Hutch promoted to chief executive of Inglis Bloodstock
Sebastian Hutch has been promoted to chief executive of Australian auction house Inglis’ bloodstock division.
Irishman Hutch will replace managing director Mark Webster who will remain with the company in a more overarching role with the Inglis Group’s diverse range of businesses, focusing on the running of the William Inglis Hotel, Ardex Technology and Inglis Rural Property.
After spending a decade at Coolmore Australia, Hutch joined Inglis in late 2018 as the general manager of bloodstock sales and marketing as part of an Inglis restructure following their relocation from Newmarket to the $140 million Warwick Farm greenfield site.
Hutch’s promotion was made official yesterday, with the wider Inglis staff informed at a morning meeting.
“It is an exciting time of the year for us because we have a lot to look forward to (in 2022) and obviously it is a real honour for me and a fantastic opportunity,” Hutch told ANZ Bloodstock News yesterday.
“I am in a particularly fortunate position where I work with a lot of fantastic people which makes the job really enjoyable, really stimulating and it means we can do a lot of things well.
“We have the people to service the (bloodstock) market well and people who have ambition to do that and so when you work with people with shared values and shared objectives, you have the capacity to make everyone look good and hopefully we can continue to look good for the foreseeable future.”
When Hutch was headhunted by Inglis, the suggestion was that he was being groomed to eventually take over from Webster and his latest promotion is another sign that transition is on course.
However, Hutch said: “I’d be lying if I said I’d thought in great detail about (that proposition). Specifically, my focus is on making sure that we have an eye on the last couple of months of this year and onto next year performing jobs to the standard people expect and hopefully achieving fantastic results for people (at the sales).
“I’ve always been an outcomes person and judge by what the outcome is. You can do all the talking you like, but it really doesn’t matter unless you walk the walk.
“We are trying to land in a position where we let our deeds do the talking. Hopefully, when we get to the end of the sales season in 2022, we can reflect on a job well done.
“Certainly, the work we put into the exercise to this point is work we’re very pleased with and hopefully it’ll have buyers excited when we get to the yearling sales next year.”
In April 2020, Webster, who has been managing director since 2007, agreed to extend his tenure at Inglis for a second time until at least the end of 2023 to assist the auction house through a turbulent period caused by Covid.
He has also been an instrumental figure in the establishment of the Inglis Digital brand which has dominated the online thoroughbred auction space in Australasia.
Webster believes Hutch is the “perfect person for the role”.
“Since joining Inglis three years ago Sebastian has proved to be an employee of the highest quality and he’s 100 per cent made for senior management,’’ Webster said.
“He is very passionate about his work and is a great complement to what is an exceptionally hard-working, talented and determined Inglis Bloodstock team.
“I wish Sebastian all the best in his new role as chief executive and look forward to seeing him flourish as he takes our bloodstock business into the future.
“I look forward to providing my ongoing support to Sebastian and our entire group of companies but in a different capacity.’’
Hutch’s promotion to Inglis Bloodstock chief executive is effective immediately.