Drawing Room

What Drawing Room does

The Drawing Room is a fine antiques gallery established in 1985 in Newport, Rhode Island, operated as a partnership between proprietors Federico Santi and John Gacher. The firm curates and retails authenticated antiques spanning more than twenty categories, including Zsolnay Secession pottery from Pécs, Hungary, Art Nouveau and Art Deco decorative arts, period furniture, European porcelain, antique glass, textiles, clocks, jewelry, Asian antiques, militaria, Gothic Revival pieces, American Greek Revival furnishings, and Habburg-era decorative objects. The core product is a curated, authenticated inventory of items individually priced, with entries published in a browsable online catalog of over 300 pieces and a single physical showroom at 152-154 Spring Street in Newport open daily and by appointment.

The underlying technology is minimal and deliberately traditional. The business operates an informational website with category navigation and item photography, an email newsletter signup via Constant Contact, and a telephone sales line for completing every transaction — there is no e-commerce checkout, no mobile application, no API, and no integrations. Federico Santi has additionally stood up a parallel publishing activity, The Drawing Room Press, which issues his photography monographs documenting his late-1960s work as a VISTA Volunteer, his time at Florida State University, and Times Square-era subjects; these titles are distributed through Amazon and direct sale.

The Drawing Room makes money through one-time unit retail sales of individually priced antique items, with prices ranging from under $100 for prints and small items to $30,000 for rare and high-end pieces such as marble busts. The firm acquires inventory from estates, collectors, and direct sellers; ships throughout the Continental U.S. only (citing shipping and duty costs of up to 100% of declared value as a constraint on international sales); accepts payment by check, Visa, MasterCard, and American Express; and applies shipping costs as a separate line item. The customer base consists of affluent antique collectors seeking authenticated Zsolnay, Art Nouveau, and decorative arts pieces, and interior designers and decorators sourcing period-appropriate antiques for residential and commercial projects. Marketing is conducted through the website catalog and email newsletter, with no paid advertising or social media presence documented.

Name

Drawing Room

Legal name

The Drawing Room (Unincorporated Partnership)

Website

https://drawrm.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Drawing Room is a Newport, Rhode Island antique gallery specializing in authenticated fine antiques, including Zsolnay pottery, period furniture, and decorative arts. It serves collectors and interior designers through a physical showroom and phone-based sales, operating as a partnership since 1985.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Antique Retail

NAICS

Art Dealers (459920), Art Dealers (45992)

SIC

Retail-Home Furniture, Furnishings & Equipment Stores (5700), Retail-Furniture Stores (5712), Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)

akta.pro primary industry

Vintage & Antique Furniture Retail (CRAIANAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Art, Photography & Illustrated Books Publishing (MPAJAAAF), Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)

Keywords

• Antique retail gallery
• Fine antiques
• Zsolnay pottery
• Period furniture
• Decorative arts

Headquarters

HQ city

Newport

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations

Revenue model

1. Antique Retail Sales: Brick-and-mortar antique gallery selling fine antiques including Zsolnay pottery, lighting, furniture, porcelain, paintings, glass, ephemera, textiles, jewelry, Asian antiques, military items, clocks, and more. Inventory acquired through purchasing from estates, collectors, and direct acquisition from sellers. Items sold at retail prices with shipping costs added for U.S. shipments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

The Drawing Room is a brick-and-mortar antique gallery located at 152-154 Spring Street in Newport, Rhode Island, selling fine antiques including Zsolnay pottery, period lighting, antique furniture, porcelain, paintings, glass, jewelry, Asian antiques, militaria, clocks, textiles, and decorative arts. The gallery has been in operation since 1985, with over 300 items viewable via an online catalog at drawrm.com, and all sales are completed by telephone with shipment available throughout the Continental U.S. The business also publishes photography books by co-proprietor Federico Santi through The Drawing Room Press.

Product overview

The Drawing Room is an antiques gallery and online marketplace specializing in fine antiques from the Gilded Age and earlier periods. The business operates as a unified antiques retail operation offering over 300 fine antiques through an online gallery at drawrm.com, with a physical location at 152 Spring Street in Newport, Rhode Island. Their inventory encompasses multiple distinct product categories including Zsolnay art pottery, antique furniture, porcelain, glass, lighting, clocks, jewelry, Asian art, and Grand Tour objects, along with photography books by co-owner Federico Santi. The company has been in business since 1985 and is operated by partners Federico Santi and John Gacher.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Drawing Room Press: Publishing imprint of the company that publishes photography books by Federico Santi, including 'VISTA Redux: 1969,' 'Past Tense: A Photographic Journey 1967-1973,' and 'FSU Salad Days.'

