Ritchie Bros.

Last year  BCBusiness recognized a local online retailer for creating a global market for used books, and AbeBooks is indeed a remarkable story, linking millions of bibliophiles around the globe. But Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers takes online selling to another level: when the products are not books but Caterpillar tractors and backhoes, online selling becomes a whole lot more complicated.

Last year  BCBusiness recognized a local online retailer for creating a global market for used books, and AbeBooks is indeed a remarkable story, linking millions of bibliophiles around the globe. But Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers takes online selling to another level: when the products are not books but Caterpillar tractors and backhoes, online selling becomes a whole lot more complicated.

Ritchie Bros. is the world’s largest industrial auctioneer, selling US$3.57 billion of used and unused equipment at 340 unreserved auctions in 2008. The company’s secret is a sophisticated online system that allows bidders from around the world to easily participate in auctions.

In the words of one panellist: “Ritchie Brothers has turned local markets for used industrial equipment into a worldwide market by continuously expanding its services to buyers and sellers.”