In this blog, one of the many of my fathers creative, success stories will be told (without his permission). When my father was a teenager, his dad (my grandpa) owned a little BP gas station in a small town called Columbiana, Alabama. Dad was committed to helping support his family since he was born with a mother and father who were alcoholics and not so well off. The issue however is not that my dad, Chip, had to work, it was that he was working hard for money his parents would blow on alcohol while his friends would be hanging out. He did this from thirteen to seventeen. His senior year, he came home from work one night and recieved a phone call. One of his brothers had fallen asleep while drunk driving and was found dead. This alcohol problem in his family had opened his eyes to life, and how fragile it was. He did not want to end up like his brother, his mother, or father so he began looking for jobs to escape his surroundings. He wanted to do something not everybody could do, which was when auctioneering came into his mind. When he graduated, my father heard of an auctioneer down the road from where he lived, and without pay would go help work for him every week. At this time dad had found what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. He started with junk auctions; everyFriday he would drive to Amish country in Pennsylvania where some of the best auctioneers in the world are located. He would collect cheap items, load them in his truck, and drive back Friday night to sell on Saturdays. This lasted for a few years when he met my mother. She too was trying to start her own business of computer software at this time, but still found time to help at dads so called "auctions." In 1990, my father booked his first real estate auction, and it was a major success. However, the next was a complete failure. Four years of Auction school followed which is outrageously expensive as my parents spent everything they had on it. As auctions came, so did dad's experience in the business. With trial and many MAJOR errors, my father has reached the most successful auction company in the state of Alabama, and the top three in the southeast. He was won 2 state championships (which is the limit the country will allow) and has sold everything from millions of dollars worth of casino machines from Biloxi when Katrina hit, to a multi-million dollar college located in Birmingham. He has been involved in auto-auctions, real-estate, personal property, condos, tools, farm equipment andantiques. he is a proffesional appraiser (the one of three in Alabama) and has sold celeberities cars and houses. His success all started with the creativity of "branding" and goals. "Branding" is what most companies need in order to be successful. It is basically auction signs that make his name known when people see it, his company logo, and colors of OUR attire we wear at auctions. This all is based on creativity. What he wants on his billboards, the color of the signs (so they are easily seen and readable), the font of the text...they are all extremely important. He not only does this auction business, but has created his own side Ebay job. Being an auctioneer, a state champion auctioneer at that, who better to run an online auction business than a real "Talking fast"auctioneer? he has mastered the art behind Ebay and can just about sell anything, honestly, and fairly. Not only is my father a very successful business owner because of creativity, but my mothers business is as well. She created her own computer software that she sells to major corporations such as Wal-Mart, Target, and Bass-Pro. It organizes pay rolls which pays the employess. I feel like this story goes beyond ambition for my parents, specifically father. It starts with creativity. Finding out what you want to be. The experience follows with time. Me and my older brother Andrew who also attends Millsaps are also licensed in auctioneering and real estate. Their accomplishments has motivated us to be creative in our own way as well.
