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Auction Houses Rago/Wright, Toomey & Co. Merge
Toomey & Co. will keep its name but relocate from the Illinois suburb of Oak Park to Rago/Wright’s Chicago headquarters.
Rago/Wright has merged with Chicago-based auction house Toomey & Co.
New York—Rago/Wright recently announced a merger with fellow auction house Toomey & Co.
Toomey & Co. will keep its name but relocate its office and galleries from the Illinois suburb of Oak Park to Rago/Wright’s headquarters in Chicago this fall.
Founded in 1987, Toomey & Co. specializes in early 20th century and modern design, fine art, jewelry, silver, and timepieces.
“The business I began 40 years ago has evolved significantly in the last four decades, and we’re proud to be embarking on an exciting new chapter, which we are confident will benefit our brand as well as the industry and its clients,” said President John Toomey.
“Joining forces with Rago/Wright expands our ability to serve our clients, extends our competitive advantage, and positions us for future growth,” he said.
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Toomey & Co. will keep its name but relocate its office and galleries from the Illinois suburb of Oak Park to Rago/Wright’s headquarters in Chicago this fall.
Founded in 1987, Toomey & Co. specializes in early 20th century and modern design, fine art, jewelry, silver, and timepieces.
“The business I began 40 years ago has evolved significantly in the last four decades, and we’re proud to be embarking on an exciting new chapter, which we are confident will benefit our brand as well as the industry and its clients,” said President John Toomey.
“Joining forces with Rago/Wright expands our ability to serve our clients, extends our competitive advantage, and positions us for future growth,” he said.
John Toomey is a specialist in objects of the Arts & Crafts Movement while David Rago, a partner at Rago/Wright, is an authority in 20th century decorative ceramics and design.
The partnership “perfectly complements Wright’s focus on Modern design, strengthening the combined brands’ ability to offer strategic opportunities for buying and selling works from a wide range of eras and movements,” said the companies.
Toomey & Co.'s Riley Humler, a specialist of early 20th century American ceramics and art pottery and president of the American Art Pottery Association, will also join the newly merged team.
“Joining forces with John Toomey and Riley Humler is a decades-long dream,” said Rago. “With this merger, we are launching an American Arts & Crafts team unlike any other in the industry.”
Lucy Toomey, CEO of Toomey & Co., and John Walcher, vice president and senior specialist, as per their LinkedIn profiles, will remain in their roles.
Rago/Wright’s Richard Wright will continue to serve as CEO of the combined company.
Last summer, LA Modern Auction also merged with Rago/Wright. The four auction houses under one umbrella will share technology, expertise, and marketing efforts, said Rago/Wright.
“Through the merger with Toomey & Co., we are delivering on our vision to combine the strongest independent auction houses with a shared database and web platform,” said Wright. “Our combined expertise, client service, and technology is unrivaled.”
The first post-merger Toomey & Co. auction is set for October.
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