Paul’s love of all things automotive runs deep. A childhood spent devouring books and magazines and weekends spent at local car shows left an indelible mark. Aged 12 he was fortunate to meet a local collector whose generous spirit and infectious enthusiasm allowed him to experience running cars at Goodwood, Monaco and Silverstone, and learn about many of the great marques.
Despite not planning to pursue a career with cars, when the opportunity arose shortly after he graduated from university he didn’t hesitate long.
At the end of 2014 RM Sotheby’s (then RM Auctions) needed someone proficient in French to join their client service team, and so with the promise of a specialist job at the end Paul started his classic car career based in their London office, supporting sales across Europe. Within a short time, he became a full time specialist consigning and selling across Europe, the USA and Middle East. During his time at RM Sotheby’s he honed his knowledge of cars and was heavily involved in landmark sales like the Duemille Ruote Collection and Ferrari 70th Anniversary. He was responsible for some remarkable consignments and collections, culminating in 2019 with the white glove sale of the single owner Saragga Collection.
At the end of 2019 he was presented with the opportunity to manage Bonhams’ European motoring division, allowing him to develop his business management skills. Paul was heavily involved in the burgeoning digital development of the company including pioneering Bonhams’ very first online car auction which allowed the department to weather the COVID-19 pandemic.
During his tenure the division grew in both turnover and profitability, and the team itself expanded dramatically, becoming the best performing region of the Bonhams Car department. Finally, the change to Bonhams allowed Paul to move from London to Paris, closer to his European clients and towards the growing continental and international markets.
He has a broad automotive interest with a particular love for Italian, British and French marques, Ferrari and Aston Martin in particular. He also has a strong grounding in pre-war cars and a love of the eccentric. He still has his first classic, an MGB GT purchased with some carefully ‘invested’ student loan, and recently acquired another unusual classis in the form of a Citroen DS19 ‘Safari’. The dream garage features an F40, 275 GTB/4 alongside some more unusual choices like an Alpine A110 Gr.IV and Alfa Romeo 6C 1750.
Paul has worked with Kevin Braun and the Schaltkulisse team ever since the very beginning of his career. Therefore, when the opportunity to come on board with Schaltkulisse was proposed he knew he had to be a part of the project. Paul brings a wealth of experience in auctions, private sales and business, not to mention being fully bilingual in English and French with proficient Italian… We’re expecting him to learn German soon!
Paul splits his time between Paris and Munich, he’s actively involved in sales, and also has responsibility for global business development, and management.
Deniz has been on board with Schaltkulisse since 2015 and was the company’s first full-time employee. As he often puts it, he still remembers Kevin with moving boxes under one hand and a French bulldog under the other. His first words were “car” not “mama” and so he knew from the start that he had to work with cars. After a few years as an asset manager at Ferrari Financial Services, he joined us as a sales manager for 6 years.
Although still in his 20’s, Sebastian has earned his position as master technician in our engineering department. No wonder, he was born with a screwdriver in hand (not literally) and thrives on the smell of gasoline that emanates from the exhaust pipes of classic Ferraris and the like. His journey started with fixing, fixing and modifying his bike, then his scooter, then his motorcycle and then he worked his way up to cars.
James has always been a key member of the shift gate. Don’t let his old-school Bavarian attitude and sometimes dark humor fool you, James means business. If you call him in the middle of the night and tell him that a car needs to be transported to northern Denmark by tomorrow evening, he will be on his way literally in the same hour to get the car safe and sound before sunset.
