I really like seeing things like this for sale. I want to buy it just to impress my kids. Image from Cars and Bids (carsandbids.com)
The man of many “quirks and features” decided to delve into the depths of the online auto auction house with “cars and auctions‘. We now have a site that I believe is the first real competitor to Bring a Trailer (BaT). The market was ripe for another price influencer, but will Cars & Bids be the Ying for BaT Yang?
On the inside your advertising video Doug says Cars & Bids (C&B) is geared towards cars from the 1980s and later, because those are the cars he “loves the most”. Doug goes on to say that he wants the site to become the “standard marketplace for buying and selling cool modern-era cars.” This is undoubtedly a difficult task, but one that few people – apart from Mr. Demuro – could accomplish.
Doug even enlisted the help of Tyler Hoover (Hoovie’s Garage YouTube) and sold his Phantom on C&B. Image from Cars and Bids (carsandbids.com)
Every industry needs a big rivalry
The connection between a rivalry between BaT and C&B is simply obvious. Both are online car auction houses, and both target high-end, off-the-beaten-path, or popular segments. Where these two differ is in the origins of BaT versus C&B.
BaT started with an email blog by website founder Randy Nonnenberg. At first it was really about cars for sale that needed a trailer. I remember getting the email and sifting through all the gold the site had unearthed in forums and car sales ads that usually needed a bit of work.
Evolution being a necessary evil, BaT slowly evolved into the website you see today. The numbers behind its success are staggering. A Article from the “New York Times” really nailed it when quantizing the BaT model.
2 million monthly visitors
100,000 registered bidders
Total sales of $230 million in 2019
11,000 vehicles listed last year (average of 275 per week)
Consider these stats for BaT when you hear that Hagerty reported a general cooling in the collector car market. Car enthusiasts who like to talk have proven that the BaT model certainly pays off.
A cheap car for sale at an auction house! This one sold for $2,000. Image from Cars and Bids (carsandbids.com)
It’s not all about the money (or is it?)
The $230,000,000 slice of car collector cake that BaT made sure has enough cream to share. Even a small disruption to their model and a “loss” of business for C&B shouldn’t be devastating, but at some point it could be.
Where BaT has succeeded and where C&B needs to go is with participation. There is a camaraderie between bidders and reviewers, surpassed only by the most loyal forums. I would even say that BaT is more of a forum than an auction house because of their loyal participation. The amount of talks, discussions, and stories should be enough for any enthusiast to peruse the listings. The turnout is thick and juicy.
If C&B can mimic a tight stake in BaT, it should be a clear success. We may not see a BaT number level, but no one involved will be directed to the poor house to invest in the site in any way.
YouTube screenshot of Doug Demuro in the Cars & Bids ad.
Employees and star power will make or break
Doug is a genius at using his star power to do what he wants to do, not what he could do. With over 3.6 million YouTube subscribers, I guess companies are throwing money at him asking him to influence their product or cause. What makes Doug smart is that he doesn’t bend for the dollar — he sticks to his niche.
The star power of our favorite car geek, Mr. Demuro, feels genuine. This is something that BaT does not have. Outside of close circles or people researching BaT, I don’t know anyone who knows its founder Randy Nonnenberg. Just as you’re more likely to buy a car from a celebrity, you’re more likely to use C&B if you’re a Doug Demuro fan.
Obviously, however, Mr. Demuro is not the one writing all the “for sale” ads on C&B, as that would be impossible given his relentless ability to create new content. C&B employees will be essential as we have seen the tenacity of BaT with their booking estimates and research into the cars they allow for sale on their website.
Both sites are poised to be top sites for years to come. Doug believes the site as much as his Mercedes was the first sacrificial lamb slaughtered for the feast. As with the BaT, you can see the sale prices, and the Mercedes didn’t disappoint. It sold for $35,000. That’s a lot of money for a car that was previously owned by the “quirks and resources” man.