In December 2021, in the collector car world’s equivalent of a ’70s supergroup, Broad Arrow Auctions was formed by 11 highly regarded defectors from established collector car auction houses. And, in the few short years since its debut, it’s become the second-largest and fastest-growing house in the field. In 2025, its $624 million sales total marked 97 percent growth from the $316 million netted in 2024—enough, presumably, to bring tears of joy to investors who’d bought into its acquisitive parentco, the classic car insurance giant Hagerty, which used a SPAC to go public in 2021 at a $3.13 billion valuation.

In short, it’s been heady days for collector car buffs. Since the Great Recession until just recently, when the A.I. boom worked its dark magic on the Magnificent Seven, old car investments have outperformed the stock market. The big auction houses have used the occasion of this extended rally to shore up their positions: In 2015, Sotheby’s acquired an interest in Canada’s powerhouse RM Auctions, and in 2024, Christie’s acquired Gooding & Co. to form Gooding Christie’s. But while these long-established auction houses are sure to continue selling collectible automobiles, much of the biggest action these days takes place on the digital-native platforms, such as Bring a Trailer—founded in 2007 and now owned by Hearst—which sold $1.7 billion worth of cars online last year. The upstart Cars & Bids, launched in 2020 by YouTube personality Doug DeMuro, sold an estimated $150 million worth of inventory last year.

After online auction sales finally overtook live car auctions in 2024, the old houses continued to make their way into the 21st century and the once-unthinkable world of online auctions. But according to Ramsey Potts, Broad Arrow’s vice president of sales, there’s enough business to go around. “I don’t think the car collecting, car eventing hobby has ever been better,” he said. “When I hear some of these prior-generation enthusiasts—and there’s not many left—say the kids aren’t into the car hobby, I tell them, ‘Kids are more into the car hobby than they’ve ever been.’”

Some recent sales make his point. At the Amelia Concours auction in March, Broad Arrow realized $111 million in sales, rendering it the most successful sales event ever at Florida’s ritzy Amelia Island Car Week. The event featured 1,000 bidders from 23 countries and set records for five relatively modern supercars, including a 2003 Ferrari Enzo, hammered at $15.2 million, and a 2017 Ferrari F12tdf, which changed hands at a never-before-achieved $4.2 million.

2003 Ferrari Enzo, sold for $15.2 million. Photo: Courtesy of Broad Arrow Auctions

For Potts, the data that Broad Arrow brings to the auction business can be as important as the expertise—and the data is encouraging. “We’re trying very hard to be the house that cares about the science as much as the theater. From day one—maybe before day one—we believed in the coming wave of the next generation. Others were late to that,” he said. “We always need to stay cognizant of that statistic that shows car collectors are in their prime from ages 50 to 70. A 60-year-old car collector graduated from high school in 1984. Figuring out what cars are relevant to them is not hard.”

Broad Arrow arrived on the scene with a built-in advantage stemming from the collective experience of the industry veterans who started it—including Barney Ruprecht, the son of former Sotheby’s C.E.O. Bill Ruprecht. But, of course, the house also benefitted significantly from the capital and support of perhaps the most developed collector car ecosystem on the planet.

McKeel Hagerty, a divinity student turned crackerjack businessman and now the C.E.O. of Hagerty, took his parents’ tiny insurance business underwriting pleasure boats from their Michigan kitchen and supersized it in his own image. In addition to insuring 2.5 million old cars around the world, Hagerty publishes a magazine with a circulation of nearly 2.2 million (full disclosure: I write for it), has an extensive online and social media presence, and runs a profitable YouTube channel with 3.82 million subscribers. Hagerty also offers valuation guides for collector cars and makes substantial investments in old car culture—owning or sponsoring car shows here and abroad that pop up everywhere from England’s Goodwood Festival of Speed to the Concours d’Lemons races in America.

1954 Maserati A6GCS by Fiandri & Malagoli, estimated price $2.4 million–$2.9 million. Photo: Courtesy of Broad Arrow Auctions

Hagerty Marketplace, its online marketplace, has grown with each passing year since its 2022 launch. And its captive finance company, Broad Arrow Capital, which debuted the same year, finances high-ticket auction purchases (typically exceeding $250,000) for live or online buyers and arranges private treaty sales for high rollers.

So yes, Hagerty may be the most trusted name in the classic car world. But since its SPAC deal and extended dalliance with private equity, many of its competitors also claim that Hagerty has morphed into a “Death Star.” The laundry list of complaints includes the accusation that it’s buying up everything that isn’t nailed down, raising prices at car shows, and attempting to monetize a hobby that once relied on volunteerism while raising money for charity. Also, said one competitor, “It’s a little scary for an insurance company to be actively trying to be part of the sales of the property they insure.” (Hagerty declined to comment for this story.)

At the same time, plenty of collectors and even rivals see Hagerty’s entry with Broad Arrow as a logical progression—a synergistic marriage of old-school enthusiasm for old cars, substantial capital investment, bountiful data, and a vast customer base it has accumulated as an insurer. Plus, it’s not as if Sotheby’s (founded in 1744) or Christie’s (1766) haven’t been in the business of making money. It’s just that it’s 2026, and every possible cash stream gets securitized.

Still, Potts recognizes that the luxury auction business is at least part show business. After all, they’re not auctioning mining rights. “We strive to make the experience rewarding whether it’s online or live,” he said. “Beyond the magic, the art of it, it matters to us that we get it right. It’s not just the show, it’s the product. And we only get to do this because of the tenured talent we have.”

Thanks, Jamie. It’s fascinating to see the classic car market keep growing, even as we imagine the buyers are aging out. I’ll be back tomorrow in the Inner Circle with the data from the London auctions. Upgrade for access.

See you there,
M