TACOMA, Wash., July 17, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Ableauctions.com, Inc. (AMEX:AAC) (the "Company") announced today that it has sold its Arizona building for $1,700,000 and has moved its Tacoma, Washington operations into a flagship 42,000 sq ft., six-acre auction facility that will now serve as the head office for the Company.
The selling price for the Company's entire Arizona property was $1,700,000, paid as $400,000 in cash, $1,000,000 by the assumption of the mortgage on the property, and the balance $300,000 in inventory estimated at $700,000 retail and guaranteed to realize $300,000 for Ableauctions against a charge on the building.
Ableauctions had a working capital deficit of $700,000 at June 30, 2002, and estimated it will require approximately $650,000 during the third and fourth quarters to meet its working capital requirements plus additional funds to deploy and market its technology to the auction industry as planned. The sale of its building in Arizona relieves the financial strain on the company considerably.
A full comprehensive Corporate Update on the Company is available at www.ableauctions.com
The Company also announced today that is has expanded its Tacoma, Washington operations. The company moved its operations from the existing 15,000 sq. ft facility on a 1.5 acre property to a 42,000 sq ft. facility on a 6.0 acre property that will now serve as the Company's head office.
"The additional space enables us to double the size of our automotive auctions from 100 vehicles per week to 200 vehicles per week", said Randy Ehli, President of Washington operations. "The six acre facility also enables us in running significantly larger industrial auctions and broadening the scope of auctions we run."
About Ableauctions.com
Ableauctions.com is a high-tech business-to-business and consumer auctioneer that conducts auctions live and simultaneously broadcasts them over the Internet. The Company liquidates a broad range of products including computers, electronics, office equipment, furniture and industrial equipment that are acquired through bankruptcies, insolvencies and defaults. For a comprehensive Corporate Update and prior releases, visit www.ableauctions.com. For more information contact Investor Relations at 604-521-3375 or invest@ableauctions.com.
About iCollector.com
iCollector.com is the independent connection to the world's auction houses. Founded in 1994, it was the first company dedicated to trading antiques, fine art and premium collectibles on the Internet. Today iCollector.com represents more than 350 of the world's leading auction houses. Hundreds of thousands of collectors use icollector.com daily to search its global client base of auction houses and place bids, with the support of its extensive catalog archive. Since January 2001, its alliance with eBay Live Auctions has resulted in hundreds of Live Auctions being broadcast in real-time, direct to the saleroom as the auction happens, selling tens of thousands of lots to many thousands of users online. With offices in Europe, the U.S.A and Canada, its unparalleled understanding and expertise in this sector can help you to maximize your opportunities to find, buy or sell art, antiques and collectibles online.
This press release contains forward-looking statements, particularly as related to the business plans of the Company, within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Sections 21E of the Securities Act of 1934 and are subject to the safe harbor created by these sections. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or developments in our industry, to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from anticipated results include risks and uncertainties related to the performance of our auction houses, our ability to implement our inventory procurement strategy, general economic conditions, our ability to license our software to other auction houses, and other factors that are detailed in our Annual Report on Form 10-KSB filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Actual results may differ materially from the Company's expectations and estimates.