IronPlanet, an online marketplace for used heavy equipment, says it sold more than $50 million of gross merchandise volume during its first onsite and online auction Feb. 21–24, the largest auction in company history. “We are very pleased with the seller and customer embracement as well as price performance of our inaugural Florida auction,” says Greg Owens, chief executive officer of IronPlanet. “For the first time in company history, we hosted an onsite and online auction, which resulted in our largest auction to date, providing further confirmation of the vast reach and efficiency of the IronPlanet business model.”
IronPlanet says more than 42,000 attendees from 146 countries participated in the auction. Buyers outside the United States bid on more than 65 percent of the equipment, with more than 23 percent of units sold to international buyers. Equipment sold throughout the world, including such faraway countries as Taiwan, Australia, Saudi Arabia and South Africa. Items were sold from more than 172 sellers located in 44 states, including equipment from Ring Power Corp, one of the largest Caterpillar dealers in the southeastern United States.
“We chose to participate in IronPlanet’s first Florida auction because of their ability to reach people globally in the used equipment market,” says Frank Fowler, senior vice president and director of used sales at Ring Power Corp. “IronPlanet brought the global marketplace to Florida, delivering fair market value for the equipment we sold. We are very pleased with the price performance and look forward to our continued relationship with IronPlanet in future sales.”
