Buying at Auction is an extremely popular method of purchasing antiques, collectables, vintage, and preloved items and at Mitchells we are proud of the wide variety of items we are able to offer our buyers.
We hold three types of auction covering everything from Antiques and Fine Art to useful household and everyday items:
Fine Art & Antiques – our Flagship quarterly sales of Rare and Valuable antique objects
Specialist sales by Category – including our Market leading Sporting & Toy sales
Weekly Home and Garden – An eclectic mix of antique, modern and reproduction furnishings and effects.
Unlike most retail and shopping outlets, we are able to offer buyers truly unique items, not available elsewhere. We are also proud of our green credentials – purchasing antique and second-hand items is the ultimate recycling, with zero environmental cost (apart from you taking the items home!). Buy unique, stylish items and be good to the planet at the same time!
Each of our auctions have individual sale dates and viewing times (see our homepage sale calendar for details) but the following is an overview of how to take part:
The best way to participate in our auctions is by attending in person. There is no substitute for the excitement of engaging directly with an auctioneer, raising your hand to bid and watching the bidding contest unfold. Bidders are very welcome to attend all of our live auctions. Prior to each auction we hold a public viewing, to allowing you to inspect and select your intended purchase prior to auction day itself. Whilst visiting, don’t forget to visit our fabulous on-site café Veeva!
We offer online bidding with every lot we sell, using our bidding partner the-saleroom.com. This easy-to-use service allows you to watch, hear and participate in the auction live, in real time – and attracts both a global and local audience who find it a convenient way to bid by mobile, tablet or desktop, whether you are at home, out shopping – we’ve even heard reports of clients bidding online whilst on a beach! Please note that online bidding carries an additional surcharge of 4.95% + VAT on the hammer price.
If you are unable to attend our auctions in person and prefer not to bid online, there are two other ways you can participate in our sales. Absentee or commission bidding enables you to supply us with your bids, which we will execute on your behalf (you can provide us with your bids in person during a pre-sale viewing session, by email or by phone). Telephone bidding enables you to participate in our sales live, at the end of a phone line. We will call you for the sale of your chosen lot and talk you through the sale.
All purchases are subject to a buyer’s premium of 22% plus V.A.T.
The buyer's premium is as defined in Section 4 'The Purchase Price' of the Conditions and Information
Strictly no cash.
Payment can be made by the following methods:
If you are wishing to pay by cheque and are not known to us it is advisable to make arrangements before the sale or for references to be supplied. If such arrangements are not made, then buyers paying by cheque must wait until the cheque has cleared before goods can be delivered or collected.
Our Challenge 25 policy applies to all age-related sales that occur on our premises.
We are obliged to apply our Challenge 25 policy when any customer who looks to be under the age of 25 attempts to purchase alcohol, firearms, air weapons or bladed items either for themselves or for someone else.
As auctioneers we may have to conduct various checks into our customers under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 and related legislation. Unless we confirm we already have this information, on registration you may be required to provide the following:
You may be asked for further information if we deem this necessary. If you are bidding for another person (your “Principal”) you will be required to provide the above information for yourself and your Principal, along with a signed letter from your Principal authorising you to bid.
Upon payment you may pick up your purchases at the auction location or arrange to have them delivered. We have our own removal vehicle and can arrange delivery locally. We can recommend independent hauliers for national deliveries but would always suggest you get a quote from them before bidding on a lot.
We understand it is not always possible to attend a sale or collect your winning lots in person, so Mitchells offers a postage and packing service using Parcel Force, Royal Mail Special Delivery or Cumbria Xpress for larger items.
We will do our best to ensure your parcel is packed in such a way that it is as safe as possible for its journey however we are not professional packers or shippers, and Mitchells will not be responsible for making any claim in the event of damage. We also reserve the right to respectfully decline to send items which we deem too fragile/too heavy/too big or contain flammable or hazardous liquids. We remind customers that items cannot be insured against damage in transit due to the nature of our lots and courier terms and conditions.
Please note that items are sent a minimum of a week following the sale and cannot be guaranteed for a specific delivery date.
There is a minimum packing charge of £10
We can pack items for your courier to collect subject to a packing charge
We will always use a tracked/signed for despatch route Eg. Royal Mail Special Delivery / Parcel Force
For larger items in the UK, we use Cumbria Xpress on a 2/3-day delivery service.
Shotguns, firearms, and air weapons can only be sent to a Registered Firearms Dealers. We cannot post ammunition.