More action at the clock and behind the scenes

Auctioneer Bart Zomerdijk has noticed a clear upturn in trading following the summer holidays. More buyers are back at the auction grounds, the market is picking up again and, at the same time, significant changes are on the horizon. In this column, he discusses the latest developments on the clock, including the less visible changes behind the scenes.

Anyone who has been buying at the auction over the past few weeks will probably have noticed: the holiday period is drawing to a close. More and more buyers are returning, which is generating more activity in the trade. The weather is also playing a part in this. The warm summer days are giving way to cooler and more changeable ones. This often has a direct impact on the demand for flowers and plants.

Over the past few weeks, prices at the auction have continued to trend upwards. Naturally, results vary by product. In a dynamic market, this can change just as quickly as the weather. Now that many people are back from their holidays, I expect demand to increase in the coming period. At the same time, we are slowly heading into autumn. That means a different assortment of produce, new colours and changing consumer preferences.

© Royal FloraHolland

An important step in Auctioning via Floriday
For us as auctioneers, these are exciting weeks. Last Thursday, we took another important step towards a future-proof auction system. On clock A03 in Aalsmeer, we are now auctioning behind the scenes via Floriday, just as we did previously on clock N05 in Naaldwijk. As clock A03 is my clock and I had also been involved in its development, I was the obvious choice to start the auction that day. It was exciting and intense, as I was faced with a completely new system featuring a different design, a different keyboard and different procedures for transactions and/or making corrections. I had to let go of old habits. Fortunately, after an hour and a half of auctioning, the system already felt much more familiar than it did at the start. I’m starting to get the hang of it.

And that’s despite the fact that there have been almost no changes for the buyers yet, as they won’t be buying via Floriday until later this year. We’re deliberately taking small steps at a time to ensure a controlled transition from the old to the new system.

More and more clocks are migrating
Over the coming weeks, all Royal FloraHolland clocks will be migrated behind the scenes to RFH Auction on Floriday. This also means that all colleagues will have to get used to a new way of working, as practising is, after all, not the same as actually auctioning.

Even though the principle of auctioning remains the same, change is part and parcel of our sector. Ultimately, the aim is to continue matching supply and demand as effectively as possible. And, new system or not, the auction clock naturally remains a wonderful tool for this.

More products to order picking
Developments are also planned in the area of logistics. On 10 and 24 September, many products from clocks A02, A04 and various rose auction groups will switch from distribution to order picking. Order picking changes the way goods can be inspected. New functionalities are being developed in RFH Pre-Auction for this purpose. One example is an efficient inspection list. More details on this will be announced shortly.

Collaborating to work smarter
These may not be changes you notice immediately at the auction clock. Nevertheless, they make a significant difference in making all processes more efficient and future-proof.

Ultimately, we all want the same thing: for the right product to reach the buyer at the right time, as efficiently as possible. Every improvement that contributes to this helps the sector move forward.

In conclusion
The coming weeks will see many developments coming together. The season is changing, the market is changing, and the way auctioneers conduct auctions is also changing. That makes this period particularly interesting. What always fascinates me as an auctioneer is how quickly the market changes. It is precisely that dynamism that makes the auction floor special, day in, day out.