Tepper Galleries of NY Closes

I missed this last week in the NY Times but I find it important enough to post. Eve Kahn reports that Tepper Galleries, a middle market auction house in New York City, active since 1937 has closed its doors. kahn states they empty out the property and left. No statement was released but according to the article the auction house had a lease with 8 years remaining. The Tepper Galleries website is still up, but auctions are listed as to be announced. No other news is posted.

It is a sad commentary on the middle market that such an established firm is failing. Granted, I dont know all of the reasons for the closure, and it could also be poor business decisions and management, but I do think it reinforces the problems the middle market is facing in the fine and decorative arts.

Kahn states

Tepper’s owners, Kenneth Hutter and Max Drazen, did not return several phone calls. Adam Hutter, an auctioneer at the company, referred calls to his brother Kenneth. The firm’s Web site still promises guidance “through all phases of the appraisal, consignment and auction process.”

Tepper’s lease still had eight years left when the gallery owners packed their goods into a few trucks, said Myles Schwartz, an executive managing director at Colliers International, which oversees the Tepper building. “If you can find them, let me know,” he said. “There was nothing we could do to hold them. They just brought everything out the front door.” Colliers will pursue legal action against the auction house, he said, “whatever we can do to recoup.”

To read the full article by Eve Kahn, click HERE.