Ritchie Bros conducts final 2011 auction and sets new records

The company achieved gross auction proceeds of more than $1bn in the fourth quarter alone, the largest fourth quarter in company history. Ritchie Bros conducted its final unreserved auctions of 2011 on December 20 in Olympia, Washington and Nashville, Tennessee. 

Peter Blake, Ritchie Bros CEO, commented: "2011 was a year of change for Ritchie Bros, with an updated strategic plan and new mission statement guiding our course. We executed very well and accomplished many significant milestones in 2011, starting with our first ever $2bn first half in terms of gross auction proceeds.”

Website results

The Ritchie Bros website (rbauction.com) attracted almost 4 million unique visitors in 2011 (a 25% increase compared to last year), and they made over 10 million visits to the website (25% more than 2010). Visits from non-English speakers increased by 22% compared to 2010.

The launch of detailed equipment information on July 1, 2011 has increased time-on-site significantly. Website users are spending on average 29% more time on equipment information pages than before the launch of detailed equipment information. Additionally, the Company launched a mobile version of rbauction.com in November to accommodate changes in mobile internet usage amongst consumers.

New Services

As previously announced, the Company launched a range of value-added services on July 1, 2011, including equipment financing and powertrain service warranties (in the U.S. and Canada) and insurance services (in Canada, the U.S. and Europe). Ritchie Bros. expects to complete the rollout of these services to its remaining auction locations around the world in the future.

In addition, Ritchie Bros' revised administrative fee structure took effect on July 1, 2011. The new fee structure eliminated certain fees and expanded the scope of its administrative fee charged to buyers to address the cost of providing the new and significantly enhanced buyer services offered at the Company's auctions, as well as other high value buyer-focused initiatives launched in recent years.

Upcoming auctions

There are currently 87 unreserved auctions on the 2012 Ritchie Bros auction calendar at www.rbauction.com, which commences with an auction in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 27, to be followed by a two-day auction in Houston, Texas on February 8 & 9, and a five-day auction in Orlando, Florida on February 14-18, 2012.