Manheim has seen three of its trainees graduate from its auctioneers’ academy to become ‘masters of the gavel’.

The remarketing specialist, the only organisation in the UK that has a dedicated programme for training the next generation of auctioneers, celebrated the success of Charlie Lawton (24), James Nutt (22), and Steven Ruff (25) in April.

Their achievement follows an intensive seven-month training programme that included working with experts, both from around the business and external, to learn the art of auctioneering.

Andy Conde, general manager of group auctioneers at Manheim, said: “I am absolutely delighted for Charlie, James and Steven. They are all now fully qualified auctioneers and I very much look forward to seeing them in action soon.

“I would like to thank all of our team members from across the business – and from organisations like RADA in Business, which provided vocal coaching – who have supported the Auctioneers' Academy and provided us with a fantastic framework to develop our talent of the future.”

Tim Hudson, managing director of Manheim Remarketing, said: “It’s great to see the development of talent from within the business and I congratulate Charlie, James and Steven on their achievement.

“Ultimately, the benefit for Manheim and our customers is that more effective auctioneers help to sell their vehicles more efficiently, for the best possible prices.”

Charlie Lawton, who has been with Manheim for almost three years, said: “Training to be an auctioneer is what I’ve wanted to do since I first joined the company in a temporary role in 2013, and the new Auctioneers’ Academy gave me that opportunity.

“Being told that I had passed the final assessment was the proudest achievement of my professional career. I used to be quite shy and didn’t like addressing even a small group of strangers, but now I can get up on the rostrum and confidently sell vehicles to crowds of buyers in our auction halls.”