If it wasn't for the Kick Sales Platform on the Bhima website, experienced bloodstock agent Bill Mitchell wouldn't have scooped on what he believes was a bargain at the Gold Coast Magic Millions Yearling Sale.
There was plenty Mitchell liked about Lot 243: the filly was by champion sire Snitzel and out of a half-sister to a Group 1 winner Triple Honour (Honours List {Ire}).
Only trouble was that he felt the horse would be beyond his budget and besides, he had few orders for fillies. But when bidding stalled and the filly suddenly appeared affordable Mitchell was able to secure the Lot for just $120,000 from Bhima Thoroughbreds.
Lot 243 Snitzel x Tripled
The reason Mitchell was able to make a quick decision was because he had checked on the filly through sales platform on the Bhima website, which provides reports from two experienced vets, and other vital information not available in sales catalogues.
"I was able to bid with confidence," Mitchell said. "If I didn't have that information from Bhima's website I might have assumed that something was slipping through the cracks and had a problem. I might not have been able to bid, but I had all of the information to have a couple of bids and end up with a very nice filly."
"If I didn't have that information from Bhima's website I might have assumed that something was slipping through the cracks and had a problem." - Bill Mitchell
"I had looked at the filly twice, but I didn't have many filly orders and we thought it was very cheap. I joined bidding at $80,000, I got her at $120,000 and it's basically already sold to friends. I'm not in the syndication business but when I do see something I like at the right price I back myself and take a position. I was only able to make that decision because I had the information at our fingertips. It made it an easy decision."
Bill and James Mitchell inspecting yearlings at the Magic Millions
Mitchell said transparency is the key word – not just for the individual but also for the industry – and that the vets providing the reports for Bhima, Chris Lawler and Dave McKellar, gave him even more confidence.
"It saved me having to spend money getting X-rays and scopes done because I had the information I needed on all of the Bhima horses. I had seen them all as well. It gave me a lot of confidence to have its scope details and X-ray details from two respected veterinarians."
"It gave me a lot of confidence to have its scope details and X-ray details from two respected veterinarians." - Bill Mitchell
It isn't just low risk reports that can help buyers though. In the case of a yearling with a super pedigree, a medium risk report can instruct potential buyers that a horse could fall into their price range.
Bill Mitchell
"It's all up to the buyer, a couple of Bhima's horses were listed as medium risk, but essentially when two vets of this calibre say it is low risk then I am comfortable," Mitchell said. "Chris Lawler is a vet I use all of the time. This is going to make the vendor's life easier. And as far as buyers are concerned, some people want their own vets and that is their prerogative."
Bhima Thoroughbreds are the first group to use the sales platform and Proven Thoroughbreds Jamie Walter said it wasn't just the vet reports that provided confidence for buyers.
Kick Sales Platform also includes full disclosure of horse ownership, complete dam progeny record and the farm where the horse was raised.
"For a buyer like me these are really important things," Walter said." At my level of the market I'm trying to buy value, and aiming for the middle to lower end of the market. One of the great virtues of that platform is transparency. Things like X-rays, veterinary history, ownership details of the horse and where the horse has been reared."
"One of the great virtues of that platform is transparency." - Jamie Walter
Walter purchased Lot 61, a filly by So You Think (NZ), for $80,000 and the benefits of the platform will continue when he syndicates her.
Lot 61 So You Think (NZ) x Rekindled Glory
"Now I can provide the reports for prospective owners, it will make my job a lot easier," he said, adding that he hopes more vendors use the platform in future."
"I'm a big fan of transparency with this type of thing," he said. "I actually suggested a few years ago that auction house put the X-rays on the stable door. Clearly that hasn't happened. I believe every buyer should have access to this type of information, without having to pay every time for somebody to analyse it. This is basically that, the report is not on the stable door, but it is online and in the buyer's hand, so it is just as good."
Other agents were also impressed with the platform, including Hong Kong's George Moore who could see the broader benefits.
"I think the more transparency, the better, for the industry as a whole," he said. "Often my owners are offshore and I can direct them to a page to show that it is low risk."
Note: The Kick Sales Platform is owned by interests involved in the ownership of TDN AUSNZ.
