Shropshire Star

It’s hammer time – meet young Shrewsbury auction star Jack

Anyone who thinks auctioneers must have worked in the industry for many years would have been surprised to see Jack Austerberry behind the rostrum at the Halls sales room in Shrewsbury.

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Jack Austerberry

Equipped with his handmade gavel, at 19 Jack is one of the youngest watch specialists in the country – and the youngest auctioneer ever to have worked at Shropshire sale house Halls.

Speaking shortly before taking to the rostrum for the first time, to sell a collection of watches, stamps and coins, Jack, who lives near Market Drayton, admitted to feeling a mix of emotions.

“It’s a combination of many things,” he said.

“Nervous because essentially you’re an actor, but you’re also serving a purpose as you’re controlling people’s money and how they spend it.

“There are high stakes because it is my job to take control of both the buyer and seller.

“I am also very excited because how your first auction goes could shape your future.”

Seasoned auctioneers that we recognise from weekday television programmes appear to be confident, assertive and boasting huge personalities.

But how will Jack go about honing his hammer skills?

“We often see auctioneers with a lot of personality – some may say too much occasionally – but they are doing what a computer can’t do,” he adds.

Jack Austerberry

“If it was just reading out figures and bids, a computer can do that. But we have to humanise the whole process as it is a person selling to another person.

“You have to be professional, control the room and not let it get out of hand. But at the same time you have to add your own touch of personality.”

So how does someone with a big passion for watches get into auctioneering?

“It all started at school when I started building, fixing and researching watches from the age of 13-14,” Jack said.

“From the outset I knew I didn’t want to go to university so I thought it was time to find my niche.

“After doing my A-levels I approached Halls and they were generous letting me come for two weeks work experience, and at the end of that I was invited for an interview and became their junior watch specialist.

“Eventually I was proving myself in the watch department and was given the control over the consignment of watches coming in. I was predominantly valuing them and going out seeking business.

“I’ve been at Halls now about 11 months and I have been doing clerking where you sit next to the auctioneer and you are controlling internet bids.

“The last sale I sold a Cartier Tank watch for £11,000 so I thought, wouldn’t it be great if I could be up there myself selling it.

“Previous to that I wouldn’t have even imagined it.

“There is a lot to auctioneering, far beyond what people imagine, but I thought it was as about time I learnt.”

Jack has undergone some auctioneering training, which has involved setting up some mock auctions.

“We got people from the fine art department to come down and pretend to be genuine bidders,” he says.

“It was an hour a day for about a week and a half.”

So how did his first sale go?

Jack Austerberry

Maryanne Lineker-Mobberley, of the Halls’ fine art department, says: “He handled himself in a very professional and confident way.

“Jack’s been showing great promise since joining us straight after school as a junior watch specialist.

“He’s curated two Halls watch auctions already which included the sale of a 1969 Cartier Tank in 18ct gold which went under the hammer for £11,000 and a 1968 Omega Speedmaster which fetched £3,200.”

As if taking charge of your first auction wasn’t enough for the former Ellesmere College student, Jack also pitted his skills in the national Novice Auctioneer of the Year competition run by Nava, the National Association of Valuers and Auctioneers, last week.

For budding auctioneers this competition, at Chateau Impney in Worcestershire, is one of the most important events of the year. Unfortunately for Jack he missed out on the accolade, but the experience will no doubt stand him in good stead for the future.

Competitors took part in a simulated auction designed to test their skill. It featured a range which for most was outside their specialist areas. Lots included an Engel vertical moulding machine, a Merlo rough terrain telescopic handler, a red telephone box, a detached seafront chalet in Essex, and a freehold parcel of land situated in Kearsley, with guide prices between £1,500 to £65,000.

Away from watches Jack’s other keen interest is sports cars and in the last couple of years he has been rebuilding a vintage model. “I can’t see into the future but I am very excited to see how things pan out,” he adds.