Ritchie Bros. Achieves Notable Milestones in 2013

Though it recorded a small drop in gross auction proceeds (GAP) for the year, 2013 was a successful year for Vancouver-based Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc.

According to a release from the auctioneer, following its last auctions of the year in North Carolina, Missouri and Washington State, the world’s largest industrial auctioneer sold approximately $3.8 billion of equipment at 356 unreserved auctions around the world in 2013. This represents a 3 percent decrease in GAP compared to the record GAP the company generated in 2012.

Despite the drop, during the fourth quarter of 2013, Ritchie Bros. achieved gross auction proceeds of $1.1 billion, a record for the fourth quarter and an increase of 10 percent compared to the same quarter of 2012.
“We achieved some notable milestones during 2013,” said Peter Blake, Ritchie Bros. CEO. “In Canada, our most established market, we continued to grow and again surpassed gross auction proceeds of over $1 billion. We also held our first auctions in both China and Finland, and reached a new record for online bidders and buyers. In fact, our online bidders purchased more than $1.4 billion of equipment in 2013, or approximately 37 percent of our total sales.”

During 2013, Ritchie Bros. opened new auction sites in Geelong (Melbourne), Victoria, Australia; a regional auction site in Beijing, China, where it also held its first unreserved auction in that country; and a regional auction site in Manchester, N.H., which replaced the company’s Hartford, Conn., site.

Other milestones included a six-day auction in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 18-23 that generated more than $53 million in GAP via online sales, breaking a company record; generating more than $1 billion (Canadian) for the second consecutive year in Canada; and the largest agricultural auction in Ritchie Bros. history in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, generating more than $43 million (Canadian).

Also of note is the launch of Ritchie Bros. EquipmentOne.com, a safe and secure online marketplace for the private sale of equipment and materials where buyers and sellers can negotiate, complete and settle their transactions.

The company plans to release its full audited financial statements and management’s discussion and analysis for 2013 on March 4, 2014.