Established in 1866, Wellers Auctioneers have a long established reputation for selling on behalf of Surrey residents. Wellers' Anita Lockie says that buying at auction actually increased in appeal during the recession

ADVERTISING FEATURE: Originally published in Surrey Life magazine March 2010

Established in 1866, Wellers Auctioneers have a long established reputation for selling on behalf of Surrey residents. Wellers’ Anita Lockie says that buying at auction actually increased in appeal during the recession and that the company saw a huge rise in clients

Describe your business to us…The Surrey Auction House is the Fine Art division of the Wellers group, which have been selling on behalf of the residents of Surrey since 1866. We are now the largest firm of auctioneers in the county, with the most experienced valuation team.

As auctioneers we have a huge range of sales, so one day one of our team may be valuing a collection of Oriental art the next day it could old teddy bears. Of course, we all enjoy surprise finds. Wellers have the county’s busiest probate team and regularly attend clients who tell us there is nothing of value. It’s great when your specialist knowledge pays off and you can say that, in fact, there is. You cannot be successful in this business without passion, and you never stop learning.

Our most senior valuer Gordon Patrick has 45 years experience under his belt, yet he still gets excited when spotting something rare, which is often quite valuable. Our knowledge works for the benefit of clients whether they are buying or selling and that gives us a lot of satisfaction.

What has been your secret to surviving the recession?In a recession people become canny purchasers, so buying at auction is very appealing. Our sales of antique and modern jewellery have seen a huge increase in clients wanting to cut out the middle man. It definitely pays off and many come back again and again.

We have also remained very competitive, with our charges lower than auction houses in central London despite sharing the same market. The vast majority of our sales are on the internet, so we have bidders that register from all over the world, it is very much a global market.

Would you have any particular advice for someone who wanted to start their own company?Well, for us, knowledge is the key. But I would also say never rest on your laurels, the whole pattern of purchasing goods and services has changed dramatically, don’t be afraid of new approaches. Most important of all: do what you enjoy. We certainly do.

What do you most enjoy about doing business in Surrey?Going out on valuation house calls we really enjoy the beautiful countryside, plus I think that people in Surrey are very positive. There is a can do attitude and this is reflected among our staff.

Tell us your hopes for your business during the year ahead? We have a lovely saleroom in Chertsey, a huge Victorian building with lots of character but our business has grown so much we are bursting out of it, so we hope to find additional premises. Other than that we are very proud of being the Surrey auction house so we don’t want to move too far.

Wellers Auctioneers, 70/70a Guildford Street, Chertsey KT16 9BBTel: 01932 568678E-mail: auctions@wellersauctions.comWeb: www.wellersauctioneers.com