Sam Coley of Tighnabruaich in Argyll, has created a new marine auction site – a sort of eBay for boaters – from scratch. He is just 14 years old and has been making a profit selling toys on other Internet trading sites since he was 8. Coupling his business acumen with his passion for sailing has led to a new marine auction website: www.bidmarine.co.uk .

But there’s a twist. Currently most auction sites get their income from taking a percentage cut of the transaction. bidmarine is different. It offers a free basic service for individuals selling marine goods and Sam is currently in talks with a major UK charity with a view to enabling vendors to donate proceeds from sales. 

For those wanting to create online shops and to list more sophisticated auctions, bidmarine will operate in a similar way to other auction sites, by taking a small percentage cut of the sale.

Sam said, “For people who haven’t used them before, most web auction sites are a bit scary. A lot of people into boating stay clear of computers, but they are always looking to buy and sell bits for their boats. I realised that with a bit of help they could use the Internet to reach a wider audience.”

Because bidmarine is free and has been created solely for the marine market, Sam is optimistic it will catch on in the boating world. “The marine market will be really happy they have an auction site just dedicated to them. We wanted to make sure people use it, so the fact that they can sell items for free and they can get professional help from people who understand their market, is a bonus”, concluded Sam.

Whilst Sam is at school, bidmarine will be managed by Sam’s father, Ken, a self-employed IT professional. He is said to be thrilled to support Sam and is committed to assist in the management of bidmarine.