ABOUT US...

1946

Grahame and Dorrie White own and run a garage in Bridlington town centre. This is one year after the end of WW2. As a result, vehicles were scarce and Grahame saw a ‘gap in the market’.

He chose to utilise this by selling second hand cars to stock other garages. This was later developed into a motor auction, which was held once a week. The White’s tragically died in the same year and left four young sisters, the eldest, Audrey and Julie, decided to keep the business alive.

1972

The sisters designed and built a new auction house, which is in fact the current auction house and premises on Pinfold Lane. The “sister act” earned themselves an “enviable reputation”

Against the odds at the time, Julie White, the auctioneer, was titled “the only woman in a male dominated industry” and in a “league of her own”. Whilst Audrey managed the day to day running’s of the business, the sisters developed a formidable partnership. It became clear that the circumstances the sisters were left in helped them develop grit and determination. Consequently, they quickly proved to be competent, highly respected and above all, profitable.

1980s

During the evolution of the auction, Gerrard, Audrey’s son, was fine tuning his knowledge and experience in the industry, working in sales at reputable garage, including Pendragon and Dixons PLL.

1994

The start of the 3rd generation

Gerrard joined as general manager in 1994, he soon flourished alongside his mother and auntie, further solidifying the family business and financial standing.

2000

He stepped up to try his hand at auctioneering – knowing he had some big shoes to fill, however he has never looked back.

2005

He is accompanied by his wife, Sally, who deals with administration and secures sales with many of our loyal customers. Beyond being a family business, we have fundamental members of the team who’ve stood the test of time. Helen, has been with us over 20 years, Paul and Martin, have been with us since leaving school in the 90s. Sally’s mum, Margi plays a key role in vehicle driving, and runs the tea-stall every auction.

2008

BMA is referred to as “the regions only long-standing alternative to buying from dealerships or private sales”

2014

All three of Gerrard and Sally’s children, Holly, Bea & Fred have followed in their father’s footsteps into the motor trade and work alongside Gerrard in vehicle sourcing, sales and marketing.

2020

Similarly to other businesses, the pandemic caused a lot of uncertainty for BMA. Whilst insisting on sticking to traditional roots, BMA made the decision to diversify and develop a contactless online auction platform.

Thanks to our software providers and good friends at Webtron, we are capable of streaming auctions live across the UK, and boast a variety of bidding features to suit the many needs and wants of our diverse customer base. Unlike some of our competitors, we’ve decided to fully reopen since the easing of restrictions. We are proud to offer all the traditional services, such as daily viewings with keys, floor bidding and drive through auctions, simultaneous with online bidding so customers can utilise all our offerings and we can tailor these services to suit you.

2021

As BMA continues to grow as a business, we look for new ways to support our local community. We are regularly hosting fundraisers for charities such as Cash For Kids and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance. We take pride in the sponsorships of local cricket, rugby and football teams, we also sponsor a great young driver who competes in the Autograss super saloons championships and brings home many trophies.