Chandeliers. An office printer. A desk dating back to the First World War.
These are just a few of more than 1,200 items that tell the story of Ottawa business Marchand Electric.
Founded in 1892, 13 years after Thomas Edison patented the incandescent lightbulb, Marchand Electric was one of the National Capital Region’s longest-running family businesses. It went into receivership earlier this year, and its remaining stock will be sold at an online auction that starts this week.
Scotty Morris operates Ottawa-based auction company Giving Gavel. He was contacted by the officials overseeing the receivership to conduct the liquidation. He admits it’s been a big task, and an emotional one.
Speaking to OBJ this week, Morris said his company is cataloguing “everything that is tangible and removable” at Marchand Electric’s Algoma Road store and its Boulevard Gréber warehouse in Gatineau.
An auction with about 500 lots is considered big, Morris said, and the Marchand Electric auction has 1,248 lots, from the practical to the more sublime.
“We start with conduit piping, then move on to inventory. There’s going to be breakers, wiring, lighting, light fixtures, furniture, office supplies,” Morris said.
As he was taking pictures of the different lots, Morris discovered interesting historic items.
“There’s a desk that was owned by the great-grandfather who was in (the First World War) and (the Second World War) … I found an old motor that belongs to a Jeep Willys from (the Second World War) … I did some quick research and found it was worth about $3,000. That was interesting to find in the shop, something that dated back to the beginnings of the company.”
The shop also had a large chalkboard noting every year Marchand Electric had been in business and putting it in context with world events such as the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, the 1929 stock market crash, and the two world wars.
Typically, Morris deals with auctions in manufacturing, so he expects to see a wider range of interested buyers for the Marchand Electric auction.
“I would expect … liquidators, flea market people. There could be your regular homeowners, because we have quite a bit of residential lighting. Contractors could show up because there are many lots that could be attractive to them … For this auction, it’s attractive for everyone.”
Going into the auction, which begins Aug. 14 and ends Aug. 18, Morris said what remains top of mind for him is the tight turnaround his team was given to empty the locations.
“We’ve been given about 55 days to vacate (the space). Therefore we need to move very quickly to get everything out of here,” he said. “I don’t have time to think about anything other than what is most valuable. I need to start tagging (lots) immediately, making descriptions. We really need to focus on those big-ticket items and try to advertise those.
“If I would have had 90 days or 120 days, it would be a different story. We could take our time and do all sorts of advertising, maybe do a discount liquidation instead. But because we have to be out in less than 60 days, we have to come in and inventory everything. We’ve taken over 15,000 pictures for this.
“Then, after the auction is done, that’s when the fun actually begins. I have two or three weeks to get everything out of the building,” Morris explained.
The end of the live auction
The world of auctions has changed since the pandemic, Morris said, though the tide had been turning ever since Yahoo Auctions and eBay entered the resale market in the late 1990s.
“I’m an auctioneer, a Canadian champion from 1998. We used to do it live. People would show up on-site and, with 200-300 people packed around me, away we went with the microphone and the speaker. Things have changed dramatically since those times and COVID really put the last nail in the coffin as far as the live auction goes.”
Now, auctions mostly take place online. In the case of Marchand, Morris said prospective buyers have the opportunity to review the items up for auction before bidding starts on Aug. 14. Once the auction begins, it’s similar to a live auction, with people placing bids until a final bid is awarded.
“If you bid within the last two minutes of one particular lot, it resets for another two minutes to give other people the chance to outbid the last bidder,” Morris said.
“We take lots of pictures. We take a description of the item, so we try to educate the buyer as much as possible for them not to have to come on-site and view … There’s no performance anxiety for me,” he said, adding he’s received interest in the Marchand Electric lots from all over the country.
Auctions of this nature can get emotional, Morris admits, especially when the business has a longstanding reputation in the community, but his job is to bring an end to the process.
“My job as an auctioneer is quite clear. I’m invited at the very end of everything. The chaos has already passed. I’m basically the sweeper. I’m the cleaner that comes in and cleans everything up and puts it to rest. I’m definitely not the grim reaper,” he said.
When it comes to Marchand Electric closing its doors, Morris said it’s a “big loss” for Ottawa.
“The company’s been here for almost as long as Ottawa has been here. I know a lot of the contractors. Everyone knows the Marchand brand. It’s unfortunate. Everybody I speak to is emotional about it because they’ve been here for so long.”
OBJ reached out to Marchand Electric, but did not hear back. On the company website, a message from the family reads: “Marchand Electric is currently experiencing difficulties. We hope to be back to serve our clients soon. Thank you for your 134 years of support.”
