Now, I'll admit - I was a little tough on SOMO (Sotheby's Motorsport) in their early days. They definitely had some growing pains with mixed messaging and platform design issues that I called out. But as I've preached many times, it often takes a little runway for these companies to find their rhythm, understand their user base, and smooth out those inevitable kinks.

Well, kudos to the SOMO team because they've executed a major course correction and turnaround, as you'll read in Colleen's insights below. It's been an impressive rebound from those rocky early days, and I'm sure there's plenty more evolution and innovation still to come from them down the line.

I may have been critical at first, but I also firmly believe in giving credit where it's due when companies put in the work to right the ship. SOMO has done just that.

For now, enjoy our in-depth chat with Colleen where we really peel back the curtain...

TDV: Can you share a bit about your background and how you first got involved in the auction world? Was the automotive space something you initially aimed for?

CC: I actually come from the performing arts and humanities and auction was largely unknown to me in my early years. It wasn’t until a mentor of mine took me to a salesroom in NYC– a Books & Manuscripts sale was on– that I realized this world existed. I had previously worked in public policy– from the NYC Council to the Governor’s Office– and frankly, I needed an industry that was infused with a bit more capital and a lot more speed.

I found the rostrum and salesroom–both brick-and-mortar and digital- to be the perfect intersection of the theatrical and the economic. High flying sums of money, beautiful objects, and incredible stories around the objects and the clients on either side of them. I was hooked. 

There has never been one category that has consumed my interests and I’ve really enjoyed being on the business side of things. This has afforded me the opportunity to steward all manner of objects- from Ansel Adams photographs to Simon Bolivar’s dueling pistols, to a Vickers Supermarine Spitfire MK. 1A- P9374. Most recently, I spent the last six years running a global online fine art marketplace connecting buyers and sellers across 55 countries. We navigated and scaled in the pandemic and I left that business having reached a new high watermark in the company’s history and in the industry. It was incredibly rewarding.

My interest in automotive was actually something that percolated in my personal life while I spent the last decade deeply involved in the in-person and online auction space.

My husband is the founder of Legacy Overland, a restoration company with workshops in Connecticut and Portugal. In working to help build out our stateside operations I’ve become pretty conversant in all things 4x4, shop operations, and restomods, and I have had the opportunity to see some incredible builds come across the line– from the full spectrum of the Defender lineage to FJs and Scouts, G-Wagens to Broncos. Nowadays we are working more and more on sports cars and the DB6 Sport Saloon we have in the shop is a personal favorite.

When the opportunity arose to knit together what I had been doing in my professional life with what I have been doing in my personal life– i.e. to lead Sotheby’s Motorsport– I couldn’t resist the opportunity and in fact, I jumped at the chance. 

TDV: What was your first impression of Sotheby's Motorsport when you took over as President? What did you identify as the biggest areas that needed improvement?

CC: As I got to know the brand and the operation, the biggest realization I had was the scale and scope of the opportunity we had at hand. SOMO launched in August 2023, and like so many in the online auction space, the first few months were not without their challenges. Auction and - online auctions, particularly- are not for the faint of heart. To succeed, you need to bring together the best of the in-person experience coupled with best-in-class technology. That’s a tall task.

There were so many low hanging fruits to be plucked when I joined the business in February 2024 but for me the priorities were clear: galvanize sales, optimize our digital storefront, and foster brand awareness.

In the past few months we’ve seen sell through rates rise and an average transaction value hold steady at around $220,000. We’ve ushered in a rebrand and have partnered with leading players and events across the high end of the market. It’s been a great H1.

TDV: Rebrandings can be sensitive endeavors. What was the strategic thinking behind renaming to SOMO?

CC: The SOMO rename was a natural step in the business’ maturation. SOMO is a joint venture between RM Sotheby’s and duPont REGISTRY Group (formerly Motorsport Network), and was always intended to be the digital answer to both businesses' evolution, particularly where engaging with the next generation of car collectors is concerned. In pursuing this, we wanted a shorter, pluckier name and we also took feedback from our clients and the industry– SOMO it was.

TDV: The new SOMO brand identity has a very modern, sleek look compared to the previous styling. Can you discuss the philosophy and messaging you wanted to convey with the new visuals?

CC: We know the current and next generation is transacting online for nearly everything in their lives- from daily necessities to splurges, and we wanted to create a look and feel that was familiar to this demographic from both a UX and look and feel perspective. We aren’t selling low value cars– we have a 2010 Lamborghini Murcielago SV on the site now as one example– and we wanted to create an experience that spoke to the high level of offering we have. 

