It’s just a bit after 3 on a Monday afternoon and the Concord Auction Center is starting to get busy.
There’s an auction in a few hours and people want to see what kind of stuff they can take home with them. If they have the winning bid that is.
When we took a stroll around the 126 Hall St. warehouse, the volume of stuff for the weekly Monday auction was a little overwhelming.
At the Concord Auction Center, Mondays are for household goods, furniture, electronics, toys and games, and more – much more. Thursdays are more geared toward antiques and collectibles. People bring stuff in to auction off, while about half the inventory is picked up by owner Jim Saturley and his staff.
“We take most everything, but its got to be sellable,” Saturley said. “If it’s isn’t going to sell, we stop them at the door.”
Now we know this is not what you’d consider a yard sale, but it’s kind of close. You get to wander around and look at stuff that once belonged to someone else and eventually haggle to get the best price for it. See, we can make a loose connection out of anything.
There were boxes of random things put together – at least it seemed random to us. We found a Snuggie, M&M memorabilia up the wazoo, DVDs and records, an old phone, match box cars, Christmas items and baseball cards. Add in bikes, tables and chairs, a guitar and gardening equipment and there was likely something there you’d want to add to your collection of stuff.
Now you might be wondering how it all works. Well, doors open at 3 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays for previewing, with the auctions starting at 6 p.m. So once you’ve decided what you’d like to bid on, write down the lot numbers and wait for them to come up.
Then all you have to do is outbid anyone else who wants it.
Saturley said he typically starts things at a higher price, like $100 for bigger ticket items, and then moves down until the first bid.
“They really don’t start bidding till it gets to $10 and then it goes right back up,” Saturley said. “It’s where it ends at that’s important.”
And much like a yard sale, the stuff changes every time you go in. There’s very little hold over. It doesn’t cost anything to walk around or bid. The only time you pay is if you’re the big winner.
For more or to view upcoming auctions, visit concordauctioncenter.com.
