Private jets and an iconic building in New York: Property giant Signa’s inventory goes on auction

The total value of the items on sale has been put at 2.8 million euros (R57.5 million).

Here’s what is on auction. Picture: iStock

A sleek conference table, doormats, a snow globe, toilet brush holders, several e-bikes — more than 460 items of insolvent real-estate giant Signa is currently under auction.

Signa initiated insolvency proceedings in November, marking the spectacular downfall of its founder, self-made Austrian tycoon Rene Benko, and causing jitters among its investors.

His company is now looking to sell some of its most well-known assets, such as New York’s iconic Chrysler building, while construction of some massive projects, including a landmark high-rise in the German city of Hamburg, have stopped.

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The office furnishings of its posh headquarters in one of Vienna’s palaces have also been put up for sale in three online auctions, wrapping up in February.

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The total value of the items on sale has been put at 2.8 million euros (R57.5 million), according to the administrator overseeing the insolvency proceedings.

A doormat with Signa’s logo with a starting price of 3 euros (R61) stood at 1,600 euros (R32 800) last Thursday, while an oval conference table, fitting 20 people, with a leathered surface stood at 12,000 euros (R246 530), four times its starting price.

Several of those attending a tour of the Signa offices to see the items on sale first-hand said they were looking for bargains — or simply just interested to see the low-ceiling, black marble wall premises.

“It’s not as opulent as I thought,” 19-year-old student Jakob Muehlbachler told AFP.

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Another student, Lian Schelkle, 21, said he had been following Signa in the news. “Their rise and fall was really fast,” he said.

The insolvency of Signa — whose board members included several Austrian politicians, including former chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer of the Social Democrats — has rattled Austria.

Benko, 46, founded Signa in 2000, growing it into a property and retail conglomerate, with offices in Austria, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and Switzerland.

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Named by Forbes as one of the country’s richest man until last year with a net worth of $6 billion (R113 billion), he has since been taken off the magazine’s billionaires list.

Signa lost control of historic British department store Selfridges in November, while Signa-owned German department store chain Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof has also filed for bankruptcy.

The company’s private jet is also being sold, while it is uncertain what will happen to a personal collection honouring late Hollywood star Hedy Lamarr that was to be displayed in a central Vienna shopping centre still under construction.