Professionalism

By John Schultz, CAI, AMM | Grafe Auction Company This article describes our experience with Nebraska’s auction-house permit process in August and September 2026. When a retailer closes, the remaining alcohol inventory can create a question that doesn’t come up with shelving or refrigeration: can we include it in the auction? Nebraska now has an auction-house permit for qualifying alcohol sales, and our experience obtaining one offers a place to start. ...

After a foodservice liquidation, the survey scores came in. Same complaint, different names. The display piece mounted high on the wall. The scramble for help. Paying someone to take down what they already bought. Our invoice terms were clean. The buyer removes their lots. Onsite help is fee-based, not staff. High mounts and wall pieces were always going to be the buyer’s problem under the paper. I still kept catching recovery notes that apologized for the terms. “You shouldn’t have had to climb.” “You shouldn’t have had to pay for help.” That sounds kind. It also rewrites the deal after the gavel. ...

The Observation I spent a long day scoring auctioneers. Prelims first. Then finals: interview, then selling again. Prelims decide who keeps competing. They ask a hard question: can you call bids under pressure, in front of people who do this for a living? That skill is real. It’s not the whole title. The final score is not the prelim run again. You sit and answer for the trade. Then you sell again on the block. Only people who advance face that second test. ...