Auction houses are keenly aware of the need to attract collectors, especially for high value consignments. This week I look at why people collect and what role fractional ownership can play in their collections.
As is the current vogue, I asked the Google AI engine “Why do people collect?” and received a response that included the reasons outlined below. I’m sure that we could all argue the relative merits of the list, and the implied priority of the sequence (a fun parlor game equivalent to “which religion or political party is best”), but instead, today let’s take a different road, and ask the question “What are the potential benefits of fractional ownership from these different perspectives?”
● Nostalgia:
According to this ScienceDirect article, nostalgia is an emotion based on an individual’s perspective of the past, an impactful mental trigger. (Say) from the perspective of a collector of football memorabilia, one would argue that having a fractional ownership in Terry Bradshaw’s jersey from the Steelers/Cowboys 1979 Super Bowl XIII (listed in multiple sources as one of the great Superbowls), perhaps with a high-resolution image for hanging in one’s collection, produces a more positive mental trigger than having Greg Hawthorne’s (a Steelers running back) jersey from the AFC 1979 Championship game against the Oilers.
● Sentimentality:
Sentimentality is highly correlated with nostalgia, therefore drawing on the same ScienceDirect article. There is one unexpected circumstance where fractional ownership may have an advantage. Let’s say a parent with 3 children and an important Monet painting passes on, and the children disagree over the disposition of the art, 2 wanting to raise funds, one wanting to retain ownership of the art. Fractional ownership solves this dilemma. The 2 sellers sell their two-thirds ownership and the one not wanting to sell retains their ownership interest. The asset would be warehoused post sale, but all of the children’s needs would be met.
● Pleasure:
Consumer psychology studies, and satisfaction surveys focused on perceived value and the "sunk cost fallacy” suggest that, generally, owning a portion of the "best" is considered more pleasurable than owning the whole of the "second best." Here, we learn that having even a small piece of a top-quality item is more satisfying than owning the entirety of a second-tier item, which might lead to the feeling of missing out on the pinnacle experience.
● Pride and self-identity:
Highly correlated with pleasure, and very closely related to the external expression of satisfaction, pride of a collection is related to its hierarchical status more than whole ownership. The perceived value of a portion of the “best” is higher than the perceived value of whole ownership of the second best.
● Social interaction & Status:
ChatGPT offers the following (supported by multiple studies) “Owning a portion of something considered the "best" can indeed carry a certain status or prestige, especially if it’s well-regarded in a particular context. It often signals that you’re part of an exclusive group or that you have access to high-quality experiences or products.
On the other hand, full ownership of something that’s lower quality might not convey the same status, even if you have complete control over it. Ultimately, it depends on the context, the values of the community around you, and how people perceive worth and prestige.”
● Altruism:
Fractional ownership attained through the aShareX auction system has a potentially altruistic component, where the asset can be on display in a museum for public viewing. The key from the fractional owners’ perspective being that the asset is secure, in a controlled environment, and insured. The aShareX team will review requests for display to ensure that they are value additive and meet the asset protection criteria.
● Wealth:
A collection can be a stockpile of wealth. Collecting fractional ownership in the “best” of collectibles can have a lower risk profile and have greater, more predictable returns than investing in less valuable or prestigious assets. It also offers collectors the opportunity to diversify their asset portfolio, further reducing risk. If a collector owns 5% of 20 great baseball cards, the value of the collection will likely be more stable and predictable than holding a single card.
● Learning:
With vast arrays of information available on the internet, and the availability of search engines and AI to help sift through the volume of data, there is no material difference between full and fractional ownership in the ability to learn a subject, and one could argue that having a broader collection of fractions increases the interest level in the wider subject.
Conclusion.
I must admit to being slightly surprised while writing this article that the concept of fractional ownership seems to have little negative effect on the individuals’ feelings from a psychological perspective about their collection, and in many cases, there are positive indicators.
When we started aShareX over 2 years ago, my instinct held that if I had a high-quality framed image of (say) a baseball card on my wall, it would be a topic of conversation at parties, and I would enjoy telling my friends that I have an ownership interest in the original, very high value card. The research for this article seems to bear out the validity of this view.
The aShareX auction system allows auction houses to include fractional bidders alongside their traditional customers for high value auctions and encourages collectors to bid-in to enhance their collections of fractions of the very best consignments.
Please drop me an e-mail (kevin@asharex.com) if you have any questions, or for a demo of our fractional bidding system.
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