Quarter Auction Craze Sweeps Into North Adams
 Guests at Berkshire Divas' November quarter auction bid on an item at the Eagles Hall in North Adams. The next auction will be Dec. 10, just in time for the holidays. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Quarters are useful for downtown parking meters, washing machines at the Laundromat and gumball machines.
A group of Berkshire County residents has created another use for them: quarter auctions.
The Berkshire Divas, a group that will celebrate its first birthday in January, comprises area residents who are consultants for different companies that offer direct sales — like Tupperware, Tastefully Simple and Pampered Chef.
Founders Diana Alexander and Jill Greene had the idea in spring 2013 to form a coalition of sorts of these businesspeople (most, but not all, of whom are women) to share resources, brainstorm marketing strategies and have fun.
And with fun being the optimal word, the group eventually gravitated to a new public idea that Greene had seen work in the Springfield area: quarter auctions, where people can bid quarters for a chance to win items provided by the consultants. Currently there are 13 consultants in the group, with a couple more already in the works; the group is not accepting any more members at this time.
Never heard of a quarter auction? Alexander urges people to come on down to the next auction — set for Wednesday, Dec. 10, just in time for the holiday gift-giving season — and see for themselves, like the folks who attended the first three auctions did.
"A lot of people came in and they were just curious," she said. "We tell people it's a lot easier to just come down and see how it's done."
That's true, but here's the basic gist: When you enter the event at the Eagles Hall on Curran Highway, you purchase an auction paddle with a number on it. You can purchase as many paddles as you like, as you can only place one bid per paddle. One by one, the consultants will show one of their items and let the audience know how many quarters a bid will cost. The rule is if the item is worth $20 or less, bids are one quarter. An item worth between $20 and $30 can be bid on for two quarters, while an item worth between $30 and $40 can be bid on for three quarters. Items worth more than $40 can be bid on for four quarters. (Oh, and they recommend you bring your own quarters to start with, though after the auctions get going there are quarters you can trade in for.)
Balls with numbers corresponding to the paddles are placed in a bin. Those who would like to bid on a particular item raise their paddle or paddles and put the appropriate number of quarters into a container in the middle of their table. Members of the Berkshire Divas go around the room and collect the quarters. A ball is drawn, and the winner is the person with the paddle with the corresponding number.
 This poster advertises the next several dates for the Berkshire Divas quarter auctions. |
By way of example, at the November auction, the first item up for bid was a set of Jamberry Nails offered by Ellen Lattizzori. Lattizzori first explained that Jamberry Nails were patterned stickerlike designs to decorate one's fingernails and toenails without messy polish.
"It will work for any party or if you just want to be a diva for the night," Lattizzori explained to the crowd of about 100 people in the Eagles Hall.
The item was worth less than $20, so people who wanted to bid put a quarter in the container and raised their paddle. If they purchased more than one paddle and wanted multiple chances to win, they could raise multiple paddles and bid another quarter for each paddle. The quarters were collected, the winner was drawn, and cheers broke out as the November auction got under way.
The next item from Tastefully Simple was worth more than $40, so people who wanted to bid for that item had to put four quarters into the container per paddle. And so on the evening went, until more than 20 items were auctioned. Winners went home happy with their deals.
"This is a night for people to come out and have some fun and get us out there," Alexander said.
Indeed, in addition to the consultants talking about the products they are auctioning, they also have tables set up in the room for people to browse and shop at before and after the auction as well as during the 15-minute break in the middle of the auction. That lets the public meet and get to know these home-based consultants.
"They know where to find us," Alexander said.
But it's not all about business. The Divas decided to give the event a charitable twist, so every month a 50/50 drawing is done and the proceeds go to a different nonprofit or community group. (The quarters go back to the consultants and the Berkshire Divas to cover the expenses like the hall rental, door prizes and the like.) The first auctions benefited Carrick's Journey, PopCares and the Berkshire Bulls Special Olympics team. Upcoming auctions benefit the Berkshire Food Project and the Sonsini Animal Shelter. Groups that would like to discuss getting on the schedule or hosting their own fundraising auction should call Greene at 413-448-8068.
And there are other prizes for the public as well. Every month a different vendor contributes a $100 gift certificate; the first 25 people in the door get a ticket for that. Alexander said other ideas for the December auction include gift bags and cards for the first 25 people. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the auction starts at 7.
"We've had people lining up at 5:30, quarter to 6," she said.
The Eagles sells dinner food for people who come early; in November, it was a macaroni and cheese dinner for only $4.
"The Eagles has been wonderful to work with," Alexander said. "We needed a place that was local that will willing to work with us. The Eagles came through."
Which is not to say that the Divas won't consider other locations moving forward, and in fact have been asked to expand down into Pittsfield. But for now, Alexander said, the group wants to make sure they can handle what they already have planned.
"It did take us quite a while, months, to pull this off," she said. "We want to focus on getting these off the ground."
By the looks of the smiles and cheers of the November attendees, they have succeeded. At one point, Leann O'Brien of the personalized bag company Initials Inc., who was the emcee for the evening, called out to the crowd: "Is everyone going to bring a friend next month?"
Betty Corbin of North Adams shouted back: "I bring a friend every month!"
After the auction, Corbin said she has come to the first three auctions, spending around $25 at each one and winning more than $200 back in prizes at one of them, most of which she will give as holiday gifts. (She keeps track on a piece of scrap paper: "I don't want to spend any more than $20," she said.)
And though she didn't win anything in November, she does plan on continuing to come and to bring friends to future auctions.
"I love the people. They have a lot of interesting items," she said. "I want to support them because they work so hard to get here."
Tags: auction, fundraiser,
