Uplift in auction interest at car shows
Buyers appreciate added value with classic displays
‘The year started off strongly’
With your last sale of the year completed, was the market as you expected?
It’s been another good year, with turnover up on 2017 (despite Brexit!) which is the way we like it. The year started off strongly with our first auction in February. This sale is usually a tad chilly, so a lot of woolly hats were on parade. Top lot of this auction – and my favourite lot of the year – was a 1951 Jaguar XK120 roadster. It was bought in 1969 by the owner for £190 as a student studying architecture when he was just 19! It was well admired, and with this long and interesting ownership sold for £78,400.
Are you selling mainly to fairly local people, or further away?
There will always be the die-hard auction attendees who could not possibly buy anything without kicking a few tyres first. However, although the world has not changed much in size it certainly feels a smaller place. In our November auction, we had buyers bidding from the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Germany and Italy. Collectors, dealers and enthusiasts are much more at ease buying over the internet.
Was there any single outstanding car you offered/sold this year?
I suspect I will get some flak for this but here I go. We get to see some pretty amazing cars but it is not always the high value ones which tick the box. For me, one of the outstanding cars we sold this year was a 1976 Morris Marina 1.3 Super auto finished in Sandglow with a vinyl roof.
What are your plans for 2018? Will you still be holding sales at Shepton Mallet and Sherborne Castle?
Yes, we will be at our regular venues of Shepton Mallet, in conjunction with the various Bristol Classic Car Shows, and at Sherborne Castle with the classic car show there. Many of our clients like added value. The ability to walk around a car show, admiring vehicles, buying spares and chatting with other like-minded enthusiasts is a big attraction, rather than waiting around all day for one lot to come along.
And are you adding any further dates?
In 2019 we will be moving from nine classic car and motorcycle auctions to ten so there will be another auction. It is still all very hush-hush and will involve a trip over a lot of water. Watch this space!