How our Facebook auctions actually work

The auction is here so you can take part without being in the store. It runs in your store’s Facebook group, a listing stays open about a day, and you can put a bid in from your phone whenever it suits you — then pay and collect at the register within 48 hours of winning.

The mechanics, start to finish

1

Join the group for your storeEach of our four locations runs its own auction with its own inventory. Join the one you can drive to — that is where you collect.

2

Every item gets its own postPosts go up at 7:30 PM every night with photos of the actual item, and close at 7:00 PM the next day. The last bid we accept is at 6:59 PM.

3

Bid in the commentsBids start at $5 and rise in whole dollars — every new bid has to beat the current one. Anyone can outbid you until 6:59 PM. Do not edit or delete a bid: if an edited bid wins we take the largest number as official, and anyone caught doing it is banned from the auctions.

4

Highest bid at close winsYou pay and collect at the register of the store that listed it, within 48 hours — cash or card, plus tax. If you cannot get in inside that window, call the store or message us in the group before it runs out and we will hold it for you.

No reserve. No buyer fee. You pay your winning bid plus sales tax, and that is the whole number.

Why the same names win a lot

We get asked about this, so let us answer it directly.

A Facebook group auction is public. Every bid is a comment with a timestamp, and anyone in the group can scroll back and read the whole thread. That is the most transparent format available to us — there is no hidden bid, no proxy bidding, and no way for us to nudge a number without every member of the group being able to see it.

What is true is that a handful of regulars win often. That is not a thumb on the scale — it is that they check the group daily, know what things are worth, and are willing to bid up to it. The single most effective thing you can do is turn on notifications for the group and bid in the last few minutes, when it counts.

If a result ever looks wrong to you, say so in the group or ask at the register. We would much rather explain a specific auction than have anyone assume the worst.

Keep reading

What a bin store actually is →Which day should you shop →Four years, four stores →