With a 25 year history, WineBid is the oldest and largest online wine auction site.  The original wine re-commerce platform, Russ tells us about the auction process from the buyer and seller perspective as well as all the data they collect and display for the wines.  This includes innovations such as a 360-degree bottle shot, price history charts, and new functionality like their customized shipping feature.  He even spills the beans on a few tips and tricks to getting the best deals on WineBid!  Detailed Show Notes: Russ’ background - software and e-commerce at realtor.com, myfico.com, gazelle.com, and also had a vineyard in Temecula, California, growing Syrah and TempranilloWineBid - 25 years old, based in Seattle with operations in Napa, the oldest and largest wine auction siteWeekly auctions - open at 7:15 pm PST on Sundays, closes at 7 pm PST the next SundayAll items open at the same timePro’s get 1st 5-10 minutes to view and place bidsWhat doesn’t sell rolls into the following weekNow introducing some wines mid-week, with most wines going in one weekSet good reserves upfrontWineBid Sunday Night is "appointment internet" - people watch the auctions' final minutes with a good bottle of wine, watching some wines get bid upCan monitor all bids at once with WineBidFor Sellers of wineConsignors are mostly private individualsMost sales are for $10,000-$1M+, ideally $100+ average bottle valueSellers send their list and get an estimateWineBid does the appraisal and after agreeing with consignor, ships wine to the Napa warehouseWines are inspected, authenticated, and photographedOnce sold, sellers get a check or electronic wire transferAs part of an estimate, for larger cellars, WineBid will help catalog and pre-inspect on-siteReasons people sell winesAs in many businesses, the 3 D’s - divorce, debt, and deathPeople also have their tastes change and swap out what’s in their cellarsThey move and want to downsize their cellarSpouse/partners - may force sales before they can buy moreWine as an investment - WineBid was featured in an article in the Economist, conducting a 15-year analysisBasket of Burgundy wines would have outperformed the S&P 500Basket of Bordeaux wines would have been close to the S&P 500Need to think of total transaction costs- transactions costs higher for wine as an investment, as a physical assetConsignment vs cash buyout for wine sellers - generally make more money consigning and capture more upside, but takes more time and can get paid sooner, at a discount, with immediate cash buyoutBusiness modelSeller commissions - at most auction houses 5-25%, larger the consignment, the lower the premiumBuyer’s premiums - generally 15-25%, 17% at WineBid vs ~20-25% for live auctionsBuyer demographics - ~135-150,000 registered bidders70% US, 20% Asia, 10% Europe⅔ Male, ⅓ FemaleUpper middle income and higher-tech, finance, professionals (lawyers, doctors)Demographics getting younger, particularly in 2020 -> interested in a broader selection of wines with higher mobile usageMost learn about WineBid via word of mouth, recently doing more social and digital advertising and trying to make the experience more personalTips & Tricks for buyersBid early, put in 1st bid at the reserve, and set your max price upfront -> this may discourage others from bidding on the wineDon’t get emotional and chase the wine upLook for wines that you know you’ll like without scores or in the 90-93 point range (94+ get big premiums); analysis based on average critic scoresOnly ~3% of the wine market is online, ~$10B online with a $325B overall marketCovid pandemic accelerated the move online by ~7 yearsE.g., Wine.com setting record numbers and seeking capital at ~$1B valuationGoPuff buying BevmoWineBid Innovations360-degree hi-res bottle shotsOne of the best for still photography in wine auctionsShipping functionality - can see everything you have and pick and choose what and when to shipSome of the most detailed condition notes on bottlesWine price c