Digital first

Lucinda Bredin talks to Louise Arén, CEO of Bukowskis, about respecting traditions while pursuing game-changing innovations

Isaac Grünewald, Kungsträdgården, i solgasset (1915) made SEK8,697,500

The first sight after walking through the heavy wooden door is a gallery filled with outcrops of sculpture. This is an exhibition at Bukowskis, specially curated to coincide with Stockholm Design Week, but the boundary between the artwork and the plinth seems to have dissolved. Instead of being merely a vehicle for display, the pedestals have taken on different shapes – a column of melting steel, a series of platforms, a starburst… it serves to highlight an undervalued element, elevating it to centre stage.

To take an idea and turn it on its head is at the core of Bukowskis. The auction house, which was acquired by Bonhams in January 2022, is the most renowned in Sweden. Its headquarters, a magnificent and sedate white stucco building, overlooks Berzelii Park by the edge of the harbour in the centre of the capital. It is, geographically and spiritually, at the heart of establishment Sweden. And yet it continually reinvents itself to reveal a surprising and innovative side.

Louise Arén, the CEO of Bukowskis, is sitting at a long mid-century elm table in an elegant room with teal-coloured walls. It turns out to be the staff kitchen. Louise has led Bukowskis since 2016 and she is rightly proud of the balance that has been struck between the heritage and the digital power of the brand. As she says, “It’s a company that offers an extraordinary sense of Swedish history, as well as the most cutting-edge contemporary art and design. It is this that attracts both new and old clients.”

I ask Louise if anything has changed since the acquisition of Bukowskis? She smiles: “An exciting journey has just begun. It is extraordinary to think that, now we are part of an international network, we have more salerooms and specialists than any other auction house in the world. And we can see how advantageous this is for clients. We can’t take this local business much further without an international partner. We need to reach out to a global audience. In my view, in a few years’ time, the regional auction industry won’t have as many players – you need to have an international player by your side to give you increased skills, reach, experience, ambition. Likewise, we can export our talents, because, in terms of digital development, Bukowskis is at the forefront.”

The auction house was founded in 1870 by an exiled Polish nobleman, Henryk Bukowski, who had joined an uprising against the occupying Russians. He washed up in Sweden – rough weather forced the ship he was on to dock at Helsingborg, which was where Bukowski disembarked. Within a few years, Bukowski had found his niche working in the Royal Library, before moving on to cataloguing the 70,000-strong collection of artefacts belonging to Christian Hammer, the court jeweller. It was to prove a perfect preparation for life running an auction house.

Louise Arén, CEO of Bukowskis, part of the Bonhams network

Jim Nutt’s painting Tooth achieved a world record SEK13,125,000 in 2022 at Bukowskis

Bukowskis’ first auction in 1873 was 923 lots from the collection of the late King Karl XV. In 1888, the house sold Franz Hals’ The Violinist, which was given to the National Museum (where it still hangs). Other astonishing works that have come on to the block are Rodin’s Le Penseur in the Marabou Collection Sale; Andy Warhol’s The Last Supper, 1986, which made SEK58,250,000, the most valuable item ever sold at Bukowskis; and an exquisite cabinet by Axel Einar Hjorth that had been shown at the World’s Fair in Barcelona, which achieved SEK1,150,000 in 2002. There was also the astonishing sale of film director Ingmar Bergman’s possessions, which ranged from Munch’s lithograph of Strindberg (both idols of Bergman) to a wastepaper basket (estimate SEK300-400, achieved SEK11,000). Recent triumphs include achieving a world record for the American artist Jim Nutt, whose work Tooth sold in the Contemporary Art and Design Sale. Coming up in March is an exceptional collection of designer clothes and accessories that was featured in a 12-page article in Vogue Scandinavia.

Given its history, live auctions are clearly in the DNA of Bukowskis. How did Louise present the shift to digital to her clients? “It’s true that some of them expressed concern. Are you going to put everything online? Are you going to take away our catalogues? Are you going to stop live auctions? So I realised we have to explain to our clients what digital means. So I told them that we would facilitate browsing for lots, placing bids and paying – all online. When we started to talk in that manner, people got excited. I am proud of that. We understand what the younger audience wants – and what the traditional clients want as well.”

Born in Linköping, a university city 250km from Stockholm, Louise was the person who led what she calls “the challenge to transform a 150-year-old auction house into a digital, modern and data-driven business”. She didn’t come from an auction background, but spent her early 20s in television production – “a really good learning platform” – before moving into marketing and digital management positions of international companies: for example, spending six years developing and implementing the digital strategy for Absolut Vodka. She worked on the ground-breaking development of X-series, too, part of a project with the telecom operator 3. “That was really exciting,” said Louise. “The result was that everything we once did on our computers or watched on TV was enabled for our mobiles. It was life-changing for everyone.”

What was the first thing she implemented at Bukowskis? “I brought in one strategy and one vision, and I was very firm about where we were going, and how to run a commercially driven business. The board said: ‘We trust you – here are the keys.’ It was the best opportunity one could have. I have to say, the management team was key to implementing the strategy and it was embraced by all our staff. We have different personalities and skill sets, but we all walk in the same direction.”

I tell Louise how beautiful Bukowskis’ saleroom looks – design is clearly at the forefront of the brand. “We modernised the premises, we arrange collaborations with upcoming brands, invite emerging designers, and curate design auctions to attract younger audiences to get rid of the barrier between them and coming into Bukowskis. We opened our arms to allow more people in and it has really worked. We are a superstar brand, and expectations are very high – rightly so. We turn around 70,000 lots a year, and people buying online from us are very familiar with e-commerce and the support they receive, so they expect the same from us.”

What does the future hold? Louise knows the answer to this. “Our full focus is to further explore and expand our collaboration with the Bonhams network. It’s absolutely key that we progress and become more internationalised to push Bukowskis forward as a brand and business. As a leading auction house, it’s easy to think that we have a given place and position in the market, but it’s rather the opposite these days! Our success over the years has put pressure on our competitors and we have seen considerable investment on their side during the past two years in digital capabilities, staff and premises. So, for us, it’s about growing together with the Bonhams network and becoming part of the international arena, so that we can maintain our leading position locally. We will continue to be in the forefront digitally and accommodate our clients to offer the best experience possible – in all aspects of the business.”

Lucinda Bredin is Editor of Bonhams Magazine.