Being ahead of the times and at the forefront of development within the auction industry was the founding purpose of the business. David Sandeman, founder of EIG when trying to buy at auction himself discovered that the information he wanted just wasn’t readily available so at the very beginning he created Faxwise. The company has continued to be a pioneer within the industry through changing times.
Our Company Growth
Faxwise
1990
Faxwise is set up by founder David Sandeman to fax out the auction results following all London property auctions on the night of the sale. This service develops into one of the world’s first automated fax broadcast systems.
1992
The company introduces a ‘Fax Back’ service for auctioneers to allow interested parties to retrieve the auction results via a fax machine.
1992
The ‘Live Link’ property auction service is launched. This service gives interested parties the opportunity to dial in and listen live to auctions as they are happening.
1993
EG Datawise goes live providing access to a database of all past lots. The data resides on our client’s PC, and is updated weekly by floppy disk.
1994
Introduced email updates for the Database with the option of the files being sent via email instead of floppy disk.
1995
A strategic alliance was formed with the Estates Gazette, the leading property publication in 1995 to promote auction information on the Estates Gazette internet site EGi which continues to this day.
Essential Information Group
1996
Faxwise re-brands as Essential Information Group which better defines what the company offers, following the decline of the fax machine.
1996
The EIGroup website is launched: www.eigroup.co.uk offering an online database with past and future property auction information available to search. At the time of the launch there were less than a quarter of a million sites worldwide compared to today when there are now over a billion.
1998
EIG broadcast the first ‘Salevision’ service from a Nelson Bakewell auction, giving the viewer the opportunity to follow the bidding live online and bid back to the room if they wished.
2000
EIG introduce the Auction Alert facility to automatically advise clients by email when properties matching their search criteria came to auction.
2001
EIG, formerly focused on covering London auctions begins an active campaign to include the regional auction houses thereby giving the industry National coverage.
2003
At the request of the property auction industry EIG launch an Auctioneer’s Portal where the auction houses can list their proposed future dates to avoid date clashes.
2005
EIG launch Auction Passport which is the first of its kind in the industry, allowing interested parties to download legal documents for lots of interest at their convenience 24/7.
2007
EIG start to broadcast live video and audio stream from auctions.
2012
EIG launch the Auction Management System, known as AMS which enables auctioneers to enter their lot data only once into a database that then produces a catalogue, immediate website updates and feeds the portals automatically.
2014
EIG hold their first online auction for an auction house selling lots with eBay style bidding. The auctioneer used the EIG online auction platform designed with their corporate branding.
2016
The new EIG website launches with an updated url: www.eigpropertyauctions.co.uk, the website features enhanced functionality and additional search capabilities.
2017
Launch of ‘ProBid’. A service that allows potential bidders to register online and upload personal ID information so that the auctioneer can verify their identity online and authorise them to bid.
2017
David Leary, EIG’s IT director, was invited to join Nava’s Auction Committee. His colleague David Sandeman sits on the RICS Auction Steering Group.
2018
EIG launch a new service for ‘committed offer’ transactions, providing auctioneers with the ability to list properties for sale online whilst inviting offers from committed buyers.
2020
EIG add a fully integrated AML solution for online auction bidder registration, helping auctioneers fulfil their AML and KYC obligations by harvesting comprehensive information on the bidder, buyer and source of funds.
2020
In April, EIG reach a milestone of 5,000 lots sold on its online auction platform. This quickly rises to over 10,000 sales by November as more auctioneers move online as a result of Covid-19 restrictions.