BringaTrailer.com crossed the starting line in classic-car auctions almost 6 years ago, listing all of 3 rides. Today, the site known as “BaT” boasts 2m monthly visitors and 100k registered bidders.
How did BaT go bananas? It burned rubber and made a few sharp turns.
Meanwhile, old-school auctions sputtered in neutral
At Arizona Auction Week, one of the industry’s major events, sales were down 3% from last year. Experts say sales have stalled because too many players flooded the market’s engine. (Dang rookie drivers…)
Bring a Trailer is waving to the suckers in the slow lane:
- Sales hit more than $230m last year — a $41% jump over 2018.
- The site listed some 11k cars, with a sell-through rate of 70%.
BaT relies on strict quality control, top-notch listings, and a staff that knows its stuff. One worker discovered that a version of an Austin Mini auctioned on the site for $230k had once been presented to Queen Elizabeth.
And BaT’s got something rarer than rides fit for royalty…
…a comments section that’s actually… good! The car-crazed commentariat’s boffo backseat banter convinced BaT to host barbecues for the most prolific yakkers.