It’s no surprise that storage auctions have gone mainstream. A few years ago, these activities were unknown to all but a handful of bidders.
Today, everyone has seen Storage Wars and feels qualified to talk about auction-hunting because of it. The implications for this boom in popularity have been long-reaching, and some of them are quite surprising.
One of the more surprising turns in the auction industry has been the recent preference for the storage auction format for fundraisers.
Of course, charity auctions are hardly a new twist. Auctions for charity are a time-honored tradition and way for generous individuals to have a bit of fun while emptying their deep pockets for local causes.
All the same, these auctions used to be held in auction halls or at least thrift stores. Today, it’s becoming more and more likely that these events will take place at storage facilities.
Take, for example, Charity Storage, a non-profit organization that hosts charitable storage auctions around the country. These charitable units are sold alongside regular units at a facility’s routine auction, with the earnings from the charity unit being set aside for various important causes. Or, for a more over-the-top event, consider the Canadian “Storage Warz” event that occurs annually at an Okanagan storage facility.
Local businesses donate items to fill storage units, which are then auctioned off to locals who attend the event. To add to the fun atmosphere for buyers, additional events are held including several giveaways and a barbecue. Last year, the event had an impressive turn-out and netted the charity $10,000; this year’s may be even bigger.
These are far from the only events of their kind. A quick search of charitable storage auctions turns up dozens of events in the U.S. and Canada, all of them aimed at Storage Wars fans and aspiring treasure-hunters. While people in the full-time auction business may find all of this a bit silly, it does suggest that buyers prefer the storage auction format to other types of sales.
In the future, large bulk-item lots like these may become much more popular than single-item auctions. They may even supplant yard sales or flea markets as a way to move large quantities of small items. Will entrepreneurs follow suit and start offering their own items in bulk lots? Will private sellers take advantage of online auction listings to sell the contents of their own storage units? Will storage facilities decide to take a more active role in the item-selling business and start offering sales aside from lien auctions?
Anything is possible in this post-Storage Wars world.
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