While out of professional courtesy we’ve had an informal moratorium on reporting on the decline and fall of Kruse Auctions over the last two years, internally, we’ve had a Death Watch running. That clock hit zero hour on Wednesday, when Dean Kruse told the DeKalb Star the Kruse International name was for sale. “We have several people trying to buy the trade name.” he said. “I have three people trying to buy the company.”
Kruse’s last auction was on March 13, and they haven’t scheduled any more. Their signature spring Auburn auction was turned over to a new company, Auburn Auctions LLC, closely affiliated with Kruse International and formed in March 2010 expressly to operate the spring Auburn sale. According to the Star, there are no firm plans for the Labor Day Auburn auction, although Dean Kruse left open the possibility of running it as a Kruse sale.
The longer he waits until confirming a Labor Day sale, the more trouble Kruse will have: Worldwide has been headquartered in Auburn since 2008 and has expanded its September 2-4 sale to 450 cars. Recently, Classical Event Auctions, founded by Greg Peterson and Frank Parr of Hamilton, announced a third (second) two-to-three day Labor Day auction for Auburn, at the Classic City Center in DeKalb.
Auburn Auctions is not without controversy, either, and a Florida venue has sued Kruse over the new outfit, claiming they’re a shell company. “It’s not a sham,” Dean Kruse told the (Fort Wayne) Journal Gazette. “It’s a real deal.”