Auctions. How to buy? How to sell?

“Happy New Year to all, I attempted to conduct an analysis of the auction market after the arrival of the great international companies into the online world in 2020. However, despite being a very interesting exercise, it proved to be far too lengthy and complex. So I’ll try to summarise it briefly on a simple balance sheet by using an example: at a market there are two stalls, one belongs to an online auction house, we’ll use Bring a Trailer in this instance and, alongside it, a large international auction house, let’s say Bonhams or RM. At the BaT stall, we find cars placed there by owners who want to sell, they are well priced, often without reserves, and when they are sold, the owner pays a very reasonable fee of somewhere between one and four percent. Potential customers observe the cars on offer exclusively online, they choose the ones they want and, if it’s worth it, they buy it. For buyers, this can turn out to be a true bargain, as almost always the car has not been seen previously. Somewhat like those weddings of the past, agreed upon by relatives! But more often than not the bet turns out to be a winning one.