NEW YORK, NY.- Veteran auction company executive Julie Abrams has been appointed Global Business Development Leader by Hugh Wood Inc., an international insurance company that provides services to collectors and dealers of antiques and collectibles including fine art, memorabilia, rare musical instruments, vintage toys, coins, and paper money.

Abrams’ career in collectibles began in 1986 when she helped launch Teletrade, the first computerized auction company. She became President of Teletrade and helped increase the frequency of collectibles auctions and expanded annual sales to $24 million. In 1999, she was named Executive Vice President of Sales at Teletrade’s parent company, Greg Manning Auctions, Inc. In 2004, Abrams joined Stack’s Bowers where she helped expand the company’s e-commerce presence and online bidding platform and obtained major consignments for the firm’s auctions of historic rare coins, banknotes, tokens, and medals.

For the past ten years, she served as President of Legend Rare Coin Auctions where she will continue to serve in an advisory capacity.

Simon De Burgh Codrington, vice chairman at Hugh Wood Inc., stated: “I am thrilled to have Julie join our team. She is a true relationship person, and we are also driven by relationships. Julie’s focus coupled with our team of experts will enable us to deliver even better results to our existing clients and to continue to develop and welcome new clients to the HWI family. I see this as a great step for Julie, HWI and the collectibles community.”

“I have known Simon and his team for over two decades and know they are solid, experienced, and trustworthy,” said Abrams.

“I'm truly excited to help my friends in the antiques world and other fields effectively find just the right level of insurance protection at a competitive price. It is important that organizations, small businesses, and homeowners protect their beloved collectibles such as coins, entertainment and sports memorabilia, and fine art. HWI has a finger on the pulse on insuring the collectibles market worldwide like no other,” she emphasized.

Hugh Wood Inc. (https://hwinternational.com/us) was established in 1982 as an independent insurance broker based in New York City and has since expanded into a global operation with 4 U.S. branches, 6 in Europe, and offices in Canada, Australia, and Hong Kong. HWI offers personalized fine art and collectibles insurance services as well as insurance expertise in commercial and residential real estate, personal client services (personal lines), marine and commercial lines, and health and employee benefits insurance.