When the gavel comes down at a packed auction all eyes are on the person with the chant yet few realise that moment is the culmination of hours, days and years of hard work and training in order to make it a success.

To get an idea of the preparation it takes to become successful, this year’s South African Institute of Auctioneers (SAIA) Auctioneer of the Year 2025, Henco de Kock of Elite Auctions, shares a day in his life to give an insight to the public to see the amount of work that goes into auctioneering.

A Champion’s day

Henco’s alarm rings at 5am but most days he’s already awake. His mornings are a carefully structured routine he said that is less about beating competitors and more about beating yesterday’s version of himself.

“You must be aggressive to win work but money is never worth stomping someone else or adjusting your moral boundaries. By 7am with the house quiet my training begins with vocal drills, tongue twisters and counting exercises repetition and consistency is key. Auctioneering is like sports – you can’t just arrive on match day and expect to perform well – you have got to train daily,” Henco explained.

He works through number brackets from ones, twos, fives, twenties, all the way up to thousands, sharpening his flow so that rhythm replaces hesitation. “Slow is smooth and smooth is fast – it’s never about talking quickly it’s about talking cleanly and rhythmically so the crowd locks in, he said.

This unseen work is what separates a professional from an amateur.  And it’s also what buyers notice. A well-trained chant aids selling by creating atmosphere and building a trustful rapport that keeps the room energised. By 8am Henco is at his office across from his home. He tackles admin which is his least favourite part of the job but a non-negotiable. He believes that poor reporting creates trust issues.

“Reporting and payment are the end-product of an auction. If you’re payments are late and your reporting is poor- so is your product. That’s why getting your admin right is vital. Honesty and punctuality are non-negotiable when building a name and a reputation in this industry.

“The rest of my day is divided into about 50% chasing stock and new business, 30% working on administrative tasks and 20% on creative strategy and problem-solving. This includes following leads,marketing upcoming auctions and even simply reaching out to first-time buyers to convince them to give auctions a try and in so doing growing my business and the industry. I see education and engagement as part of my role as an auctioneer by showing people how auctions work and why they’re worth attending.”

Hard work pays off

“By the time auction day arrives, the butterflies are there”— but so is the preparation. His chant has  been refined, the catalogues double-checked, and the clients reassured. Buyers and sellers alike can feel the difference when a professional runs the floor. After the auction, the process moves swiftly to invoicing, collecting payments, and dispatching the goods sold. An auction of 400 lots can typically be wrapped up within three days: the auction itself, followed by two days dedicated to payments and dispatch. This means that, within just three days after the sale, sellers have the proceeds safely in their accounts.

Yet despite the intensity Henco also makes time for charity auctions conducting them free of charge as part of giving back to the community.

“The hours are long but the effort invested in building and maintaining a solid reputation is always worth it.”

“Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap—a timeless biblical truth. Consistency, training, and integrity are the seeds we plant, and in the long run, they yield the rewards.”

He said that honesty, integrity and transparency is paramount for aspiring auctioneers.

“Strict compliance with all legal requirements, together with the high standards set by SAIA, gives both sellers and buyers complete peace of mind—reassurance that every auction is conducted with professionalism, transparency, and integrity.”

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