THE ORIGINAL HEADQUARTERS: A 50 Facts & Favorite Memories Feature
October 18, 2021
Posted by Barrett-Jackson
One would never imagine Barrett-Jackson’s humble beginnings when visiting the elegant two-story building in Scottsdale that houses the company headquarters today.
To mark Barrett-Jackson’s half-century in business, in this special series we’re taking a look back at some of our favorite moments from the past 50 years – as well as some little-known facts about The World’s Greatest Collector Car Auctions.
In the 1970s Barrett-Jackson held one auction per year. This annual event garnered the attention of car aficionados across the country and the everyday fan base was beginning to grow exponentially. The World’s Greatest Collector Cars Auctions was on its way to becoming the leader of the collector car hobby.
The Barrett-Jackson team in the early days, hard at work on the next auction from a mobile office trailer.
Behind the scenes, the Barrett and Jackson families were working hard to bring the hobby they all loved to the forefront – and work hard they did. The original command center that held the small group was also a paint and body shop, mechanics garage and a storage yard for the restorations the families were working on in between auctions. Located on 56th Street and Washington in a Phoenix neighborhood that touches the border of Tempe, the original headquarters were humble and efficient with a no-nonsense approach to house the burgeoning company.
At the center of the daily activities was a mobile office trailer that was used not only at the 56th Street and Washington location, but it was also moved on-site to the auctions and used as an operations office for many years.
Craig Jackson takes a phone call from Barrett-Jackson’s “command center” back in the 1970s.
Although it has been a decade or so since the office trailer was hauled from auction to auction, the 1970s-era modular still boasts its original light oak colored paneling on the walls and all the accoutrements that showcased that decade. Thin commercial-grade carpet, hollow doors and a couple of small but functional single-pane windows remain in the trailer, and yes – it is still part of the Jackson family.
Today, the Barrett-Jackson headquarters is located farther north, adjacent to the Scottsdale Airport runway and housed in an incredibly elegant two-story building, resplendent with all the top technology needed to showcase and produce the now-legendary auctions. The journey of success for the auction company has been arduous and hard-earned and seems like a million miles from the thinly paneled walls of a trailer – but the heart of the company has not changed. It’s still about hard work, getting your hands dirty under the hood – and, most importantly, it’s still about people who love cars.