Phillips' Game-Changing Dropshop Platform Will Directly Benefit Artists

How will this work, exactly? The online platform will have regularly scheduled “drops” once a month with works by contemporary artists and brands. These drops will be collaborations between the artists and the house directly, giving artists behind the scenes access to work through promotion and fabrication of their sale. The works will be available to purchase online, but as Phillips said in their release, “offerings are exclusive…once they’re gone, they’re gone.” 

To make this happen, Phillips brought on Christine Miele as their New Retail Sales Director, Ecommerce back in the spring, coming over from the Kehinde Wiley Shop. Dropshow was “created in response to the generational shift of contemporary artists taking a more active role in self-representation," said Miele in a statement. She continued, promising that Dropshow will present “a culturally diverse range of artists, spanning both emerging and blue-chip names.” 

The new platform will launch on August 20, with work by Australian hyperrealist artist Cj Hendry. Her ‘drop’ will feature one hundred sculptures that look like inflatable balloon crowns but are actually made of bronze, along will a large scale drawing of one of the crowns. 

The real change here from regular secondary market sales is the royalty structure for artists. The traditional auction house model lacks direct benefits for artists due to its limited compensation structure and lack of control over pricing and presentation, not to mention its opaque transactions. Dropshop aims to address these issues by providing artists with a percentage of the resale price whenever their works change hands: this includes works purchased in Dropshop, but also any works subsequently resold in a Phillips auction or exhibition. This novel approach not only eliminates intermediaries, but offers artists ongoing financial support, and will strengthen the bond between creators and collectors.