EVE - Maison de Ventes aux Enchères

What EVE - Maison de Ventes aux Enchères does

EVE - Maison de Ventes aux Enchères is a French licensed voluntary auction operator (Opérateur de Ventes Volontaires, OVV n°2002-84) headquartered at 9 rue Milton in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. The company conducts live and online auctions of art, jewelry, furniture, numismatics, tribal art, and collectibles across 28 specialty categories, selling primarily through physical auction rooms at Hôtel des Ventes Drouot-Richelieu and Drouot-Montmartre, with online bidding enabled via the DrouotDigital platform. Notable individual lots have ranged from several thousand euros to over 400,000 EUR, with headline results including a Jean-Baptiste Perronneau pastel at 412,500 EUR and a sapphire and diamond ring at 302,400 EUR.

The technology stack is built on standard transactional infrastructure rather than proprietary software. EVE's website (auctioneve.com) supports online valuation requests, absentee bid submission, telephone bid registration, online adjudication payment, and advance deposits — the latter handled via PCI-DSS-certified Ingenico with 3D Secure authentication. Hosting runs on Google Cloud Platform in the EU-Ireland zone, with Google Analytics for traffic measurement. Authentication and valuation are performed by a curated network of independent experts including Cabinet TURQUIN (old master paintings), Cabinet DE BAYSER (old drawings), and François LACHAUD (furniture and decorative arts of the 17th-19th centuries).

The business model is transaction-based: EVE earns a 25% TTC buyer's premium (20.84% plus 20% VAT, or 20.91% plus 19.60% VAT for numismatic sales) on the hammer price, plus a seller commission on consigned lots. Supplementary fee-based revenue comes from home inventory services and detailed written appraisals, while online valuation requests and in-office verbal estimates are free and serve as a top-of-funnel for consignment acquisition. The customer base is predominantly individual collectors and sellers of personal estates, with secondary demand from professionals (notaries, family offices) requiring certified inventories for legal and tax purposes. The firm is privately held, with Maître Alain Leroy serving as commissaire-priseur, and operates with approximately 16 employees.

Name

EVE - Maison de Ventes aux Enchères

Legal name

Eve

Website

https://auctioneve.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

EVE is a Paris-based licensed French auction house (OVV n°2002-84) operating across 28 specialty categories including art, jewelry, and collectibles through Drouot auction rooms and the DrouotDigital online platform, serving private collectors, sellers, and estates with a 25% TTC buyer's premium model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Auction House Services

NAICS

Art Dealers (459920)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Auction Houses (Luxury Watches & Jewelry) (CRAKAKAF)

Keywords

• Voluntary auction services
• Fine art auctions
• Online appraisal services
• Collectibles auction sales
• Estate inventory services

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Buyer's Premium: EVE charges buyers a commission on the hammer price. The standard buyer's premium is 20.84% plus VAT at 20%, totaling 25% TTC per lot. For numismatic auctions, the rate is 20.91% plus VAT at 19.60%, also totaling 25%. This is the primary revenue stream.
2. Seller Commission / Consignment Fees: EVE takes a commission on the sale price when objects are successfully sold at auction. Sellers are assisted and guided by the auctioneer who estimates and values the estate. The company retains a portion of the hammer price as its primary take-rate.
3. Home Inventory Services: EVE offers inventory services at a client's home by appointment, which are billed separately. This provides a fee-based revenue stream independent of auction outcomes.
4. Online Valuation Services: Basic online valuation requests are free for clients. In-person expert valuation appointments at the office are also free and without obligation. More detailed written appraisals (inventory with estimates) are billable services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

EVE is a French licensed auction house (OVV n°2002-84) that organizes live and online auctions of art, jewelry, watches, antique and modern furniture, drawings, tribal art, numismatics, and collectibles through the Drouot auction complex and the DrouotDigital platform. It also provides free online valuation requests, billable home inventory services for estates and inheritance, written expert appraisals for insurance and tax purposes, and secure PCI-DSS compliant online adjudication payment and advance deposit processing.

