Mitchells have been holding auctions in Cockermouth for over 160 years and we’re still going strong today with Household Auctions, fortnightly, on Thursdays. Mitchells started life in 1849 when Robinson Mitchell, the youngest son of a local clog and boot maker, began selling furniture in a weekly sale close to Cockermouth’s Main Street, moving to a larger wooden shed on The Fairfield as the busin
ess grew. Fed up with haggling over prices, he announced he would start taking open bids from would-be customers and so the modern method of auctioneering was born which is now used throughout the country. Mitchells was registered as a limited company in 1873 and has continued to evolve over the last 140 years, introducing Estate Agency and Land Agency divisions. In 2002 it relocated its Livestock and Land Agency businesses to an agricultural park on the outskirts of Cockermouth to allow the firm to expand. This also made way for Sainsbury’s supermarket to be built in the town centre and some of the features of the original livestock auction mart are reflected in the design of the supermarket building. Our saleroom is without doubt one of the most interesting and atmospheric in the country. The octagonal auction ring – converted from a refurbished cattle market – is surrounded by tiered wooden bench seating which makes it very easy to follow the sale and see what’s going on. It’s an ideal space for selling household goods by auction and is very exciting to watch and take part. The wider saleroom has plenty of space for displaying goods for easy viewing before the sale, making it an enjoyable experience for people to browse through the hundreds of lots for sale every two weeks.
