Auctioneering is no easy game and when it comes to selling livestock the man with the task of finding the highest bidder must recognise a nod of the head or raise of the finger from anyone in the crowd often with the sheep or cattle they are selling in front of them also.
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Their role is to get the best possible price for their client keeping the action lively.
it is a unique skill and one where Cootamundra is proving itself to be ahead of the pack.
Following in the footsteps of Sam Gemmell, who worked in Cootamundra and last year won the Australian Livestock and Property Agents Association (ALPA) National Young Auctioneers competition, three stock agents with connections to the district have been selected to compete at the same competition at Sydney Royal show this Easter.
Charlie Butt, Jake Smith and Tom McGregor will all be city bound for the main competition on April 12.
Charlie grew up in Jugiong and now works for Elders in Cootamundra while Jake spent his early career at Elders, Cootamundra and now works out of the Gundagai branch. Tom works for Elders in Goulburn and grew up in Muttuma.
The Young Auctioneers competition is run by ALPA, which conducts auctioneer training school across Australia.
Some of the schools are also a selection process for their respective states Young Auctioneer competitions (competitions are held in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and South Australia each year).
The winner and runner up from each of the state competitions move forward to the ALPA National Young Auctioneers competition which is held at the Sydney Royal show over Easter.
Last month, the three young men, along with 23 other agents, attended a school in Warwick Farm.
The school not only teaches auctioneering but also good agency practice, WH&S, animal welfare and regulatory requirements.
The school was conducted with the assistance of six presenters who are all active livestock agents/auctioneers.
The presenters freely give their time to assist the participants over the two days.
Liz Summerville from ALPA said speech pathologists are a major contributor to the success of the ALPA schools.
“Our speech pathologists teach the participants how to protect, preserve and project their voices which is vitally important given an auctioneers main tool of trade is their voice,” Ms Summerville said.
At the end of the school, the selection for the 2019 NSW ALPA Young Auctioneers competition was conducted.
Each competitor sold three lots in a sale that is similar to the livestock they will sell at the Sydney Royal show.
Livestock that competitors sell at the show will be led steers/heifers that will be raised by schools. These cattle are in a hoof and hook competition and will be judged before the Young Auctioneers competition.
The selection criteria used is the same as the competitions where competitors were judged on voice, diction, values and manner. The judges selected are NSW livestock agents/auctioneers.
“The ALPA Young Auctioneers competitions are a great way for young agents to get experience and exposure outside their normal selling centres,” Ms Summerville said.
The Sydney Royal show provides a fantastic platform that allows the competitors to promote themselves, their business and the general agency industry.”
