This year has been pretty unusual but that hasn’t slowed us down. In response to COVID-19, we introduced new rules and guidelines for our pick-up process to ensure everyone’s safety. While we did need to halt auctions for a time, with these new measures in place we were able to resume operations quickly and continue to serve our community and help families during this challenging time. In April, we also launched our proprietary magazine, The MaxSold Caller. Thank you to all those who made it possible and an even bigger thank you to all of our contributors! We also began our Ask an Expert Webinar series hosted by some of our partners and other experts in the field, be sure to check them out if you haven't already at pages.maxsold.com/education.

COVID-19 has changed so much about how we live our lives and spend our time, and our data analysts see these changes reflected in what people are buying now. Here are a few of our top selling items from the last six months.

Travelling the world is something that most of us would like to do, but the pandemic has made it virtually impossible. In Ottawa, Ontario however, one lucky bidder brought the world home when they purchased an auction lot of Starbucks World Mugs in a Downsizing auction. Featuring mugs from Moscow, Vienna, Beijing, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston, Calgary, Vancouver, and Toronto, this lot sold for $500.

By far our most popular quarantine item has been bikes. More and more people are biking to work or started biking for exercise while gyms were closed. This Bridgestone Bicycle sold in partnership with JMPO Estate and Home Organizations in San Jose, California. This bike from 1992 sold for $859. In Toronto, in a partnership with Buy and Sell Kings, we saw this Mountain Bike Sox sell for $890 and in Kingston, Ontario in a Fundraising online auction this restored 1976 Yamaha 350 Motorcycle sold for $2,001.

Finding other, more local ways to travel has been huge in 2020. In Port Ludlow, Washington, in a Estate Sale auction in partnership with Smooth Transitions Olympic Peninsula this Boston Whaler Revenge Series boat sold for $13,750. In a Toronto, Ontario auction partnered with Gordons Downsizing and Estate Services, this 2011 Mini Cooper was sold in an Estate Sale auction for over $12,000.

Some items will always fetch great interest in auctions. In a Reseller online auction in Toronto, this working condition World War ll Omega Pilots Watch was sold for $6,400. We also featured original artworks by celebrated artists, Emile Gruppe and Norval Morrisseau. Gruppe’s signed painting was sold as part of an Estate Sale in partnership with Organized Transitions in Hamilton, Ontario for $6,867, and the Morrisseau was authenticated by Bremmer Appraisal Services and was sold for $7,100 in Ancaster, Ontario.

As long as there have been auctions, there have been some pretty unique and fantastic items featured in them. Here are five of the most interesting and unusual items we have helped to sell over the past several months. In a partnership with Heirloom Appraisals and Downsizing Solutions in Denver, Colorado, this Antique Roulette Wheel was sold for $1,356. Then, in Richmond Hill, Ontario, this Antique Cash Register sold in a Downsizing auction for $941. We bet the floors of this bidders place are immaculate, now that they have this Tennant Floor Scrubber, which sold for $1,550, in a Commercial Liquidation Online Auction in Belleville, Ontario. Then in Prince Edward County, Ontario in a partnership with Gordon’s Downsizing and Estate Services, this heavy, cast iron cannon was sold for $1,363. Try getting that from Amazon!. Finally in Ottawa, this Spanish Suit of Armour sold for $1,400 in an Estate Sale auction.

Newton's Laws say that for every action there is a reaction. If the seller's action is to put all of their items up on the MaxSold website, then the buyer's reaction is to get online and start bidding. Getting these bidders online is what ensures everything is sold and is sold for a fair price. Here are just a few of our “Spotlight Items” from earlier this year. This Hand knotted wool rug sold for $1,551 in a Toronto Downsizing auction. Also in Toronto, in a Partnership with The Next Step Forward, this Teak 1960s Mid-century Modern sideboard sold for $1,951. In a Partnership with Living Organized, this three piece outdoor sofa sold for $1,500 in Innisfil Ontario and in a Downsizing auction in Stittsville, this 105 piece Northumbria Sterling Silverware set sold for $1,475. South of the Canadian border, this Schoenbach Piano sold in a Downsizing auction in Kemah, Texas for $1,250 and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania this Murano Glass Sputnik Light Fixture sold in an Estate Sale auction for $430. You can’t find something like that at IKEA!

You’d be here all day if we went through all the interesting and unique items that we helped to sell over the last six months, so we will wrap it up here. We hope you enjoyed our Highlights! Remember to keep an eye out for our webinars and for the next issue of the MaxSold Caller!