Emerging from the first half of this year – a year that has been profoundly impacted by the global health crisis and strict confinement measures – let’s take stock of how iDealwine has felt the effects of everything the year has thrown in our way so far. Auctions and fixed price sales combined, bottles sold have increased by 26% in volume over the first six months of the year, which is +11% in value. However, the situation behind these figures tells quite a complex story.
iDealwine hit the ground running at the start of 2020, the year of our 20th birthday. By the end of February, our online auctions saw an impressive increase of 31% compared to the same period in 2019. At this point, seven auctions had already taken place, followed closely by wine enthusiasts from 60 countries across Europe, America and Asia. Judging by the results, you were all delighted with the quality, range and rarity of what we had to offer.
However, as we know all too well, the spreading of the Coronavirus was to bring the whole world to a standstill, with country after country going into lockdown and ‘normal’ life grinding to a halt. For us at iDealwine, the most immediate effects were seen on a logistical level, as we had to close our warehouses. This meant we could no longer accept or collect any new bottles for evaluation. Shipping also took a big hit, leading to a deluge of emails and phone calls for our sales team who worked flat out to ease concerns about delivering your bottles. By the end of March, it must be said that we weren’t in top shape. In the midst of such upheaval, it was unsurprising for consumer priorities to shift. But we soldiered on through, and our newly confined team continued to give their all in order to ensure top-quality customer service and good relationships with partner domains. We settled back into our stride during the month of April, and things were looking up for us. Then, on the 11th May, lockdown began to lift and life became more sociable again, slowly but surely. This reopening also meant that many of you were able to sell your cellar, helping us immensely with an essential aspect of our business.
During the lockdown, our inability to bring in new bottles meant that each of our auctions was extended, altering the rhythm of our sales. Overall, we organised 19 auctions across the first six months of 2020, bringing in a total of €10.26M, a very slight decrease of 2%. Volumes sold followed the same trend (-2%), although the average bottle price remained stable at €126. These figures include the money raised during our charity sale in aid of carers, a huge success that attracted bidders from all over the world. We would like to thank you and every domain that donated once more for such immense generosity!
Whilst our usually dynamic auctions necessarily slowed down somewhat in the first semester, there are two points worth highlighting: firstly, over the past 12 months (from July 2019 to the end of June 2020), the volume sold at auction has increased by 7%, with a total sum that has progressed by +8%. Secondly fixed price sales have exploded on our platform in recent times, and this was especially the case in April, when France was in full lockdown. At the end of the first half of the year, this increase is at +64%. Volume sold has gone up by 75%. So, at the end of June 2020, the number of bottles sold at iDealwine – almost 170,000 – is already close to the volume sold just at auction for the whole of 2019.
We should also point out that these past few months seem to have been opportune for people discovering us for the first time. The number of amateurs and enthusiasts placing their first order recently has gone right up, and we’re very happy to welcome you into the fold! We promise to continue our work to provide you with your dream bottles.
Thank you to all for your loyalty, it means even more when times are tough. We hope that you continue to be avidly passionate and curious in your search for the next best cuvée, and we’re sure to be there with you!