Product overview

EVE - Maison de Ventes aux Enchères is a French auction house (OVV n°2002-84) operating primarily through its website auctioneve.com. The core offering consists of auction services for live and online sales across diverse specialties including art, jewelry, furniture, numismatics, and tribal art. Key products include Online Valuation for estimating objects, Absentee Bids and Phone Bidding for remote participation, Online Payment and Deposit services via Ingenico, Inventory and Expert Appraisal services, and Sale Catalogues with detailed lot information. The company operates within the Drouot auction network and partners with DrouotDigital for online auction functionality.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Live and Online Auction Sales (Ventes aux Enchères) Core auction services enabling buyers and sellers to participate in public sales of art, jewelry, watches, furniture, numismatics, and collectibles through live in-room sales at the historic Hôtel des Ventes Drouot-Richelieu and Drouot-Montmartre and through the DrouotDigital online streaming platform. Targeted at private collectors, sellers, and professional estate clients.
• Online Valuation Request (Estimation en Ligne) Free online estimation service that allows individuals to submit photographs, dimensions, and comments about an object for professional valuation by EVE experts, with follow-up contact to propose consignment to upcoming auctions. Targeted at individual collectors, estate executors, and heirs seeking a first opinion on the value of art, jewelry, or collectibles.
• Absentee Bidding (Ordre d'Achat) Service allowing users to submit maximum purchase orders for lots they cannot attend in person, with bids stored in a bid basket and validated up to 3 hours before the live sale for automatic execution during the auction. Targeted at remote collectors and buyers who cannot attend in person at Drouot.
• Telephone Bidding (Enchères Téléphoniques) Service enabling remote participation in live auctions via telephone, with EVE staff contacting the bidder when the desired lot comes up so the bidder can place live bids in real time. Targeted at buyers who prefer voice-assisted bidding for higher-value or sensitive lots.
• Online Payment (Paiement en Ligne) Secure online payment service for auction adjudication, supporting credit card and bank transfer settlements via PCI-DSS certified Ingenico with 3D Secure authentication. Banking data is transmitted directly to Ingenico and not stored by EVE. Targeted at successful buyers at EVE auctions.
• Online Advance Deposit (Dépôt d'Avance en Ligne) Online deposit service allowing prospective bidders to pre-fund bidding capability for upcoming auctions via PCI-DSS compliant Ingenico processing. Targeted at bidders intending to participate in future EVE sales.
• Estate and Home Inventory Services (Inventaires) Professional on-site inventory of dwelling contents, conducted by appointment for estate sharing, tax declarations, insurance purposes, and post-succession asset documentation. Targeted at notaries, attorneys, family offices, estate executors, and individuals managing inherited property.
• Expert Written Appraisal (Expertise) Professional expertise service providing written opinion on authenticity, authorship, period, condition, and market value of art objects and collectibles, intended for insurance, tax, and legal documentation. Targeted at private collectors, estate executors, notaries, and attorneys needing certified written appraisals.
• Sale Catalogues (Catalogue des Ventes) Online auction catalogues presenting detailed lot descriptions, photographs, low and high estimates, and auction results for upcoming and past sales across all EVE specialties. Targeted at registered bidders, prospective buyers, and appraisers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Some lots have achieved prices well above estimates, e.g., Jean-Baptiste Perronneau pastel: 412,500 EUR (estimate 120,000–150,000 EUR); Bison sculpture: 190,000 EUR (estimate 180,000–220,000 EUR)

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• DrouotDigital / Drouot.comcoreTechnology or IntegrationEVE uses the DrouotDigital platform (drouotonline.com) to stream live auctions and conduct online-only sales. The company's catalogs are also listed on Drouot.com. This integration is fundamental to EVE's online auction operations, allowing remote bidder participation globally.
• IngenicocoreTechnology or IntegrationIngenico is EVE's payment processing provider, certified PCI-DSS. It handles online adjudication payments and advance deposits securely. EVE does not store banking data — it is transmitted directly to Ingenico for secure processing.
• Cabinet TURQUINcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCabinet TURQUIN is a leading expert firm near the Cour d'Appel de Paris specializing in old master paintings. EVE partners with them for authentication and valuation of paintings in its auctions.
• Cabinet DE BAYSERcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCabinet DE BAYSER (69 rue Sainte Anne, Paris) provides expert appraisal services for old drawings included in EVE's auctions, lending professional authentication authority.
• François LACHAUDcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExpert near the Cour d'Appel de Paris specializing in furniture and decorative arts of the 17th–19th centuries. Provides expert attestation for EVE's furniture and objects of art auctions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Catawiki: Online auction marketplace for art, jewelry, watches, and collectibles. Comparable at the auction-meets-online-distribution layer, though Catawiki targets lower-to-mid price points across Europe rather than EVE's higher-value French collector market at Drouot.

Direct peers

• Piasa: Parisian auction house operating contemporary art, design, and luxury sales with online bidding. Comparable in profile to EVE within the French mid-market, with overlapping bidder demographics and Drouot-anchored operations.
• Artcurial: Paris-based auction house operating across fine art, luxury, jewelry, and collectibles with both in-room and online sales. Closely comparable business model and multi-category scope to EVE, but at materially larger scale and brand recognition within the same Drouot-anchored French auction market.
• Aguttes: Independent French auction house with a similar multi-category profile (art, jewelry, wines, luxury) and Drouot channel usage. Closely comparable in scale and category breadth to EVE and competes directly for the same mid-market consignment base in France.
• Tajan: Paris-based French auction house with multi-category sales including jewelry, art objects, and collectibles. Similar in scale and operating model to EVE, with direct overlap in the French mid-market consignment and bidding segments.
• Beaussant Lefèvre & Associés: Paris-based French auction house specializing in furniture, objets d'art, and decorative arts—directly overlapping with several of EVE's core specialties. Comparable in scale and Drouot-based operations, with similar mid-market French clientele.
• Binoche et Giquello: Paris-based auction operator conducting sales of art, manuscripts, and collectibles at Drouot. Comparable in size, category focus, and Drouot-based operating model to EVE, with overlap in mid-market French consignment and bidder segments.

Broad incumbents

• Christie's (Paris): Global auction leader with a long-established Paris operation selling fine and decorative art, jewelry, and luxury goods. Operates in the same metropolitan ecosystem as EVE and competes for the same French and international consignors, but at vastly larger scale and global reach.
• Sotheby's (Paris): Global auction house with Paris-anchored fine art, jewelry, and luxury sales. Targets an overlapping consignment and bidder pool as EVE, with substantially broader geographic reach and marketing scale that pressures mid-sized Parisian competitors.
• Drouot Estimations: Auction operator affiliated with the Drouot group that runs in-room and online sales of art and collectibles. Operates within the same Drouot ecosystem as EVE and competes for bidders on the same platform; larger and more established.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/auctioneve
• Instagraminstagram.com/eve_maison_de_ventes
• Pinterestpinterest.fr/auctioneve/_created
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/eve-maison-de-ventes

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 EVE - Maison de Ventes aux Enchères