I am from RI and I am interested in any companies donating in the RI area and also MA area. Also would be interested in hearing about companies that donate all over..Thank you
I'll second the Winspire recommendation. I know the balloon-ride company has been mentioned in here a few times, too - those have a pretty reasonable consignment fee.
I have a list of benefit auctioneers who work with schools at my website - send me a message if you want the link.
A great consignment item that we will be using is the FUN FLICKS Outdoor movie package. It is an outdoor party with popcorn for up to 50 people. They include a 21 ft. inflatable screen, amplified sound, digital projection, set-up, breakdown, weather insurance and all taxes & fees for only $350. It is a $1000 value. Plus, you only pay if it sells!
We were able to find local auctioneers by asking other local schools, and by doing a search online for "fundraising auctioneer". We are paying a flat fee. We are also doing a "raise the paddle", so we really wanted to have a professional auctioneer.
The amount of items for an auction is usually dictated by how many people are expected to attend the event. Typically, only 25% of your attendance will be active in the silent auction, aggressively trying to win. Most will leisurely go in and out, bidding sporadically. I try to have the amount of items that are 25% of my expected attendance. This way that 25% leaves happy. But I also think that you have to consider your audience. If they have not supported the silent or live auction in the past, then I would definitely limit my items to ones that I know that they could be emotional attached to. Those would be the priceless items usually donated or made by the students.
As for our trips, we have not purchased any trips this year. Instead, we contacted a corporation who is funding one donated trip, and we contacted acquaintances who had vacation homes or condo's.
We have 15 people on our committee, and we have been actively soliciting donations since January. Of course, like all committees, there are only about five very active members out of our 15. Our donations have been secured by mass mailings, emails, online applications, contacts, and word-of-mouth. Since our event is only 3 weeks away, we will be grouping items into packages, securing more electronics and sports memorabilia, and building our baskets. That's the fun part! I'll post pictures sometime soon.
1) Do you know of any consignment type "experience" packages that can be added to a live auction? Would like to spice up the auction, but don't have the funds to buy any travel packages, etc. We are located in SE Iowa and the event draws middle income families.
2)Can you recommend reputable auctioneer in our area and what can we expect as far as cost... flat fee or percentage of proceeds.
3) How many items do you typically put into the live auction? How many items do you typically have in your silent auction?
