education and experience. In March, Seoul Auction will run “Art Tour in Hong Kong” to coincide with Art Basel Hong Kong, the largest art fair in Asia. Participants will explore major architectural landmarks and the art market in Hong Kong together with architect Lim Hyoungnam, CEO of Gaon Architects, and the itinerary will include a visit to Art Basel Hong Kong as well as preview visits to global auction houses such as Seoul Auction, Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Phillips.

Other year-round programs will include “A Day in Garden,” a brunch program held at a private arboretum together with a garden docent, a lecture on the theme of YBA, and a field trip to view the opening exhibition of the Centre Pompidou Seoul.

The annual membership fee is 15 million won for individual members and 20 million won for corporate members. In addition to the common benefits, corporate members receive extra services, including art business consulting and two lectures per year for executives and employees. Membership is operated on a selective basis according to internal criteria.

A Seoul Auction representative said, “The Chamber is a membership designed not only to offer purchase benefits but also to help collectors accumulate connoisseurship and experience,” adding, “In the long term, we aim to build an art market culture that grows together with collectors.”