Historic auction ekasi

The community of Vosloorus in Gauteng played host to the country’s first recognised auction recently when local bidders went head-to-head for a host of goods ranging from used appliances to equipment and collectables.

Incredibly, it has taken 30 years since South Africa’s first democratic elections to host formal auctions, and judging by the amount of interest it has garnered from the close-knit community, it certainly will not be the last.

Lokshin Auctions

The icebreaking event was held by the aptly named, Lokshin Auctions, with the full support and encouragement of the South African Institute of Auctioneers (Saia), and supported by some of SA’s best-known member auctioneers, including Park Village Auctions, Auction Operation, Dynamic Auctions and Aucor.

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Lokshin Auctions founder and Saia head of the transformation committee, Tsitso Setai, has made it his passion to bring accredited professional auctions to the townships, where the majority of residents have not been exposed to auctions, and not benefitted from the many advantages of buying and selling assets on auction. Initial investigations by Saia’s transformation committee had revealed few people understood the auction process and were sceptical of its trustworthiness.

“Lokshin Auctions is all about breaking moulds and bringing auctions to the people of our townships. Together with Saia, we’re spreading the word and educating people from all walks of life,” said Setai.

“Simultaneously, we’re encouraging business entrepreneurs and the youth to start their own auction businesses and to join forces with Saia to reach this massive untapped market with untold numbers of benefits to the community.

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“Judging from the responses on the day and subsequent feedback from the community, these lokshin auctions are here to stay.

“They loved it and we loved hosting it, and the big winner is the community. It means no more travelling, and that communities will have direct access to assets such as houses and cars that have been repossessed from their own areas. Even on a “mampara weekend (weekend before pay day), we were able to raise about R90 000 and the most impressive winning bid was for a set of model cars that fetched an impressive R5 000 at the fall of the hammer.

“It just underscores our belief that the townships are ready for auctions, and thanks to the ongoing efforts of Saia and its transformation committee, we’re breaking new ground.”

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Showing the unique ingenuity and opportunities offered within townships, the Vosloorus auction was held at Nonceba Nakedi’s eatery, allowing visitors to fill up on pleasant food and drinks while attending the auction.

Nakedi also provided items to be put on auction and donated the proceeds to the Princess Nakedi Foundation in the fight against cancer.

Saia’s Sonja Styger said the auction was the culmination of years of work in transforming the industry. “We are motivated by its success and encourage the youth and business people in the townships to now take up the opportunity and work with Saia and work with Tsitso to popularise auctions within our townships.

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“Saia has done a lot of work to get to this point and has a lot of work ahead to educate people about auctions and to encourage people to get involved and start auction businesses in the townships,” she said.

“There are many Saia affiliated colleges that undertake training and we encourage anyone interested in auctioneering as a profession or as a business opportunity to seek training and make contact with us to get involved.”