For the first time in the country, a full time General auction house, 3A Auction House, is set to commence operations with a promise to revolutionalise how properties and unserviceable goods are disposed of in the country.
Speaking at a media briefing, Abi Akingboye, a United Kingdom trained business economist and chief executive of 3A Auction House, said the idea of an auction house had become long overdue in the country going by the amount of repossessed properties in the hands of financial institutions as well as unserviceable goods individuals want to dispose of.
He said 3A Auction was out to bridge the gap between financial houses or private individuals who wanted to do away with unneeded and unwanted as well as repossessed assets below market values within a stipulated time.
“The platform we offer creates a partnership between both ends by helping to sell their assets at a faster rate rather than the option of them lying fallow, depleting much needed funds,” Mr. Akingboye stated.
He explained that buying items at a 3A Auction would not only provide bidders with safer options to purchasing luxury items and high end goods, but also ensure that they got said goods at the best prices possible, most times below market value. He explained further that such properties in question were run through a detailed vetting process with the government bodies involved to ensure the safety of potential buyer’s interests. He explained further that if there ever was a time to buy properties and other luxury items in Nigeria, that time is now with the current state of the economy, when purchases are guaranteed to be value for money.
Explaining further, Mr. Akingboye said the advantage over online auction was for the buyer in the sense that the buyer had a chance to come in, even before the day of the auction, they see and then buy below market value.
“The seller also has an advantage because when over 1000 people compete to buy something, you have a huge advantage of the price being naturally pushed up. What you were ready to give up for N1million might end up fetching N2million, even while remaining below general market price – it’s a win-win for all.”
He said his outfit categorised its auctions into three; properties, vehicles and general items which did not fall within these first two categories. These could be vessels, machinery, truck heads and so on.