We also wanted to freshly position some of the key cataloging items critical to online automotive auctions– from the spec information to how we feature inspection reports and bidding history. It’s important to create a landscape that speaks meaningfully to the business you are doing and want to do in that landscape.

TDV: Beyond the cosmetic rebrand, what were some of the first operational or business changes you implemented at SOMO to drive improvement?

CC: I’ve been really focused on the client experience through process improvement, particularly where post-sale fulfilment is concerned. 

At SOMO, we are with our clients through the very end of the transaction until the car is delivered to the buyer. That means we are involved in things like payment and title transfer and it’s been a focus to work with our team to continually optimize those processes. Nothing quite detracts from a great sales performance like an operational issue so it’s critical for me to ensure we are constantly iterating and improving those key milestones for our clients.

TDV: SOMO's sell-through rates and average sale prices seem to have risen nicely under your tenure. What specific initiatives or areas of focus do you attribute those positive metrics to?

CC: Indeed– we’ve been selling more cars than ever with deeper bidding activity and higher hammer prices. Pricing is critical in this game– you need to be on the money to get the right interest on a car, and in so many cases, the right reserve price will actually help you exceed the reserve. That’s been huge for us.

Outside of that, as I alluded to before, it’s about pulling out the right tools from the widest possible toolbelt. Our sales team has a combined 50+ years in sales experience from every part of the wider automotive industry, and they are expert in coupling the traditional- the phone calls, the relationship building, the straight knowledge- with the digital. They leverage all digital tools like they do traditional ones and that hybrid way of operating has made all the difference.

In the past few months we’ve seen record sales from a 2017 Ferrari F12berlinetta 70th Anniversary Edition to a 2020 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera to a 2011 Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0.

On the blocks now  is a 1,200 mile 2009 Ferrari 430 Scuderia and a 2023 Ferrari 296 GTB. Business begets business.

TDV: How are you working to attract top-tier collectors, sellers and listings to the SOMO platform versus the competition? What advantages do you aim to offer?

CC: Nothing secures clients on all sides like trust and performance, so we are really focused on selling through the auctions we have and delivering a seamless experience to sellers, bidders, and buyers alike. Outside of that, our process and dedication to the operational side of the sales is a key differentiating factor for us. We also believe in the power of the hybrid world and are proponents of partnering with in-person events and stakeholders.

For example, we launched a first-of-its-kind partnership with The Palm Event in March of this year as the event’s exclusive online auction partner. We’ll soon embark on a similar partnership with Rally Point East in the Hamptons alongside their Porscheast event on June 15th.

TDV: You came from outside the collector car space originally. What has been the biggest learning curve or surprise for you in this automotive auction niche?

CC: I spent so many years with artists and their markets in my head– the switch to year, make, and model has been a wild one! 

I’ve actually found the transition from art to automotive to be less drastic than I had anticipated. The ecosystems are really quite similar– you have your trade players, your dealers, your brokers, your private clients and collectors. I love these frothy and multichannel worlds.

TDV: Online/digital auctions have seen rapid growth, accelerated by the pandemic. How is SOMO adapting its technology, operations and buyer experiences for this digital-first landscape?

CC: SOMO is built on proprietary technology and I have to say– it’s an incredible system. The auction engine and the integrity of the bidding system is the end all and be all of this business, and SOMO’s is among the finest I’ve seen in my long tenure in the space. We look forward to continuing to leverage our nimble technology and the power of it– this may include building out sales series around non-17 digit VINs, automobilia, partnerships etc.

We also know that transacting online- particularly for such a high priced transaction- can be daunting. We maintain a robust client experience and client support practice and make it easy to connect with actual members of our team. The connection to real people is critically important and often undervalued in this increasingly digital world.

TDV: As you look ahead, where do you see the biggest opportunities for growth or evolution at SOMO - new market segments, new categories, new technologies to implement?

CC: As we enter into the latter half of the year with SOMO, we are focused on doubling down on what we do best– selling high impact, high value cars– and on continuing to innovate where our offering is concerned. We want to leverage the agility of our system to support new business innovations and we want to ensure our operations support the market we are playing in and aiming for. Our pipeline of cars is as rich as our pipeline of initiatives and innovations, so stay tuned– H2 has lots in store.

You can read some of our other exclusive interviews by clicking on the links below.

Randy Nonnenberg - BaT

Edward Lovett - Collecting Cars

Jonathan Shaw - Hemmings

Ro Choy - Cars & Bids