Ritchie Bros. Sells More Than $95MM in Equipment in Record-Setting Texas Auction



In March, Ritchie Bros. conducted its largest Texas auction ever, attracting 76% more bidders year over year and achieving $95 million in gross transaction value, surpassing its previous Texas sales record from June 2020 by 17%.

The auction was held March 17-18 in Fort Worth, TX. The auction attracted a record of more than 16,000 bidders from 79 countries. Approximately 83% of the equipment in the auction was sold to U.S. buyers, including 34% to Texas buyers, while international buyers from countries such as France, Ghana and Vietnam purchased the remaining 17%.

“Our consignors are benefiting from robust equipment and truck demand we are helping drive in 2021,” Chuck Roberson, regional sales manager for Ritchie Bros., said. “With all bidding online, demand has skyrocketed over the past year. Our Fort Worth auction last week saw online pageviews per lot increase 59% year over year, while watchlists per lot and PriorityBids increased 78% and 157%, respectively. As a result, we have a lot of happy sellers right now rushing to get more equipment consigned for our next event — now is a great time to sell.”

Equipment highlights in the Fort Worth auction included a 2015 Tadano GR1000XL-3 4x4x4 rough terrain crane that sold for $385,000 to an online buyer from Indonesia, a 2016 Caterpillar 349FL hydraulic excavator that sold for $245,000 to a buyer from Texas and a 2018 Peterbilt 389 T/A sleeper truck tractor that sold for $124,000 to a buyer from Arizona. All items were sold unreserved with no minimum bids or reserve prices.

“Even with all bidding online, we still safely welcomed thousands of masked buyers onsite to inspect equipment in person prior to bidding,” Roberson said. “We also sold more than 800 items last week with our virtual sales option, as many consignors from outside the state were eager to be a part of the sale. Our auctions are becoming more digital and more convenient, resulting in more bidders and better returns for sellers.”

Auction Quick Facts

  • Gross Transaction Value (GTV): More than $95 million *new site record
  • Total Registered Bidders: More than 16,000 *new site record
  • Total Number of Lots: More than 5,800
  • Total Number of Consignors: More than 760 *new site record


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