01Move
DNA dimensions
Represented artists (8–18), exhibitions/year (6–10), avg artwork price (£1,400–£28,000), 50/50 artist split, collector list size, fair revenue share (London Art Fair / Frieze / VOLTA), online viewing-room conversion.
All playbooksSmall business
Art gallery playbook.
An independent UK contemporary art gallery running a represented-artist programme, 6–10 exhibitions/year, art-fair stand and a private sales practice. The 2026 win is balancing primary-market gallery sales with art-fair revenue and a curated online viewing room.
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Reference fit-out · Art gallery
Overview
A UK indie contemporary gallery in 2026 runs three engines: primary market (gallery + viewing room sales, £1,400–£28,000 ticket, 50% to artist, 50% gallery margin, 22–48 sales/year), art fairs (2–3 fairs at London Art Fair / Frieze London + Masters / VOLTA / Untitled Miami, £42k–£280k per fair gross), and private sales / secondary market (18–32% of revenue, higher-ticket via discreet introductions). Maths: 32 primary × £4,200 = £134k + 3 fairs at £140k = £420k + £140k private = ~£700k annual gross revenue at a strong second-year programme. Of that, the artist takes ~50%, leaving ~£350k to fund the gallery (rent, staff, fair stands, shipping, framing). The 2026 strategy is the £1k–£5k 'starter collector' tier — it lowers the barrier, builds a buyer pipeline for £10k+ work in 5 years, and fills slow months between shows.
12
Represented artists
8
Exhibitions/year
£4,200
Avg sale
What you'll need
Equipment list with real 2026 UK prices.
Sized for a 2–4 chair shop. Buy mid-range on chairs and clippers; cheap kit fails inside 12 months and walks away with your barbers.
01
Gallery + display
Track lighting + dimmer system (Erco / Modular)
£14,000–£42,000
Smooth white walls (replasterable, paintable)
£18,000–£42,000 fit-out
Polished concrete or oak floor
£12,000–£32,000
Plinths + AV equipment (video work)
£3,400–£14,000
Climate + humidity control
£8,400–£18,000
Security (alarm + CCTV + Sentry safe)
£4,400–£12,000
02
Office + storage
Climate-controlled stockroom + racks
£8,400–£18,000
Artlogic CRM + inventory system
£280/mo + £900 setup
Imac + Mac Studio + printer
£4,400
Framing partner outwork
£140–£900 per work
03
Photography + viewing room
Sony A7R V + 24–70 + macro
£4,400
Profoto studio lighting + backdrop
£3,400
Artsy + Ocula + Artlogic viewing rooms
£800–£2,400/mo
04
Fair + shipping
Fair stand build (recycled per fair)
£14,000–£42,000 per fair
Cadogan Tate / Constantine fine-art shipping
£480–£8,400 per work
Crating + bubble + insurance in transit
£280–£2,400 per work
Where to set up
Location is half the business.
Gallery district + footfall
Mayfair / Fitzrovia / East End / South Kensington / Hauser & Wirth Bruton orbit
Collectors travel to known clusters.
Ground floor + double-height
≥3.5m ceiling, 80–280 m²
Large-scale work + serious shows need volume.
Light + windows
North-facing or controllable
Mixed direct/indirect light needs control.
Loading + access
Wide doors + lift if upper floor
Crated work + plinths move regularly.
Class E + planning use
Confirm with council
Some areas restrict commercial gallery use.
Area tier
Rent / month
Notes
Mayfair / St James's / Cork St
£14,000–£48,000
Trophy address. Frieze Mayfair orbit. Highest ticket.
Fitzrovia / Marylebone / Bloomsbury
£8,400–£22,000
Mid-tier blue-chip orbit. Strong walk-in.
East End (Hoxton / Bethnal Green / Hackney)
£3,400–£8,400
Emerging artists + younger collector base.
Regional (Bruton / Margate / Edinburgh / Bristol)
£1,400–£4,400
Lower overhead, destination model. Hauser & Wirth Somerset has reset the map.
Licences & registrations
Get the paperwork done before you sign a lease.
UK figures for 2026. Lead times assume you submit complete applications — councils will pause the clock if you miss documents.
