Managing Art Galleries and events

Having spent the last few years advising small businesses especially creative service companies, more recently I am being called bydirectors and owners in the art world. What has suprised me is the very high level of art knowledge among owners but many have little knowledge of how to market their galleries or indeed manage them for expansion.

Many emerge with qualifications at Masters Degree level from art school administration subjects but still think that all they need do isfill their private view events with friends and relations in the art world gauging success in the`jolly'atmospsere andgood wishes from all and sundry.

Their data bases (if they have them), seem devoid of `suites', the people with enough cash to buy. Worse they believe that providing their stable of artists are of high quality buyers will find them by devine communication. "How will your potential buyers know ?" I ask.

Even if they have been lucky and acheived editorial comment the owners seem not to realise the sheer number of galleries in London, let alone in the rest of the country.

The successful ones are those who develope a marketing strategy that generates sufficient differentiation for them to build a positioning that has selective appeal.

So the battlecontunes and yet another gallery goes out of business or merges withanother gallery which seems to havegenerated sufficient working capital to carry over the first few months (or years).

Just a thought to work on during this quiet period before the economic green shoots take hold.

Reginald