Not only does USS operate the largest number of auction locations (kaijo in Japanese), but also this auction house also is responsible for the largest used car auction in Japan – USS Tokyo – where cars in up to 10 lanes are auctioned simultaneously throughout the day on Thursdays.
The first USS auction was a humble affair with just 255 vehicles being auctioned. The key to USS’s very strong growth from here to a dominating position of 33.7% share of the auto auction market has been its aggressive deployment of information technology solutions pioneering the widespread introduction of electronic and remote bidding. The advent of the Internet has accelerated this and the other auction houses struggled to keep up.
Only some of the over 120 auction locations we buy from are USS auctions, but the USS group is by far the biggest player in the industry.
In 2008, the USS group sold more than 1.86 million vehicles. Now, to put that in perspective, that is an average of 35,800 per week. Yes, you read that right – per week.
Or how about this for another way of looking at it: Japan exports about 1.5 million used cars every year. That's almost the number of vehicles passing through the USS auctions. That's how big this company is.
(And, in case you are wondering what “USS” stands for, it has nothing to do with the US navy or Star Trek. It actually is an acronym of “Used car System Solutions”.)
JAA (Japanese Automobile Auction) Car Auctions and HAA Kobe was absorbed and merged to the USS Group.
JAA averages 1,000 to 2,000 vehicles every Wednesday, whereas HAA Kobe typically has 5,000 to 6,000 vehicles each Saturday.
If you visit Japan, HAA Kobe is where we will take you as it is the largest auction in the same region as our office. We will usually take you on Friday, which is the day before the auction. The reason it's best to go on the Friday is that it gives you a chance to have a good look at all the cars and prepare your bidding strategy for when they are auctioned on the Saturday.
Of course, that means that you will miss seeing the live bidding on the Saturday but, honestly, there isn't much to see except some guys hunched over computer terminals while cars flash on the screens.
Tuesday
USS Yokohama
USS-R Nagoya
Wednesday
USS Sapporo
USS Tohoku
USS Fukuoka
USS Kobe
USS Niigata
JAA
Thursday
USS Tokyo
Friday
USS Nagoya
USS Osaka
USS Saitama
Saturday
HAA Kobe
USS Kyushu
USS Gunma
USS Shizuoka
USS Okayama
USS Hokuriku
*Please note that this schedule is subject to change and is for reference only.
We find that the most successful importers really understand how it all works - from the auction to the ship and beyond. Don't get left behind!
