Goffs Takes Center Stage in London

GOFFS TAKES CENTER STAGE IN LONDON 
By Kelsey Riley 
Goffs today stages its inaugural London Sale in association with QIPCO at The Orangery at Kensington Palace, and anticipation is high ahead of the unique event. Not only is it the first time a Thoroughbred auction has been held in central London, but it has attracted a high-quality boutique catalogue that is expected to draw potential buyers from across the globe. An already strong catalogue of breeze-up juveniles and horses-in-training was boosted late last week with the announcement that a colt by Frankel (GB)–the first to be offered by his sire–would go under the hammer as a package with his stakes-producing dam Crystal Gaze (Ire) (Rainbow Quest), back in foal to the unbeaten dual Cartier Horse of the Year, as Lot 65. That offering, the last through the ring, will no doubt end proceedings with a bang, but there is a myriad of quality to choose from beforehand. Amongst the horses-in-training with Royal Ascot entries are Cappella Sansevero (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) (Lot 49), the unbeaten winner of the Listed Marble Hill May 24, who has been declared for tomorrow’s G2 Coventry S. Also entered in that juvenile prize is Prophesize (GB) (Captain Rio {GB}) (Lot 60), a first-out winner at Redcar May 19, and Case Statement (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) (Lot 63). Loretta Martin (GB) (Sixties Icon {GB}) (Lot 54), the winner of her lone outing Apr. 30 at Brighton, is engaged in Saturday’s Listed Chesham S., while dual winner Midterm Break (Ire) (Intense Focus) (Lot 55) has been declared for tomorrow’s Listed Windsor Castle S. The 3-year-old Passing Star (GB) (Royal Applause {GB}) (Lot 57) has been beaten once in four outings, when second most recently in the All-Weather 3-Year-Old Championship at Lingfield Apr. 18, and he sells with an entry in Wednesday’s G3 Jersey S. Pornichet (Fr) (Vespone {Ire}) (Lot 59), third in the May 11 G1 French 2000 Guineas, is also entered for the Jersey in addition to holding an invitation to the GI Belmont Derby July 5. 
The 22 horses with form will be preceded by 30 breeze-up juveniles. Highlights on paper include Lot 2, a French-bred Soldier of Fortune (Ire) half-brother to Australian Group 1 winner Glencadam Gold (Ire) (Refuse to Bend {Ire}); Lot 14, a Makfi (GB) colt out of Group 2 winner Danceabout (GB) (Shareef Dancer), the dam of stakes winner Rainbow Dancing (GB) (Rainbow Quest); Lot 17, a Galileo (Ire) colt out G2 Queen Mary S. winner Elletelle (Ire) (Elnadim), and therefore a full-brother to Group 3 winner Adelaide (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}); Lot 23, a Smart Strike half-brother to multiple stakes winner Rose Catherine (Speightstown); Lot 33, an Acclamation (GB) half-brother to dual champion Finsceal Beo (Ire) (Mr. Greeley) and G2 German 2000 Guineas winner Frozen Power (Ire) (Oasis Dream {GB}), and Lot 35, a Dansili (GB) half-sister to Group 2 winners and Group 1 placed Joviality (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}) and Bonfire (GB) (Manduro {Ger}). A lifetime breeding right to leading sire Invincible Spirit (Ire) will also be put up for auction. 
Henry Beeby, Chief Executive of Goffs, noted that the sale has received almost unprecedented interest since the idea was unveiled last year. 
“It’s come together extraordinarily well,” Beeby said. “We announced it last August, and the interest in it has been monumental. I’ve been involved in promoting sales for 30-plus years, and I don’t think I’ve ever known the level of interest to be quite as high in a concept. It’s very different from what’s been done before, so that’s really caught people’s imagination.” 
Beeby explained that formal discussions on creating a sale of this kind had been held about two years ago, but that Goffs wasn’t involved in those initial talks. Following their annual breeze-up sale at Kempton Racecourse last March, however, the Goffs team decided it was time to reinvent the wheel and introduce a sale that would capitalize on the popularity of Royal Ascot. 
“We decided to go with the day before Royal Ascot on the basis that people were coming into London for the Royal Ascot meeting,” Beeby explained. “After liaising with a few key clients, we decided to go for a central London location.” 
The next task was landing on that location, and Beeby noted that after touring a number of facilities, The Orangery at Kensington Palace was decided upon in November. While space restrictions and palace regulations mean that the sale is by-invitation only, Beeby doesn’t expect that to impact its success. The guest list includes potential buyers from Europe, the Middle East, the U.S., the Far East and Australasia. 
“It’s by-invitation only because we have to meet certain criteria laid down by historic royal palaces,” Beeby said. “That’s why we need to be able to know who’s coming. But we’ve had a lot of interest, and I hope it won’t be an issue. Having said that, we will be showing the sale live at Kempton Park, which is where the breeze-up horses and some of the horses-in-training will be. So there won’t be an issue in people being able to engage with it. Potential buyers will be able to bid from both locations.” 
Once the location was secure, it was time to put together the catalogue. Beeby noted that Goffs approached juvenile consignors first. 
“We spoke to the breeze-up vendors and we said we didn’t want big numbers, but we wanted quality, and the breeze-up vendors have stepped up to the mark in some style,” he said. “It’s certainly the best [breeze-up] catalogue on paper we’ve ever put together, and the physicals are good, too. Then when we got that put together we went looking for some horses with form, with the aspiration to have maybe a dozen or 15 with Royal Ascot entries. I think we’ve ended up with 22, of which 20 have entries at Royal Ascot, which is great.” 
An important aspect of preparation for the London Sale was making arrangements to facilitate on-the-spot ownership changes, allowing purchases with entries at the Royal meeting to run in the colors of their new owners. In a special arrangement with the British Horseracing Authority, Goffs has made that possible, as long as the purchaser is a registered owner in a recognized racing jurisdiction anywhere in the world. 
Beeby noted that the backing of QIPCO provided the sale added credibility, and the sale has also received the support of bloodstock insurance brokers Lycetts, which will sponsor 30 days of insurance for fatality or catastrophic injury on every lot sold. Other supporters include Royal Ascot, Air Partner and Chateau Leoube wines. 
With all the preparations in the book for the first renewal of the Goffs London Sale, Beeby expressed optimism ahead of the unprecedented event. 
“It’s very exciting and offers a unique opportunity in a beautiful setting at exactly the right time,” he said. “We hope it will work, and we’re looking forward to it immensely.”