Picture This

What Picture This does

Picture This International Limited is an online art gallery and antiquarian dealer operating out of Sunningdale, United Kingdom, with a registered office in London (company number 10229971). It was founded in 2001 by husband-and-wife team Christopher and Pamela Bailey and operated in Hong Kong for approximately fifteen years before relocating to the UK in late 2016. The business sells fine art photography, vintage and original posters, limited edition fine art prints, antiquarian books, antique maps, and travel ephemera, with a documented specialization in Hong Kong, China, and broader Asia Pacific material; only Asian-based member of the IVPDA. Pricing spans £45 to over £3,000 per item depending on rarity and edition.

The technology footprint is a standard e-commerce platform at picturethiscollection.com with secure payment processing via Worldpay (VISA, Mastercard, Maestro, JCB) and PayPal, multi-currency display (GBP, HK$, US$, EUR, RMB), a shopping cart, a wishlist, and contact channels that include telephone, WhatsApp, and email. The company is a full member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association (ABA), International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB), Provincial Booksellers Fairs Association (PBFA), and the International Vintage Poster Dealers Association (IVPDA) since 2008. There is no mobile app, no public API, and no disclosed AI or machine learning capabilities.

Revenue is generated through one-time product sales, bespoke Search and Source commissions for hard-to-find items, Art Consultancy services for residential and hospitality projects, gift certificates from £50, and active buyback or acquisition of vintage posters and rare books from private sellers and estates. Customers span individual collectors and art enthusiasts, interior designers and corporate clients procuring artwork for offices, hotels, serviced apartments, and restaurants, and private or institutional libraries. Global shipping is supported from the UK trading address, with press coverage historically appearing in the South China Morning Post, CNN, the Telegraph, Fodor's Travel Guides, and other outlets.

Name

Picture This

Legal name

Picture This International Limited

Website

https://picturethiscollection.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Picture This is a UK-based online art gallery and antiquarian dealer selling fine art photography, vintage posters, rare books, and antique maps, with a Hong Kong and Asia focus, serving individual collectors, interior designers, and hospitality clients worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Art Gallery & Collectibles Retail

NAICS

Art Dealers (45992), Art Dealers (459920)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAJADAH

Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit)

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Museums, Galleries & Cultural Institutions

Keywords

• Online art gallery
• Vintage posters
• Antiquarian books
• Fine art photography
• Art consultancy

Headquarters

HQ city

Sunningdale

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Product Sales: Direct sales of fine art photography, vintage posters, antiquarian books, maps, luggage labels, and travel ephemera through their e-commerce platform. Individual item pricing ranges from £45 to over £3,000 depending on rarity, edition size, and item category.
2. Search and Source Service: Bespoke service to track down and purchase specific or difficult-to-find items including rare book titles, vintage posters, antique maps, and prints. Service available to clients building collections and libraries, both private and institutional.
3. Art Consultancy Service: Customized art consultancy to help clients source and select artwork for home, office, restaurant, or hotel décor. Service sensitive to budgeting needs for smaller private projects or wide-scale corporate and hospitality developments.
4. Gift Certificates: Gift certificates sold in amounts from £50 upwards, allowing recipients to choose items from the full collection.
5. Buyback and Acquisition: Active purchasing of rare books (from individual volumes to whole libraries) and vintage posters from sellers. The company evaluates items remotely via email/WhatsApp or views collections in person across the UK.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Picture This is an online art gallery operating from the UK that curates and sells fine art photography, vintage and original posters, antiquarian books, antique maps, and limited edition prints — with particular specialization in Hong Kong, China, and Asian themes. The business supplements product sales with bespoke services including a Search and Source capability for rare items and Art Consultancy for hospitality, corporate, and residential interior design projects.

