Sotheby’s Hong Kong wine retail space gets a facelift

The auction house is set to open a new retail concept in Hong Kong, positioning it as a hub for client acquisition and market testing, as it targets wealthy collectors amid a softening fine wine market. Joyce Yip finds out more.

Sotheby’s Hong Kong is launching a new wine retail space in Landmark Chater in the city’s Central district in Q3, though it’s remaining hush-hush about the exact address and shop size. 

Currently, the auction house’s two-storied, 24000sqft Maison is in the same building that is a part of a multi-footbridge network in one of the world’s most expensive commercial neighbourhoods.

Nick Pegna, global head of Sotheby’s Wine & Spirits, calls the upcoming space a platform for “attracting new clients”, conducting “qualitative market research” and “where auction consignments that are not suitable for auctions will go”.

Stocks will include lots – bottles and cases – from top producers of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Napa and Italy, usually valued under US$1000. Some examples include the retail-exclusive Sotheby’s Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru by R&L Legras, ex-Chateau La Mission Haut Brion 2000 and Domaine de Romanee-Conti Corton Grand Cru 2009. 

Catering to market demand

For the time being, Pegna adds, no new selections will be introduced, though future offers will cater to market demand.

“[Sotheby’s doesn’t] really like rolling the dice. If there’s something that we don’t have an established market for, we are unlikely to try it in auction. Retail allows us to assess demand,” he says.

Since the opening of its Maison in 2024, Sotheby’s Hong Kong has reported a growth of more than 70% in new buyers through private sales. The upcoming retail space aims to capture this clientele – a major change from its previous retail-by-appointment model that operated within its old office from 2014 to July 2024, after which its wine retail moved online. 

The new brick-and-mortar concept is also in line with clients who buy to drink.

Targeting ‘wealthy collectors of beautiful things’

“I don’t think anybody comes to us to buy wines for investment,” Pegna says. “People already have a level of trust and expectation of excellence from Sotheby’s. We don’t have to have the biggest collection but the most interesting.”

Pegna adds that the retail business makes up less than 10% of the auction house’s total wine category, and unlike traditional operators, does not hold much inventory – the crux of a struggling market that has declined by 22% in the past two years, according to The Liv-ex 100 index.

“It’s no surprise that the fine wine market is in a difficult position right now – a lot of operators just don’t know how to work in a declining market. You won’t be expecting a broker to be repricing their wines every week. [And as] inventory value declines, traditional merchants must decide to sell and crystalise the lot or wait for the market to come back but they get no cash [in the interim].

“The audience we’re talking to are established, wealthy collectors of beautiful things and so they are familiar with auction, the opportunities that auction brings, and of finding beautiful, rare things. We’re just giving them these opportunities.”

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