While the coronavirus pandemic has cut in half the amount of business Johnstone Auction Mart does, the company has managed to adapt by moving most of its activities online.
The auction mart is doing more business online than ever before, while more customers — limited to 25 people in the sale arena with proper spacing — are making their bids either online or by phone, explained owner Scott Johnstone. These bidding processes have gone well and products have been selling just as good as before.
“That part’s been good. The public is adapting. They’re not bucking it. They are going along with it,” he said.
However, the auction mart is doing half the regular business it did before the pandemic shut down everything. Yet while the company is less busy, it’s still functioning, Johnstone continued. Agriculture-related businesses were exempt from the shut-down orders since the provincial governments deemed them essential services.
Doing less business has been challenging and it’s no different than what other companies have faced, he added.
According to the Johnstone Auction Mart website, some upcoming auctions are still going ahead while others have been cancelled. For example, the next cow/calf sale is on May 2, while the auction of exotic birds and small animals has been re-scheduled to Oct. 26. A catalogued horse sale has been re-scheduled to Aug. 23, while a regular horse sale is tentatively set for June 4.
Auction prices for cattle and cow/calf pairs have still been good despite the uncertainty of the pandemic. However, there have been fewer animals to sell and fewer auctions in which to sell them, Johnstone said.
The agriculture sector is doing well right now, but the cattle side is troubled since two major beef processing plants in Alberta have shut down, he continued. Many people hope this is only temporary and things can get back to normal.
“It’s good that we can still operate … We can hardly wait until we reopen again,” Johnstone added. “Same as everybody, I guess.”
For more information visit http://johnstoneauction.ca.