Product overview

Picture This is an online art gallery operating from the United Kingdom that offers a curated mix of fine art photography, vintage and original posters, limited edition fine art prints, antiquarian books, and antique maps. The core product lines include Fine Art Photography featuring renowned international and local photographers (particularly those specializing in Hong Kong and Asia), Original Posters (vintage travel, movie, and airline posters), Fine Art Prints (artists' collections, travel posters, maps & panoramas), Fine & Rare Books (with emphasis on Far East subjects), and Maps & Prints (antiquarian maps from the 16th-19th centuries). Supporting services include Search and Source (tracking down difficult-to-find items), Art Consultancy (sourcing artwork for interior design projects), and Gift Certificates. The business also operates an exhibition program showcasing themed collections and maintains memberships in ABA, ILAB, PBFA, and IVPDA trade associations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fine Art Photography Fine art photography by renowned international and local photographers, including limited edition prints and open edition photographs, with focus on Hong Kong, China, and Asia.
• Original Posters Vintage and original posters including travel posters, movie posters, airline posters, Art Nouveau and Art Deco posters, and mid-century design posters.
• Fine Art Prints Limited edition fine art prints including artists' collections (e.g. Denis-Paul Noyer, Razzia), reproduction travel posters, and reproduction maps and panoramas.
• Fine & Rare Books Antiquarian and rare books including subjects on motoring & motor racing, literature, history, travel, photography, Hong Kong, and China.
• Maps & Prints Antiquarian maps including China Maps, Hong Kong Maps, and Rest of the World maps from the late 16th Century to the end of the 19th Century.
• Search and Source Service Service to help clients track down and purchase specific and difficult-to-find items including obscure book titles, vintage posters, antique maps, and prints. Available to private collectors and institutional clients building collections and libraries.
• Art Consultancy Customized art consultancy to help clients source and select artwork for home, office, restaurant, or hotel décor needs, including themed posters, collectible antique maps, or bonds for interior design projects.
• Gift Certificates Gift certificates available for purchase in any amount from £50 upwards, exchangeable for any item from the collection.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 20 years operating as a specialist gallery with consistent exhibition program from 2003-present
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Antiquarian Booksellers Association (ABA)coreOthersFull membership in the Antiquarian Booksellers Association. Picture This is bound and abides by the code of conduct of this organization. ABA membership provides credibility and trust signals for book buyers worldwide.
• International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB)coreOthersFull membership in ILAB, the international umbrella organization for national antiquarian bookdealer associations. Bound by ILAB's code of conduct and rules.
• Provincial Booksellers Fairs Association (PBFA)coreOthersFull membership in PBFA. Picture This adheres to the rules and guidelines of this internationally recognized trade association for booksellers.
• International Vintage Poster Dealers Association (IVPDA)coreOthersMember since 2008. IVPDA was established in 1996 to promote and raise awareness of vintage poster art, with over 80 members worldwide. Provides strict guidelines to ensure authenticity of posters sold by members. Picture This is the only Asian-based member of IVPDA.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Peter Harrington: London-based antiquarian booksellers with ABA and ILAB membership, specializing in rare books, maps, and prints. Closely comparable to Picture This's Fine & Rare Books and Maps & Prints offerings, with similar institutional and collector clientele.
• Maggs Bros: Long-established London antiquarian booksellers (founded 1853) and ABA/ILAB members dealing in rare books, manuscripts, prints, and maps. Directly comparable in product category and trade association standing to Picture This's rare book and antiquarian map lines.
• Shapero Rare Books: London-based ILAB-member antiquarian bookseller and map dealer with gallery presence and international fairs participation. Comparable in books, maps, and prints category and in their combination of e-commerce and physical gallery sales.
• International Poster Gallery: US-based IVPDA-member vintage poster dealer offering original lithographs and travel posters via gallery and online channels. Direct peer in the vintage poster category that competes for the same collector segment as Picture This's Original Posters line.
• Swann Auction Galleries: New York auction house with dedicated vintage poster and rare book departments. Comparable in inventory category and global collector reach, though operating on an auction rather than fixed-price gallery model.
• The Vintage Poster Shop: Specialist vintage poster dealer carrying original travel, film, and advertising posters. Directly comparable in the vintage poster product category and collector target market.
• Foster-Gwin Art Gallery: San Francisco-based gallery specializing in vintage posters and fine art photography. Comparable mix of original posters and photography, serving both collectors and interior design clients similar to Picture This's dual B2B/B2C model.
• Quintessence Editions: Specialist publisher and dealer in luxury illustrated books on art, photography, and design with strong Asia-Pacific editorial focus. Comparable in curating high-end illustrated art photography volumes and connecting to corporate/gift markets.

Broad incumbents

• Christie's: Global auction house with major departments in photographs, vintage posters, rare books, and Asian art. Overlaps significantly with Picture This's product categories but operates at vastly greater scale, with broader geographic and category reach.
• Sotheby's: Global auction house with photography, books & manuscripts, and Asian art departments. Competes for the same high-end collector and institutional clientele but at scale and category breadth far beyond Picture This's specialty niche.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/PictureThisCollection
• Instagraminstagram.com/PictureThisGalleryHK
• Pinterestpinterest.com/PictureThisHKG

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Picture This