BUYING AND SELLING
EQUIPMENT IN A CHANGING
ENVIRONMENT
O
ver the last two decades, technology
has played an increasingly bigger
role in the heavy equipment auction
industry and the acceptance of buying online
has advanced dramatically year on year –
both for consumers and businesses. When
Ritchie Bros. acquired online auctioneer
IronPlanet in 2017, the Canadian auction
company moved from a single channel
operation to a multi-channel platform with
various ways to buy and sell. Today, Ritchie
Bros.’ main transaction channels include
live unreserved onsite auctions, IronPlanet’s
online auctions and Marketplace-E, which is
an always-on online marketplace with Make
Off er and Buy Now options.
This brings new possibilities. Besides the
energetic live onsite auctions most people
know Ritchie Bros. best for, the company’s
24/7 online marketplace and exciting online-
only auctions off er entirely new benefi ts. A
good example is the recently held Middle East
Deal Days sale that was hosted on Market-
place-E. The online event featured hundreds
of heavy equipment items and trucks located
in the Middle East region and attracted a
large group of people to buy what they need.
On items listed on Marketplace-E, interested
buyers can easily make off ers and negotiate
with sellers, with Ritchie Bros. in the middle
to ensure a smooth transaction.
But even with modern, online ways to
buy and sell equipment, many people have a
strong need for a more ‘physical’ type of buy-
ing experience.
Ritchie Bros.’ live onsite unreserved auc-
tions continue to help hundreds of thousands
buy and sell equipment every year. At theseauctions, equipment is brought to the auc-
tion site where bidders can see and inspect
them up front. A ‘chanting’ auctioneer and
‘bidcatchers’ keep the pace and an energetic
auction atmosphere. And although online
bidders join in big numbers from all over the
world, Ritchie Bros.’ auctions in Dubai attract
large crowds of on-site bidders, sale after sale.
At the most recent auction in June the com-
pany registered 840 bidders and sold 1300+items on behalf of 200 sellers.
The key point is that there now is more
choice than ever. Choice in items to buy,
choice in selling methods that match specifi c
needs. Ritchie Bros.’ next live onsite auction
in Dubai takes place on September 17 - 18 and
is accepting consignments from sellers. At the
same time, people can fi nd a thriving mar-
ketplace with online auctions and equipment
negotiations on IronPlanet.AUCTIONS 43
PLANT / MACHINERY / VEHICLES AUGUST 2019 http://www.pmvmiddleeast.com