The History of Sotheby's: From a London Bookstore to a Global Leader in Luxury and Real Estate

London is a city that has always fascinated me. Walking through its streets lined with classic and sophisticated bookstores, especially down Cecil Court — that little alley that feels exactly like something out of Harry Potter — is a true pleasure. But what strikes me most about those bookstores is that they are precisely the setting where one of the most powerful names in global luxury was born: Sotheby's.

In 1744, a London bookseller named Samuel Baker organized a small auction of rare books. Unpretentious, without a marble hall. Just the conviction that certain objects have a value that not everyone knows how to recognize. From that moment, Sotheby's was born. Over the years, books gave way to antiques, art, and jewelry. In the 1950s, it took the leap that no auction house had taken before: it opened in New York, becoming the first in the industry with international operations. Then came Hong Kong, Russia, India, France, China. What had started among shelves had turned into the stage where the world decides how much the extraordinary is worth.

And London also carries the weight of luxury with history. Buckingham Palace is a testament to this — I have never seen so much opulence in one place: that marble staircase that welcomes you, the grand banquet hall, the Throne Room. Everything in that palace speaks the same language that Sotheby's has always spoken: the language of luxury that needs no explanation. It is no coincidence that in that same city, in 1976, Sotheby's own art specialists made the decision to transfer that philosophy to the real estate world. Thus, Sotheby's International Realty was born — not as just another real estate agency, but as the natural extension of a brand with over 230 years of history.

And the Crown Jewels, in the Tower of London, which dazzled my eyes with all their magnificence — those stones that belong to centuries of history — inevitably reminded me of the great jewels that Sotheby's has auctioned throughout its history. But that is another story, deserving of its own chapter. Today, Sotheby's International Realty is the largest luxury real estate network globally: over 26,000 agents, 1,100 offices in 84 countries. And in Uruguay, with 35 years in the market, we are part of that story.

From an 18th-century London bookstore to Punta del Este. That long, and that solid, is the story behind the brand.