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A year of steady growth and a burgeoning export market
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have been key to making ProTruck Auctions an established part of the sales calendar. Kevin Swallow reports.
0 nce the novelty wears off a new venture you have to work hard for the business to survive — that was certainly the case with ProTruck Auctions. "The honeymoon period ended after the first couple of months," says Charlie Wright, who launched the venture in October 2006." You had to prove yourself to get the business after that.
"October and November 2006 were strong but turnover dropped over Christmas and New Year," he recalls. "January was the lowest tumover.When we first kicked off, every truck that came through that gate I knew about as I would have contacted the seller."
But since then ProTruck Auctions has enjoyed steady growth: between January and October 2007 average volume grew by 28% to 288 and average price rose 17% to 0,000. Underpinning this success is a burgeoning export market (overseas sales rose by 25% in the same period) helped by the easy motorway link to Hull.
They're just rolling in
"Now the vehicles just roll in," says Wright."Word of mouth is the best advertising . It has been sustainable growth and getting a wide customer base that is a more sustainable [approach]. Over the past three or four years export customers have really latched on to auctions.They've found it a good place to buy,not because the trucks are cheaper but because there are more to choose from. Why spend all your time travelling around the UK when you can come here in one day and spend all your money in one go?" The trade has cottoned on too: "They are sending their vehicles in and they are making good money.We are advertising more overseas to bring them in.
"The Russians are looking for [trucks] under five years old — MAN, Iveco and Daf are quite popular," he adds. "Lithuanians and Poles are after similar things; 2000/1 registered trucks.This Ukrainian lad is after Daf 95s and 85s. A Leeds haulier [disposing of them] has found 2000-registered trucks have gone from 0,500 to £11,000 in the past four months. He puts them in four and five at a time, and they have increased in rice] every time."
any UK trucks are exported twiCe — once they've left these shores they go through another pai of hands on the Continent before leaving the EU.
Wright recently gained a German customer:"Germany is an nnlikely market; you'd have thonght they'd have enough lorries have to remember trucks cheaper here than they are on Continent. He operates as a dleman as well as an exporter uying vehicles from Holland.
'We are selling stuff to lads in Poland who are then selling onto Ukirainians who have trouble getting visas to the UK," he says. "Export has been very important, from guys looking to sell direct, to use an agent, or sell it whole or for parts. Half of your trade will end up abroad, which is not good for the UK market because you can only sell it once. [Soon] there are not going to be any seven-yearold trucks left." Yo are the rni by Renault's Premium tractor is a proIven money-maker:1'1/2w years ago Wright was selling 03-registered Premiums to one buyer for £13,000: "They were traditionally hard work. He was the only one buying them for that sort of money — a strong price at the time — [but] he was bringing them back into auction two years later and they were fetching fl 7-18,000... now that's the way to run lorries!"
Russian boost to prices Key to vibrant export prices, says Wright,is the Russian five-year cut-off point.While 03-registered Premiums are doing well, 02/52s arc down to £10,000. But he points out that even that depreciation on a&13.000 outlay isn't bad.
With more languages comes a risk of confusion, but money talks. Wright takes a larger deposit to stop buyers changing their minds and uses a screen to show the bidding price in pounds and euros as it goes up on a vehicle: We ran it for the first time and this couple were just focused on the screen. They weren't really listening,just bidding against the screen." •