Antiques Trade Gazette news
Family values are high as Tennants make a change
■ Rodney Tennant hands over control of North Yorkshire business to his three daughters
Roland Arkell reports
A NEW management structure at Tennants of Leyburn has seen proprietor Rodney Tennant pass the day-to-day running of the business to a
fourth generation. Plans are also afoot to expand the
fi rm’s premises, with building expected to begin at The Auction Centre early next year. In the year of his 65th birthday, Rodney
has assumed the role of chairman of the North Yorkshire fi rm that last year posted record January to December sales of £12m. He told ATG: “I fi nd myself in the unique and fortunate position of passing on the traditions and values that were established by my grandfather to my three daughters, who this year have all been made directors of the business.” Alison, 29, has worked at The Auction
Centre for fi ve years (focused primarily on logistics and administration), while Jane, 25, who previously worked for interiors fi rm Oka, joined the fi rm at the beginning of this year and is already taking the rostrum for general sales. Caroline, 31, is a London-based accountant and will now contribute to fi nancial planning. In short, all will have a direct input into
running a family fi rm that, with turnover fi gures consistently among the highest in the UK, has previously been linked with a number of potential suitors. Jeremy Pattison, who joined the fi rm
Above, from left: Jane Tennant, Caroline Thomas and Alison Tennant are taking over from their father, Rodney, at Tennants. Left: the fi rm’s base in Leyburn, North Yorkshire.
as a furniture specialist in 2004, has been appointed managing director while, after more than 25 years with the fi rm, Audrey Fall has become fi nance director. Rodney told ATG he hoped the re-
structuring “will provide the opportunity for me to leave the day-to-day running of the business to the next generation, allowing me the time to get out on the road and in the air visiting clients to advise on their collections, which is an aspect of the business I have always loved”. In contrast to the early days of the fi rm
in the inter-War years – when Rodney’s grandfather sold livestock and agricultural machinery from the towns and villages of North Yorkshire – many of the fi rm’s clients are now based in the south of England. To this effect, a fi nal addition to the Tennants team is Marc Allum, who is
joining as a valuer and consultant in London and the South of England. A well- known antiques writer and BBC Antiques Roadshow expert, the Wiltshire-based specialist is also an experienced auctioneer and general valuer after many years at Rosebery’s. Jane Tennant said the continued
growth of the fi rm into specialist areas had prompted them to bring forward plans to create a new wing at The Auction Centre, the purpose-built venue just outside Leyburn, pictured above, that has often been described as a model for the UK regional saleroom. The architect’s plans for a new building,
to allow the venue to be used again for lectures and entertainment purposes, have yet to be fi nalised, but the fi rm are on schedule to start construction at the beginning of 2013.
Power speeds to a record
continued from front page
valuation day and were all given ‘there- to-be-sold’ estimates of £2000-3000. First up was Andrews’ Steeplechasing,
which drew serious interest and took £19,000. This was immediately topped after an even greater competition emerged for Power’s Tube Station, which was fi nally knocked down at £54,000 to an internet bidder. The sum was the highest for a Grosvenor School print ever sold at an auction outside London. However, it was then sensationally
eclipsed by Power’s even rarer Speed Trial, which sold at £96,000 to a private collector in the room and set an auction record for any Grosvenor School print. The previous high was the £94,000
seen for Ethel Spowers’ (1890-1947) The Gust of Wind sold at Bonhams in April. Power was fascinated by the
movement and vitality of the modern age and his Speed Trial linocut from c.1932 was derived from Malcolm Campbell’s Bluebird machine which broke the land speed record by reaching 246mph in 1931. While Power made as many as 16
experimental proofs for this print (a couple of which have emerged over the last decade), examples of the fi nal edition of 60 have hardly ever appeared at auction and so it appears that the signed copy, numbered 18/60, at Lockdales represented an opportunity for some of the biggest players in the market to fi ll a gap in their collections.
Museum theft update
A FOURTH man has been charged over the theft of Chinese hardstone carvings from the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. The 24-year-old from Swanley in Kent
has been charged with conspiracy to commit burglary in connection with the theft at the museum on April 13.
MICHAEL BLOOMSTEIN Dealing in precious metals for four generations
WE BUY - SCRAP GOLD, SILVER & PLATINUM
WE SELL TO INVESTORS – GOLD BARS, KRUGERRANDS & SOVEREIGNS Visit our premises for immediate settlement. Cheque • Bank Transfer OR
• Cash
Phone for current prices and to receive our free, insured postal pack • Payments are made by return post 30 Gloucester Road, Brighton, Sussex BN1 4AQ
Tel: 01273 608374 Fax: 01273 690788
www.bloomstein.co.uk email: refi
ning@bloomsteins.co.uk
3
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56