Businessman Sameer Mahomed, a chartered accountant and ‘turnaround specialist’, bought the assets of the troubled firm out of liquidation in May and has invested a “six figure sum” in a makeover with plans to increase spending on marketing.
He said: “This is a completely new operation. It is fresh and completely rebranded. We want it to have a gallery feel in the showroom and we will showcase lots like in a shop window. Our windows are on the high street in Chiswick and we can reach new people and encourage them to visit.”
He added: “Often auction houses can be intimidating but I want this place to make people feel comfortable so that new people come in.”
The auction house have held three auctions but will officially re-launch next Tuesday on September 20 with a ‘Select’ sale.
Mahomed, who lives in Chelsea, plans to hold community events in the saleroom but it will retain the regular weekly Tuesday auction event.
There are 12 staff, many from the original team, and the business will launch a new website next week called LondonAuctions.co and the original High Road auction will redirect to the new one.
The former High Road Auctions Twickenham branch closed in April. The business left debts of more than £739,000. However the bulk of this was to an investor, a director and landlords. Liquidator Ashok Bhardwaj of Bhardwaj Insolvency Practitioners in Northwood, north-west London told ATG that all private customers were paid. Around £40,000 was owed to smaller suppliers.