Requirement
Who issues
Cost
Lead time
ReqCompanies House Ltd
Companies House
£100
Usually 24 hours
OptSociety of London Art Dealers (SLAD)
SLAD
£1,400–£4,400/year
16 weeks (vetting)
OptBritish Art Market Federation
BAMF
Bundled via SLAD / LAPADA
—
ReqMoney Laundering Regs (HMRC AML)
HMRC
£300/year
8 weeks
ReqCITES (for any animal-derived material in works)
Defra / APHA
£59 per permit
4–8 weeks
ReqArtist's Resale Right (DACS) registration
DACS
Free (4% buyer adds on £1k+)
1 week
ReqPublic + product + stock + transit insurance
Hiscox / AXA Art / Aston Lark
£2,400–£8,400/year
1 week
ReqPremises licence (if alcohol at openings)
Council licensing
£100–£635
12 weeks
ReqICO data protection
ICO
£40–£60/year
1 day
Build-out timeline
From decision to open in 12 weeks.
01
Phase 0 — Programme & site
Weeks 1–16- Sign 6–10 represented artists (LOIs)
- Site search in gallery district
- SLAD application + AML reg
- Specialist insurance broker
02
Phase 1 — Fit-out
Weeks 12–22- White-walls + track lighting + floor
- Climate + security install
- Stockroom + racks
- Artlogic CRM go-live
03
Phase 2 — Opening show + content
Weeks 18–24- First show artist install + condition reports
- Photography + viewing-room build
- Collector list + press list build (300+)
04
Phase 3 — Soft launch
Weeks 22–25- Press preview + collector VIP preview
- Artsy + Ocula online launch
- First fair application submitted
05
Phase 4 — Open
Week 25+- Public opening + 6-week show run
- 8-show annual programme set
- First fair (London Art Fair / VOLTA) booked
Budget
Realistic startup and monthly cost ranges.
One-off · Startup
Setting up the shop
Lease deposit + 3 months
£14,000 → £68,000
Gallery fit-out (walls + light + floor)
£42,000 → £140,000
Climate + security + stockroom
£14,000 → £42,000
Opening show production + framing
£8,400 → £28,000
Artlogic + viewing rooms + IT
£3,400 → £8,400
Branding + licences + insurance
£4,400 → £14,000
Pre-launch press + collector outreach
£8,400 → £28,000
Working capital (3 months + first fair)
£42,000 → £140,000
Typical total
£136.6k–£468.4k
Recurring · Monthly
Keeping the lights on
Rent + service charge
£3,400 → £28,000
Business rates
£900 → £8,400
Utilities + climate
£640 → £2,400
Artist payments (50% of sales)
£14,000 → £68,000
Wages (director + 1–2 staff)
£8,400 → £28,000
Framing + shipping + fairs amortised
£3,400 → £14,000
Marketing + content + private views
£1,400 → £8,400
Artlogic + Artsy + insurance + memberships
£900 → £3,400
Typical total
£33k–£160.6k
Numbers that compound
How a art gallery actually looks on a chart.
Illustrative planning ranges, not measured customer data. Toggle the views to see ramp, mix and weekly load.
12-month revenue ramp
Low vs high scenario (£ monthly)
High Low
Illustrative example for planning, not measured customer data.
First 90 days
Dates that actually matter after opening.
01Day 1 (private view)
Opening: 240 attendees, 3 holds placed (£18k), 1 sale confirmed (£4.2k).
02Day 7
First week: 6 sales (£26k), 2 trade enquiries, press in Frieze + Apollo.
03Day 30 (show end)
First show closed: 12 works sold (£62k gross, £31k gallery share). Second artist install.
04Day 90
3 shows done. £148k gross. First fair (London Art Fair) booked.
05Day 180
London Art Fair done (£140k gross, £62k gallery share). 8-show year on track. Collector list at 480.
What's inside
DNA, route, automations, integrations, benchmarks, advisors — tuned for a art gallery.
02Move
Suggested route
Apply for British Art Market Federation / SLAD membership, sign 8–12 artists on exclusive UK rep, exhibit at 2 fairs/year, build an Artsy + Artlogic catalogue, run a £1k–£5k 'starter collector' programme to widen the buyer base.
03Move
Automations
Private-view RSVPs, collector follow-up after opening, new-work alerts (by artist + medium), waiting-list management, invoice + condition report dispatch.
04Move
Integrations
Artlogic CRM + inventory, Artsy + Ocula viewing rooms, Stripe, Klaviyo, Mailboxes Etc / Cadogan Tate fine-art shipping, Xero.
05Move
Benchmarks
Avg sale, primary-vs-secondary mix, collector list size and fair revenue vs SLAD member gallery cohort.
06Move
Advisors
Encore advisors from Society of London Art Dealers (SLAD), British Art Market Federation, ex-White Cube / Hauser & Wirth associate directors.
Stack
Modules used in this playbook.
01DNA Engine02Route Map03Launch Twin04Automation05Verified06Encore
Related playbooks
Owners of a art gallery often run — or cross-sell with — these adjacent operations.
Start with this playbook
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