Paddle8 is an online auction house, connecting buyers and sellers of fine art and collectibles across the world. We offer two types of auctions: monthly themed auctions, and benefit auctions in collaboration with non-profits.

Paddle8's founding team is comprised of co-founders Alexander Gilkes (LVMH veteran and Chief Auctioneer at Phillips) and Aditya Julka (serial entrepreneur and Harvard Business School Baker Scholar), who were joined by COO Osman Khan (Perella Weinberg and Harvard Business School) and supported by Andrea Hill. Paddle8.com launched on May 18, 2011. Today, Paddle8 is a team of over thirty art and technology professionals.

Paddle8 is funded by VC firm Founder Collective, which previously backed Uber, Buzzfeed, and Makerbot; Mousse Partners, the private investment firm affiliated with a leading luxury goods company, with recent investments represented by Paperless Post and Bonobos; Vladimir Evtushenkov's Redline Capital Management, experienced investors in e-commerce and media; and angel investor Scott Belsky, the founder of Behance. Individual investors include artist Damien Hirst; members of the Mellon family; Alexander von Furstenberg, Chief Investment Officer of Ranger Global Advisors; and art dealer Jay Jopling along with Hikari Yokohama.

Themed Auctions
Paddle8's themed auctions are a low-cost, easy-to-use auction platform for buyers and sellers of fine art and collectibles. The auctions are curated by influential cultural figures, publications, and institutions to fit various themes.
Our commission structure is significantly discounted from market norms: a flat 6% for vendors and 12% for buyers. Other costs, including shipping, insurance, and storage are minimized or eliminated by shipping goods directly from sellers without any intermediaries. This minimizes costs for sellers, while creating transparency and ease of purchase for buyers.
Paddle8 does not disclose post-sale records publicly, so consignors can offer works anonymously and never "burn" works if they do not sell. The auctions offer succinct lot information, including price records, news and collections.

Benefit Auctions
Paddle8's benefit auctions allows non-profit institutions to run their auctions online, either in a fully virtually capacity or as a pre-selling collaboration prior to a live auction. Paddle8 has collaborated with over 150 organizations, museums, and foundations worldwide, from the Royal Academy to Los Angeles County Museum of Art to the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
Benefit partners are able to expand their audience of supporters through Paddle8's wide network of collectors. Paddle8's collectors are able to participate remotely in auctions from across the world, without paying high ticket prices for attendance, and benefit from access to great art, no buyer's premium, and certain tax alleviations.