SA gets envoy to global auction body

SA’s auction industry has evolved to such an extent that it is now recognised as a player on the global stage by the world’s largest association dedicated to auction professionals.

The local industry’s position has been cemented with the landmark appointment of SA’s first country ambassador to the National Association of Auctioneers (NAA), the world’s largest professional auction body headquartered in Kansas in the US.

The High Street Auction’s director and lead auctioneer Joff van Reenen will take up the position just months after NAA president Tim Mast visited SA.

Van Reenen is a board member of the SA Institute of Auctioneers (SAIA), which was founded in 1989 to provide industry standards that promote ethical practices in the profession. SAIA is the national association for auctioneers, stakeholders and clients of the industry in SA and is itself a member of the NAA.

“Auctions are hot at the moment and the momentum is increasing; there’s no sign of a slowdown,” said Mast.

“This will have a ripple effect across other global markets in the medium term, including SA.

“One shouldn’t necessarily view the auction industry in terms of whether it’s growing or shrinking, though.

“There is so much change happening on a global scale that it makes more sense at the moment to think about the industry as shifting and changing with the world economy and the technological environment.”

Van Reenen says SA’s auction industry has come of age.

He said auctioneering is a “multibillion-rand sector in this country covering the smallest to largest commodities. It is also the fairest and most transparent sales method on the planet, because prices are set by the market on the day.

“While I’m humbled to have been selected as South African ambassador to the NAA, the importance is in the recognition of the country’s industry as a whole,” he said.