FLORENCE – How can you attract half a million potential buyers to your estate auction?
Move it online … everything except the house, that is.
That’s the premise behind a Cincinnati-based business named (you guessed it!) Everything But The House (EBTH) that has turned traditional estate sales into a virtual auction with the reach and convenience of the internet. The company’s online auction site reaches as many as 500,000 bidders and 2 million watchers, said co-founder Jacquie Denny.
“My vision is about creating value for the family,” Denny told members of Florence Rotary Club at a luncheon meeting on Monday, Oct. 3. “I didn’t get into this to make money. I got into this to provide value to the client and customer.”
Denny and Brian Graves, an auctioneer with experience in refurbishing and reselling antiques, started Everything But The House in 2008 and it has developed into one of the fastest growing businesses in Cincinnati, according to Denny. The company’s revenue has grown by double digits every year and now is licensed in 27 states, she said.
Everything But The House works directly with the family to dispose of everything but the house and property. After family members select things they want to keep, EBTH catalogs all remaining items, estimates their market value, posts digital photographs and conducts an online auction for seven days.
“It all typically takes about 30 days – start to finish,” Denny said.
All items start at $1 and bidding is sometimes fierce. For example, a World Series ring went from $20,000 to $89,000 in the last few minutes of the last day of a sale, according to Denny.
“The marketing value is what really rocks in this business,” she said.
The online auctions typically generate returns five to seven times higher than the national estate sales average, according to Denny. Automobiles sell as much as 20 percent higher than Kelley Blue Book estimates, “but I’m not sure why,” she said.
The most popular items are vintage clothing, artwork, jewelry and sports memorabilia. Dinette sets, china and heavy wooden furniture don’t sell as well because the market is glutted with Baby Boomers who are downsizing and selling off some of their furniture and housewares, according to Denny.
EBTH operates a distribution center in Blue Ash. The company ships direct to the buyer and charges only the actual cost of shipping.
