AUCTIONS
Homes under thebanner!
Is auctioneering the new growth area in the property business? Sheila Manchester meets Roger Lake, MD at Auction House.
U
ntil quite recently, there were London auctioneers, some of whom have one or two regional offices and there were regional auctioneers. While we have many national
chains of estate agencies, we have never had a truly national auctioneer; one organisation that covers the whole country, offering properties at auction across the country – until now. The auctioneer taking the regions by
storm is Auction House; founded by Roger Lake and Bryan Baxter just three years ago. It’s a real success story with latest figures, based on lots sold, placing the company as the fourth largest auctioneer in the UK. Last month (September) Auction House
fielded 255 lots, one of only two auctioneers in the UK offering over 250 lots in the month. During the period January – July 2010, Auction House held 48 auctions in
17 locations across the country, and is on target to hold 90 in the full year. Auction House began franchising the
concept late in 2006 with Lincolnshire estate agents Drewery & Wheeldon becoming their pilot first licensee in Spring 2007. Since then Drewery & Wheeldon’s auction business has doubled and their success has influenced many others to join the network.
Several other multi-branch estate agents
and a number of specialist auctioneers have joined the network. These include Aston Mead, Atkinson & Keene, Blundells, Dee Atkinson Harrison, Farrell Heyworth, Frank B Mason, Humphreys, Manning Stainton, Miles & Barr, Newmans, Newton Fallowell, Nigel Briggs, Reeds Rains (Middlesbrough), Richardson & Smith, Ryder & Dutton, Sarah Mains, Smith & Sons, Stephenson & Son, and Tiffen & Co.
The sTrong UsP The company now operates more auction rooms than anyone else and is already market leader in several counties including Cumbria, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Norfolk. The impressive numbers and rapid growth indicate that Roger’s business model was not only a great idea, but that it has some very strong USPs. Roger says this is definitely the case,
Auction House has a proven model and our offering suits those firms that have a strong local/regional presence.’
Above: Bryan Baxter, founding director. 60 OCTOBER 2010 PROPERTYdrum
Clockwise from above: Trevor Blythe, auction in progress, David Pank and Lucy Crapper.
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