Auction View Derek Mathewson
(But there’s always a full load heading south)
How has 2017 been for you?
This year has been a good one, but no better than 2016. The General Election made no difference at all, but Brexit is being used in the most British way – to generate an excuse for caution, despite the massive benefits I believe we will all enjoy once we are out of Europe’s clutches.
How many sales have you held this year and how many are you planning for in 2018?
We have nine auctions planned for 2018 which, while putting a strain on our ability to source entries (and present vehicles to the standard our customers expect), sees more regular sales tending to self-limit the number of entries to approximately 130 – an amount we feel comfortable with.
What’s popular and what’s less popular than it was a year ago?
We must admit that 1920s/30s family saloons appear to have had their day. Being of an age myself, I can just remember 1910/20s vehicles dying a retail death and never again regaining popularity. It’s sad to see history repeating itself.
Pre-war sports/tourer models are the exception. In our opinion, this is because we have moved on two generations in 20 years. The flipside is the strong interest in 1970s/80s XR and GT variants of Fords and Vauxhalls.
We struggle to understand the reason for 1950s/60s family saloons failing to generate the interest they deserve. Modern classics are doing well, but only exceptional, low-mileage examples are ringing a bell.
Do you sell primarily in the north?
We serve mainly north of England- and Midlands-based customers, as well as many vendors from Scotland. Having said this, Dave Francis – our regular carrier – leaves us with a full load of 11 vehicles following every sale, all destined for the Home Counties or southern England. Many distant buyers take advantage of what we consider to be our accurate description of a ‘walk-round’ appraisal – we’ve many testimonials to that effect.
Most absentee bidders are outbid in the hall, generally by just one or two bids. Telephone bidding is popular – with the bidding always starting in the hall. The mood and interest of the audience are relayed to the bidder by an experienced member of our team.
‘Many distant buyers take advantage of our accurate walkround appraisals’