Products and services

• Zsolnay Art Pottery A specialty collection of high-style Secession examples of Zsolnay ceramics from Pécs, Hungary, including decorative vessels, lamp bases, and architectural tiles known for distinctive eosin glazes. Sold to antique collectors and designers seeking authenticated Hungarian Secession pottery.
• Antique Glass Period glassware spanning Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Victorian periods, offered to collectors and decorators.
• American and European Antique Furniture Fine furniture spanning American Empire, English Regency, French, and other period styles from the 18th and 19th centuries, offered to collectors and interior designers.
• Fine Antique Porcelain European porcelain from major factories including Sèvres, Meissen, and other distinguished makers, sold to collectors and decorators.
• Art Nouveau Decorative Arts Decorative arts objects from the Art Nouveau period featuring organic forms, sinuous lines, and nature-inspired designs, sold to collectors and designers.
• Period Antique Lighting Chandeliers, wall sconces, table lamps, and lighting fixtures spanning gas, kerosene, solar, and sinumbra periods, sold to collectors and designers.
• Antique Jewelry and Objects d'Art Period jewelry and decorative objects including Imperial breast stars, badges, and medals from European countries, sold to collectors.
• Asian Antiques from China and Japan Chinese and Japanese ceramics, metalware, prints, and furniture including Satsuma, Imari, and Kutani wares, sold to collectors and decorators.
• Militaria Military antiques including breast stars, badges, medals, helmets, and swords from various countries and periods, sold to collectors.
• Antique Clocks and Watches Timepieces including French and Austrian mantel clocks, Vienna Adler clocks, and English longcase clocks, sold to collectors and decorators.
• The Grand Tour Collection European travel objects acquired by 19th-century travelers including bronze statues, marble columns, urns, candelabras, and pietra dura objects, sold to collectors.
• Photography Books by Federico Santi Published photography books documenting Federico Santi's VISTA Volunteer service in 1969 and his life in the late 1960s, including 'VISTA Redux,' 'Past Tense,' and 'FSU Salad Days,' sold to readers interested in 1960s American photography and history.

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Doyle New York: Established New York auction house handling fine art, furniture, decorative arts, and jewelry — overlaps significantly with The Drawing Room's product categories but operates via auction rather than fixed-price gallery retail.
• Christie's: Mega global auction house covering European furniture, porcelain, decorative arts, and Asian works — competing for the same high-net-worth buyer pool as The Drawing Room's gallery.
• Bonhams: Global auction house with strong departments in European antiques, decorative arts, and Asian art — competes for the same high-end collector dollars as The Drawing Room via a different sales channel.
• Sotheby's: Mega global auction house whose decorative arts, European furniture, and Asian art departments address the same affluent collectors The Drawing Room targets, though at vastly larger scale.
• Brunk Auctions: Asheville-based auction house covering European antiques, fine art, Asian works, and decorative arts — competes with The Drawing Room for collectors across many of the same product categories at a more regional scale.

Direct peers

• Hyde Park Antiques: Specialty antique gallery offering fine European and American antique furniture and decorative arts, comparable to The Drawing Room's curated, authenticated approach to period pieces.
• 1stDibs: Online marketplace aggregating high-end antique dealers and galleries; the most direct digital comp to The Drawing Room's online catalog concept, but operating at much greater scale with e-commerce checkout built in.
• M.S. Rau Antiques: Full-service New Orleans antique dealer offering a broad multi-category inventory of fine antiques, fine art, and decorative arts — a very similar operating model and category breadth to The Drawing Room's gallery-plus-online catalog approach.
• Olde Good Things: New York antique dealer with a large multi-category inventory of antiques, architectural artifacts, and decorative arts, plus online e-commerce — directly comparable in product breadth and customer segment to The Drawing Room.

Regional players

• Kensington Row Antiques: New England antique dealer specializing in period European and American antiques with both showroom and online presence — directly comparable in geography, scale, and category mix to The Drawing Room.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/drawing-room

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 Drawing Room