Bar owners turn to auctions as recession takes toll

PALMA
BRITISH bar owners across the island are being forced to cut their losses and return to the UK as a result of the recession and many are turning to a local auction house in order to raise enough money to get back to Britain.

The Magalluf-based Central Auctioneers is holding a bar clearance auction tonight and it is going to be the first of a monthly Catering & Commercial Sale of lots of specific interest to the many restaurants, bars, hotels and other businesses on the island.

Adam Goodfellow, who runs the auction house, said yesterday that there was a “trickle” of bars and shops closing and contacting him to organise clearance sales during July and August, but over the past few weeks, demand has increased significantly. “We're doing at least one shop, bar or house clearance a day and I'm continually receiving calls from people asking me to pop round and look over their business contents,” he said.

It appears that some businesses have tried to hold out for as long as possible, while others have suffered all summer and are now cutting their losses. “It's happening in many of the resorts but, at the moment, it appears to be the bars and businesses on the periphery of the resorts, the ‘kind of last bar in town' which has not been catering for the overspill from the busy, resort centre establishments this summer,” Adam Goodfellow said yesterday.

Bar and restaurant associations have been reporting a sharp fall in takings all summer.
In Calvia, for example, losses of 75 percent in comparison to last year have been reported and, according to Goodfellow, there are extreme cases where bars on the island have watched their weekly takings fall to just a euro per week. “It's a bit like “Cash In The Attic”, but sadly they're not coming to me to raise money for a dream holiday, they just want to get enough money together to get home,” he said. “In some cases we're also providing advice and help,” he added.
But, it is not just the bars and shops. but the house clearances have led to his wife, who runs a dress agency next to the Magalluf auction house and showroom, being inundated with clothing and accessories from people moving back to Britain and some are top designer goods. “Business is brisk on both fronts because with people earning less, they're looking to spend less and the Spanish are also starting to catch on to the idea of the auctions.