VIEW FROM THE BLOCK: Craig Jackson reflects on Barrett-Jackson’s first auction in the Northeast

September 29, 2016
Posted by Barrett-Jackson

With Craig Jackson at the helm, Barrett-Jackson is celebrating 45 successful years in the collector car hobby. Craig is also an avid car collector, award-winning restorer and racing enthusiast.

Each year at Barrett-Jackson seems to outpace the last, and 2016 is no exception. 90,000 people attended our inaugural Northeast Auction this past June – breaking all records for a three-day Barrett-Jackson event. In an unprecedented move, we had to start limiting daytime general admission ticket sales the first day of the event. Unlike our other auctions, where our fans stream in and out of the auction arena throughout the day, people stayed in their seats for hours to see the show as if they were at a concert or Broadway play, not wanting to miss a single moment of the action.

This first year in the Northeast was unbelievable. Over the years we have listened to our fans and our customers, who urged us to hold an auction in this part of the country – and they certainly showed up and supported this great hobby! People were in attendance from Long Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts – the entire region. It was an amazing response from a part of the United States that obviously has its fair share of car enthusiasts.

Each of our auctions is different and has its own personality. In Las Vegas, we try and wrap up the day’s activities around 8 p.m., because people want to go out on the town afterward. In Scottsdale, the auction starts early and the excitement runs late into the evening, with a real “nightlife” atmosphere. At Mohegan Sun, we didn’t know what to expect, since we’d never done it, and it was great to see everyone enjoying all Barrett-Jackson has to offer from start to finish. At times, we had to adapt at a moment’s notice – and with the help of the outstanding team at Mohegan Sun, we were able to do just that.

From day one of the Inaugural Northeast Auction, fans packed the auction arena to experience the action first-hand.

The Northeast Auction was also unique in that it had a fascinating cultural element. Our Opening Night Gala was unlike any we’d had before, with dancers and drummers from the Mohegan Tribe sharing their heritage with our guests. Each day of the auction was opened with a welcome from tribal officials.

What lies ahead in the Northeast? There is clearly a demand for our world-class collector car event in the area. We will work to make what was a great event even better next year. Perhaps we will add another day to the auction; Mohegan Sun has tremendous growth plans, and Barrett-Jackson will fit right in with that. We are always looking for ways to improve our customer experience.

We have some exciting changes in store for our Las Vegas auction, because our customers spoke and we listened. We’ve planned a fantastic Opening Night Party at a new location – the incredible Drai’s Nightclub located on the rooftop of The Cromwell in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip. We also are putting the entire auction in the conference center this year: the exhibitors, sponsors, auction arena, car displays and our Hot Laps and Thrill Rides will all be together in one easily accessible area at Mandalay Bay.

Please join us in Las Vegas for our ninth annual auction – and let us know if there is something you’d like to share about your experience at our events.