In The News
As part of our Auction Marketing strategy we not only maximize your online exposure but we reach out to traditional media outlets to help drive more traffic to your auction. With the right outreach and the right media companies this can generate massive amounts of new bidders to your auction. Here are just a few of our outreach campaings;
It’s an all-too-common occurrence: A new restaurant opens to fanfare and excitement only to close its doors for good within months.
The numbers are sobering. About 60% of restaurants fail within the first year, and about 80% shutter within five years, according to the National Restaurant Association.
The reasons can vary, but the industry is notorious for having slim profit margins and high operating costs.
When a restaurant does close, the chances of recouping much of the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in equipment are pretty slim, according to Jon Buck, a James Beard award-winning chef and consultant who is based in Greenville.
Given that most restaurants fail within the first one to three years and typical leases run five years, kitchen equipment and fixtures are often left behind to offset the liability of the unexpired lease term, Buck said.
The other challenge is depreciation, he said. Even though commercial kitchen equipment is made to stand up to heavy use and last years, the value can plummet to as little as 10% of what the equipment cost new.
This price differential is in many cases driven by a market that understands owners of failed restaurants are often desperate to recoup even a small percentage of their losses as quickly as possible, according to David Thompson, founder of Madalyn Auctions, an online auction company specializing in kitchen equipment.
Where some suppliers and used-equipment dealers offer pennies on the dollar, Thompson’s company averages a return of about 75 cents on the dollar, he said.
“The savvy guys know how much equipment is out there in the market,” he said. “This is a much more beneficial approach to liquidating that equipment.”
In situations where the equipment and fixtures aren’t left behind to offset rent in arrears or an unexpired lease, auctioning the equipment can recoup more of the initial cost, he said.
The other benefit is used equipment is cheaper than new, which thus affords someone else trying to start a restaurant a less-expensive alternative to outfitting their kitchen.
For a seasoned industry insider like Buck, the advice to anyone contemplating opening a restaurant is simple: Look long and hard at the numbers.
Even with savings on used equipment, setting up a new restaurant can run from about $100,000 to $5 million, he said.
“It’s not for anybody, really,” Buck said. “It’s the hardest business there is to run, period.”
Jay King, upstatebusinessjournal.com - June 4, 2024
A Greenville ice cream shop that was once called one of the best in America has closed its business at a Greenville County shopping mall.
Molly & Myles Ice Cream, on North Pleasantburg Drive in the Cherrydale Point shopping mall, opened in 2018, its owner Nicole O'Brien told WYFF4.com.
In 2019, the ice cream parlor and cake shop, named after O'Brien's two children, was featured in an article on Today.com as one of the "absolute best ice cream shops in America."
"The chef-driven establishment from Greenville's self-proclaimed 'weirdest family' has been described as 'if Willy Wonka was tossed in a tornado with the Avengers on a Star Wars movie set,'" the article said about her and her husband, Steve, who was also co-owner.
An online auction of the restaurant equipment from the closing Molly and Myles location is underway and includes tables, chairs and "fun memorabilia and figurines" used to decorate the store.
WYFF4.com - January 27th, 2023
FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. -- The Cicis Pizza in Fort Walton Beach will be closing permanently before the end of year.
The restaurant is located on Mary Esther Cut Off NW.
In a Facebook post, the Fort Walton Beach Cicis says its landlord "will no longer allow us to operate a CiCis Pizza location in the building." The restaurant says the circumstances are out of its control.
"We want to see you guys, and give you the best CiCis Experience possible in our last moments open. You guys have been so amazing to us these past two decades, and we appreciate everything you have done," the post states.
The restaurant did not state the exact date of its last day.
The Cicis added that it is working to help its staff.
"We are trying to help our team, and our management staff with their bills due to us closing. We do have everything on an online auction, if you could please share the link so we can earn a little bit of extra income for the team!!
Weartv.com ABC News 3 - December 15th, 2022
Kebab-Je Rotisserie & Grille has shuttered its restaurant at Stonecrest at Piper Glen.
The 1,766-square-foot restaurant’s last day was May 11. Kebab-Je had been a part of that south Charlotte shopping complex since October 2017.
The Mediterranean concept’s Matthews location remains open.
Owner Yasser Sadek declined to comment.
Market conditions and staffing issues were driving forces behind the decision to close at Stonecrest, says David Thompson, with Madalyn Auction.
He’s been tapped to auction off the restaurant’s equipment, with everything from dining tables and chairs to refrigerated display cases, shelving units, gas grills and deep fryers up for grabs.
“It’s a very common method for restaurateurs that are exiting their business to try and recoup some capital,” Thompson says.
He says demand for equipment has skyrocketed during the last six months as the supply-chain crisis has intensified. For example, a popular fryer has a 40-week waiting period. People purchasing through auctions can expect to pay 10% to 60% of retail prices, depending on demand.
"There’s massive savings to have,” Thompson says.
The auction ends on June 27 at 6 p.m.
Charlotte Business Journal - June 24th, 2022
GREENVILLE, S.C. (WSPA) – Handi Indian, located in downtown Greenville, will be closing on Sunday.
After years of serving fresh, authentic Indian cuisine, Handi Indian will close after its last service on Sunday.
According to David Thompson with Equipment Liquidation Services, there were changes in the lease agreements which is leading to the closure.
The owners have commissioned Madalyn Auctions to sell the complete contents of the restaurant, bar and kitchen at online auction, Thompson said.
The online auction closes Monday at 6 p.m.
For more details about the auction, click here.
WSPA.com - March 31st, 2022
A restaurant in downtown Greenville is closing in early April, according to David Thompson from Equipment Liquidation Services.
After years of serving Greenville fresh, authentic Indian cuisine, Handi Indian Cuisine is closing.
The restaurant's last day of service will be Monday, April 4, restaurant owner Sukhdev Bhanot said.
Thompson said the owners have commissioned Madalyn Auctions to sell the complete contents of the restaurant, bar and kitchen at an online auction.
Thompson said the online auction closes at 6 p.m. on Monday, April 4.
More details are available at http://madalyn.hibid.com.
WYFF4.com - May 31st, 2022
DEARBORN — After closing their doors in February due to COVID-19, the new owners of Andiamo are holding an auction.
The restaurant had been a staple of the community for more than 17 years before closing, citing a nearly $3 million loss during the frequent statewide shut downs.
The property was purchased for $2.6 million and the sale included all of the kitchen equipment and everything else that was inside of the restaurant, all of which is now up for sale via auction.
The auction consists of nearly 600 lots of equipment, including ovens, dining tables and chairs, dishes, security equipment, televisions, the copper fireplace and more.
All of the bidding is being done 100 percent online at https://madalyn.hibid.com/ and starts to close on Monday, Oct. 4 at 6 p.m.
Bidders in the auction will be kept up to date throughout the auction process and when they first register they are sent a welcome email with all of the important dates they need to know.
They are also updated when they are outbid on an item, reminded about the closure date and when the auction closes.
ArabAmericanNews.com October 29th, 2021
Additionally you can read a Testimonial from Andiamo's Owner