Sotheby's bidding to stimulate interest in future generations

A CHARITY AUCTION in the Lee Gardens basement atrium last week lured Hong Kong's socialites in their finery, eager to bid for some of the top brand names on offer. But Sotheby's, which arranged the event, hopes it raised more than the HK$34,000 brought in for Orbis.

The auction house was aiming to raise the profile of public auctions and get Hong Kong people accustomed to bidding.

'Bidding Wars' was a sugar-coated event appropriately accompanied by a dessert buffet and free of heated debate about cultural relics or armed guards discreetly keeping an eye on multi-million dollar works of art.

Armed with bright orange bidding paddles, which doubled as invites, collectors-in-training supplemented the HK$700-HK$2,000 in pocket money they were given at the door with generous amounts of their own cash. On offer were 20 lots, donated by the luxury brands at the Lee Gardens, including such rare finds as a pair of limited edition Bikkembergs 3-dimension jeans moulded to fit the body of Italian footballer Gianluca Cordella, a Tiffany charm bracelet and a platinum-finish Cartier paperweight.

The Mercedes-Benz model car with a lucky number 88, of which only 1,000 produced worldwide, brought in an impressive HK$12,000 in heated bidding, quadrupling the HK$3,000 suggested retail price.

It was all good fun, but Sotheby's is hoping the message hit home.