A Reno company that auctions vehicles
damaged in collisions was purchased by a
California outfit that is putting together a
nationwide chain of similar auctions.
EWE Salvage Pool and Auto Auction of
Reno was purchased by Copart Inc. of
Benicia, Calif.
Copart didn't disclose the purchase price.
From its auction yard at 105 Sunshine
Lane near the intersection of Interstate 80
and Highway 395, EWE Salvage Pool auctions
salvage vehicles on behalf of insurance
companies.
Many of the salvage vehicles auctioned by
EWE have been declared a total loss by an
insurance company. Others are recovered
stolen vehicles for which an insurance company
already has paid the owner.
Buyers at the auctions include vehicle dismantlers,
rebuilders and used-car dealers.
Copart, which operates 96 similar facilities
in 40 states, was attracted to EWE by its
location, said Wayne Hilty, the company's
chief financial officer.
Previously, he said, the company hauled
salvage vehicles from the Reno region to its
auction yard in Sacramento.
Hilty said, too, that Copart recognizes
northern Nevada as an area with significant
population and economic growth. Its
only other facility in Nevada is in the Las
Vegas area.
Copart doesn't disclose either the revenues
or the number of vehicles handled at individual
auctions, he said.
The company makes its money from
auction fees as well as services such as towing
and storage.
In the quarter ended April 30, the company
earned $11.5 million on revenues of $71.5
million, compared with earnings of $8.3 million
on revenues of $53.8 million in the same
quarter ayear earlier.
Part of the profit increase came as
Copart moved more of its business from
fixed-fee auctions to arrangements in
which it takes a percentage of the sales
price. At the same time, the company has
aggressively expanded, both through
acquisitions and construction of new facilities.
More than half its auction yards have
come under Copart ownership since 1999.
State corporate records list Don Zinser of
Sparks as president of EWE Salvage Pool
and Auto Auction Inc.
EWE was launched in May 1996 and
has billed itself as the only salvage pool
that provides live auctions of salvage vehicles.
Its auctions have been on alternate
Thursday afternoons, and bidders sit
inside and bid on vehicles shown on a
large-screen television.
