Fragile item transport runs across the whole UK through the same driver network as every other service. The heaviest concentrations are in and around the major auction and gallery markets.
London is the busiest area. Mayfair, the West End, Bond Street and Belgravia have the main gallery concentrations. Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Bonhams and Phillips all sit within a few miles of each other in central London and generate a steady flow of pickup and delivery bookings. Edinburgh is the next biggest. The New Town and Stockbridge have a strong gallery scene and Lyon and Turnbull is the main Scottish auction house. Chester is one of the busiest provincial auction markets. The southern English country auction circuit, Cheffins in Cambridge, Dreweatts in Newbury and Tennants in Leyburn, all come up regularly too.
Item types transported regularly include framed paintings, mirrors, large prints, photography, sculpture, antique furniture, glassware and crystal, china and porcelain, ceramics, chandeliers and decorative lighting, upright pianos, grandfather clocks and longcase pieces, decorative collections and wine collections in transit between cellars or storage.
Source types include galleries, auction houses, antique dealers, estate clearances, private collectors, vintage and mid-century specialists and inherited pieces from probate sales.
Coverage is strong in London, the South East, Edinburgh, the Cotswolds, the Welsh borders and the Lake District antique circuit. North Yorkshire, the Scottish Borders and the West Country coastal antique fairs all have driver coverage through the network. For museum-quality pieces or shipments needing fine-art specific cover, a specialist art transport service is the better fit. For everything else, the network handles it.
