This is close to the sum of six times earnings before tax, interest and depreciation that inquirers were told would be needed to secure the business during the six months it was for sale when First East Auctions Holdings was negotiating with Albrecht to sell it.
The principal shareholder in FEAL is Tim Goodman with minority interests held by the new Zealand listed company Mowbray Collectables, Bonhams and Geoffrey Smith, chairman of Sotheby's Australia.
The sale should be a happy arrangement for all, as it is understood there will be a useful pile of cash left over for FEAL when debtors are paid off. Mowbrays had not been ecstatic about its long term investment in FEAL while Bonhams will be relieved that it has no minority interests in an operation that is distinct from its own brand.
The mooted sum paid for the Joel holding suggests FEAL made a handsome capital profit on the business as it was widely reported to have paid $2.5 million for Leonard Joel in May 2008.
"I am delighted to be leaving the industry on this note at a time of change," Goodman told our reporter. "It is not the industry I became involved in during the 1970s but I am sure another generation will still draw a lot of excitement from it."
He had achieved two great ambitions in the industry, one of the purchase of the local franchise for Sotheby's (since sold) and the purchase of the old established auction house of Joel's.
John Albrecht, who had bought into Leonard Joel 25 months ago, had grown the business handsomely under a plan that placed special emphasis on collectables. These had performed relatively strongly when other areas of the antique business had been doing it tough.
He planned to take a holiday camping and fly fishing in Siberia. While he could well return to the saleroom as an auctioneer it would be on contract or for charity.The experience he had acquired in five mergers over the past few years would also be put to use in the corporate world.
He also had several art works for sale under private treaty and proposed to continue this business.
The sale appears to rule out for sometime the possibility that Rodney Menzies, who had previously sought to be the business, would round out his operations by acquiring Leonard Joel.
Leonard Joel's 48 weekly sales would have provided a Melbourne cash flow or engine room for his Menzies art auction group just as Lawson's does for his the group in Sydney.
From the early 1990s Leonard Joel has operated out of an old school in Commercial Road, South Yarra which appears to perfectly house its operations. Albrecht said this was on a secure long term lease from the Joel family.
He was particularly pleased that the uncertainty that had reigned about FEAL's investment on the industry of the past few years was now settled.
Leonard Joel has five major art sales a year, six decorative arts sales, five jewellery and four to six major decorative arts sales a year.
It had also introduced an annual modern design sale and pre-owned luxury sales.
The 91 year old Joel group's heyday was in the late 1970s and 1980s when it held major fine art sales running into 1000 lots in the Malvern Town Hall, Some of the greatest Impressionist works in the collection of the National Gallery of Australia were acquired at those twice yearly auctions. These had gone long ago as the global auction houses took over the market. A more recent attempt by Joel Fine Art to recapture this market failed because of intense competition for very limited stock.
