Auctioneer View
Tim Gascoigne from Barons
‘Prices are becoming a lot more realistic’
As we enter a quieter period, how do you rate your most recent sale?
This is always a slightly unpredictable time of year as there are so many sales before the start of the summer holidays, and this can sometimes flood the market a bit. We had some lovely cars on offer and we’re pretty happy with how things went. We managed to sell some really nice cars, including a Ferrari 308 GTV, Ferrari 400i and Maserati BiTurbo, which are normally quite tricky cars to sell.
Are you seeing more people attending auctions as classic interest gets bigger?
Yes, we are seeing number increases in general. We are definitely speaking to a lot more first-time auction-goers than ever before, which is great news. I think this is due not only to growing interest in classics, but growing interest in auctions in general. In the past a lot of private buyers probably saw auctions as being a bit dodgy and something for the trade, but this isn’t the case anymore. At Barons we try to make the whole process as transparent as possible, and this inspires confidence in buyers.
Are more people going for internet/phone bidding?
Yes. People live very busy lives these days, so they can’t always attend sales, but with improved technology, they don’t necessarily have to. We offer telephone bidding free of charge and online bidding for a one-off registration fee of £5, as well as hosting Facetime/ Skype video calls for viewing, so that helps. We also pride ourselves on offering very honest assessments of cars, so a lot of our customers are happy to buy cars without actually being able to see them in the metal.
Are investors leaving? If so, is that having an effect on values?
The number of investors is declining, but there are still a fair few about. Prices are becoming a lot more realistic in the current market, and while you can never know for sure, the two are probably linked.
How do you see the second half of 2018 going?
I think it’s likely to be good, as interest in classics is growing all the time. I just hope that this Brexit nonsense can be sorted out sooner rather than later so that the general uncertainty in the economy disappears! barons-auctions.com