The Australian art auction house and gallery Mossgreen has gone into voluntary administration.
Its chief executive officer, Paul Sumner, said no vendors, staff or buyers would be out-of-pocket.
“Mossgreen has chosen to take a path of voluntary administration during the month of January at a time that will least impact our clients and which will allow the company to restructure its business,” Sumner said.
“The company is looking forward to a very strong calendar of auction sales that are contracted and already catalogued for the first half of 2018, starting in February. No vendors will lose any money in this process and neither will any of our staff, who will also be fully supported through this process.
“The company has a excellent reputation and this will be protected right through this process and going forward.”
Mossgreen was founded in Melbourne in 2004 as Australia’s first combined auction house and art gallery. Last year it opened a second, three-level premises in Sydney, as well as an events space. It then acquired the leading New Zealand auction house Webb’s and rebranded the business Mossgreen-Webb’s.
Sumner said he accepted that part of Mossgreen’s trouble was that it had expanded too quickly.
“We chose the voluntary administration process to clear historic debt associated with the growth of the business, at a time when cash flow falls away due to extended Australian summer break and to ensure no future risk to our clients,” he told Guardian Australia.
“I fully accept the criticism that we grew too fast, so we will now use this process to take out costs and restart with a much less cost-heavy business.”
Mossgreen also has representatives in London, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission announced BDO Australia had been appointed as administrators. BDO said it would conduct “an urgent assessment of the business and will be exploring all options”. A meeting of the creditors will be held on 4 January.
