Bring A Trailer, The Digital Auction Platform For Collectible Cars, Boasts $1 Billion-Plus In Sales This Year

Bring a Trailer, a San Francisco-based online auction platform for classic and collector cars, is giving Sotheby’s and Barrett-Jackson a run for their money. The company surpassed $1 billion in sales in September and is expected to close out the year with $1.3 billion – a significant increase over 2021’s $829 million mark.

Yes – the word is “billion.”

Since its inception in 2007, the site has seen a massive increase in popularity, selling an average of 700 cars per week. It’s on pace to hit the 100k auctions milestone in late January.

This year, Bring a Trailer sold its top five most expensive cars with the highest being a 2017 Ferrari LaFerrari Aperta which auctioned for $5.36 million.

Bidding is done sight unseen, naturally, like all online auctions, with certain vehicles on the site selling for millions. Although the top-selling cars make the spotlight, the range of vehicles on Bring a Trailer caters to all enthusiasts and has everything from rare Porsches to a pristine 36k-mile 1993 Geo Metro convertible sold for $11,671 earlier this year.

Bring a Trailer also has a community of over 900,000 active users, buyers and sellers who comment in real-time to offer insight and expertise to the other members who are perhaps new to the game, or seek immediate information that may not be available quickly from the seller.

Some of the most premium auctions, like the recently-sold Porsche 911 are posted as “no reserve” which can be an audacious move for sellers of any level – but it speaks to the seller’s confidence in the strength, knowledge, and enthusiasm of the buying pool on Bring a Trailer.

BaT is also more transparent than most companies. It’s the first marketplace to make all results permanent on the website, with real-time reliable data on the collector car market, and its low fees. Sellers pay a flat fee of $99, and the buyer fee is 5% on top of the final sale price but caps out at $5,000.

The company even recently brokered this Sherman Tank.

“The volatility of the economy this year has driven even more buyers and sellers to embrace our online auction model because of the low fees, high success rate, and ability to transact quickly,” said Randy Nonnenberg, co-founder and president of Bring a Trailer.

“Our type of inventory offers an alternative type of investment as well as an emotional one, and both of those factors remain strong whether in an up or down economy. That lead to more buyers than ever registering and bidding on BaT cars through the second half of the year when other economic indicators were not as positive.”

Some facts about BaT for first-time bidders:

Can I bid if I’m not in the US?

Yes, as long as you have a valid credit card on file with BaT.

Can I buy a car that didn’t meet reserve?

It’s possible. When an auction ends and the reserve isn’t met, the seller receives the high bidder’s contact information. From there, it is up the two of them to work out a deal.

Can I cancel my bid?

No. It’s just like a real auction. If you bid, you are obligated and you are expected to honor your bid.

Can I contact a seller after an auction has closed?

BaT does not provide a seller’s contact information after an auction has closed. If you want to be notified when a particular model goes live, you can sign up to receive “model page alerts.”

How can I inspect a car?

If you would like to inspect a car or have it inspected, you can use the Contact Seller button on the listing to make contact with the seller and arrange an inspection.