How Shipyard Container Auctions Work

TruTV’s newest auction show, Container Wars, offers a fresh new look at the auction and resale industry.

Rather than focusing on the now well-known business of storage unit auctions, Container Wars focuses on the relatively unheard of industry of shipping containers.

This cargo containers auction show follows several buyers as they examine and purchase the contents of unclaimed commercial shipping containers at an international port.

Watching the show makes it clear that the primary purpose of the program is entertainment. As the shipping containers tend to have high quantities of commercial goods, they are worth more than a standard storage unit.

This raises the stakes and makes every auction more exciting as high quantities of cash start to exchange hands.

Although the concept may seem far-fetched, cargo container auctions really do occur outside of television. Shipping containers are used to import goods from overseas.

They’re most commonly used by businesses that must bring in merchandise or materials from other countries. Some individuals may also use shipping containers in order to facilitate an overseas move.

Either way, the goods are loaded into massive cargo containers and placed on ships, which then sail to their destination and unload their cargoes into ports.

Once at the port, the cargo containers must be picked up. At this point, the buyer is responsible for paying any taxes or other fees associated with importing goods.

If you’ve ever shipped an item internationally, you know how pricy the duties and taxes can be. This leads to some buyers leaving their cargo in the port rather than picking it up.

These abandoned shipping containers are then moved into storage for a few months to ensure that no one is coming for them; then they are sold at auction to recover the shipping and storage costs.

Unlike storage units, which are usually filled with regular household items, shipping containers can hold nearly anything and everything you can imagine.

This makes the chance of a tidy profit much more likely, but it also makes these auctions somewhat less practical for the hobbyist. In reality, these container auctions are often not widely advertised, and they may occur within a small group of people who are well-known in other types of auction settings.

As always, networking with fellow auction hunters is a great way to find new leads on sales.

If you’re looking for a new niche to break into with your resale business, this cargo containers auction show can help inspire you. If you live near a shipping port, you might be able to engage in these auctions whenever they come up.

Even if storage unit auctions in your area are still saturated with newbies, shipping container auctions may remain relatively untouched. The fact that few people know about them combined with their higher cost may help to drive away newbies.

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