- Words by Tess Van Straaten Photography by Lia Crowe

Internationally renowned car guru Tim Quocksister will never forget the first car he ever sold. It was a 1997 Porsche Boxster and it was 20 years agoB次元官网网址攋ust two weeks after launching .

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e maintained relationships for years with customers, and a lot of customers who bought a car off of us 20 years ago still are doing it today,B次元官网网址� the 42-year-old says, B次元官网网址淚 can think of multiple people who have bought 10 or 15 cars off of us over the years and I certainly appreciate their loyalty.B次元官网网址�

The Victoria-based company saw its highest-priced car sale this springB次元官网网址攁 whopping $7.9 million USD for a rare 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Alloy Gullwing.

B次元官网网址淭here were only 29 of them made and that was the third one that we have sold,B次元官网网址� explains Tim, whoB次元官网网址檚 also sold 48 of the coupe and roadster variants of the 300SL.

B次元官网网址淩ight now, we have four in stock and weB次元官网网址檝e probably transacted the most of anyone else in the world that isnB次元官网网址檛 a restoration shop. We love the carsB次元官网网址攖heyB次元官网网址檙e probably one of the most recognized cars in the world with the doors that go up. TheyB次元官网网址檙e iconic and they were just so ahead of their time in terms of technology and performance.B次元官网网址�

Several of those sales have been in the last year, during the COVID-19 pandemic. And given that the non-alloy versions fetch more than $1 million USD, itB次元官网网址檚 a pretty strong indication of the health of the collector car market.

B次元官网网址淏usiness is exceptional and weB次元官网网址檝e sold about 120 cars on Bring a Trailer [a digital auction platform], which is now one of the biggest auction sites in the world. Over the last year theyB次元官网网址檝e set all-time records for car prices and weB次元官网网址檝e sold three of the highest-priced cars that theyB次元官网网址檝e ever sold.B次元官网网址�

ItB次元官网网址檚 not at all what Tim and his team expected when the COVID-19 pandemic first hit in March of 2020, shuttering businesses and rocking economies across North America and the world.

B次元官网网址淲e obviously got a big scare and thought thereB次元官网网址檚 a good chance business is going to be non-existent. We made an effort to get rid of as much inventory as we could as fast as we could,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淎s it turned out, March wasnB次元官网网址檛 as slow as we thought it would be, April was busier, May, June, July and August were good and itB次元官网网址檚 been up, up, up every single month. What we did learn from it is that the vast majority of people have more time on their hands than theyB次元官网网址檝e ever had to sit and look at the internet and buy things theyB次元官网网址檝e always wanted.B次元官网网址�

ItB次元官网网址檚 a far different outcome then the last time the world changed overnight. Silver Arrow was incorporated in May of 2001B次元官网网址攍ess than four months before the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US.

B次元官网网址淢y biggest learning lesson was it doesnB次元官网网址檛 matter how much you know, your world can change very quickly,B次元官网网址� Tim explains. B次元官网网址淎t that time, I was buying cars in Canada and selling them in the United States and every US dollar was worth around $1.55 to $1.60 Canadian. And then the borders closed. I learned very quickly you canB次元官网网址檛 count on the cross-border exchange being there. We had a good wake-up call right away.B次元官网网址�

Silver Arrow rode out those challenging times and business has been booming ever since. In addition to David Street location in Victoria, the company has a warehouse in Blaine, Washington that it ships vehicles from, and a facility in Scottsdale, Arizona [home of the famous Barrett-Jackson collector car auctions] thatB次元官网网址檚 used as its US-operations base.

B次元官网网址淚 would say about 70 per cent of our business is outside of Victoria and of that, 70 to 80 per cent is out of Canada,B次元官网网址� Tim says. B次元官网网址淚 think for business this next year, weB次元官网网址檙e going to make a deeper impact in the US market and build our local consignment business up more and more.B次元官网网址�

Silver Arrow ships cars all over the world and Tim has helped buyers build $100 million-plus collections. Right now, he says the market is trending towards a much more modern era of collector vehicles.

B次元官网网址淭here are a lot of the cars from the B次元官网网址�80s and B次元官网网址�90s that have had huge leaps in value the last few years, and a lot of your old-timers that were collectors of the B次元官网网址�30s, B次元官网网址�40s and B次元官网网址�50s cars are becoming a little obsolete,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e finding that the 40-year-old collector isnB次元官网网址檛 looking for that. TheyB次元官网网址檙e looking for a car from the B次元官网网址�70s, B次元官网网址�80s or B次元官网网址�90sB次元官网网址攃ars like Acura NSXs that came up in 1991, the Ferrari Testarossa or Lamborghini Countach. Those were very special in their time and are gaining a great deal of interest from younger collectors.B次元官网网址�

As the company celebrates its 20th anniversary, Tim says the key to success is adjusting to forks in the road while keeping to your core principles.

B次元官网网址淵ou certainly have challenges along the way, but you need to stick to your fundamentals,B次元官网网址� he advises. B次元官网网址淪ay what you mean, mean what you say, and do what you say youB次元官网网址檙e going to do.B次元官网网址�

Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
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