ABOUT AUCTIONAIR LTD.

Background | People | Contact us

BACKGROUND

Auctionair came out of a project for British Airways in 2001, aiming to provide entertainment and retail opportunities to passengers whilst in flight.

After various subsequent trials in 2002 the company was fully launched in July 2003.

Auctionair has now established a new kind of marketplace, bringing together a special sort of customer with carefully selected suppliers; facilitated by innovative media owners.

Auctionair gains customers in the same way as a direct mail business, by building a base customers who become regular buyers.

The company enjoys over 40% repeat business from its customers and has already carried out several hundred thousand profitable transactions with them.

Auctionair is EIS registered and funded by private investors.

PEOPLE

Who are the directors?

Albert Scardino (Chairman)

Albert, 57, is a strategic planner, media investor and commentator. He is an associate of Oxford Analytica, a political-economic think tank and consultancy. Until 2005 he was executive editor (news) of The Guardian. He is a director of a number of companies and charities, including the Institute for Philanthropy. He was founder and editor of a group of weekly newspapers in the US where he won a Pulitzer Prize. He later worked as a correspondent for The New York Times, as Press Secretary to the Mayor of New York and as an adviser to the chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission. He has lived in London since 1993 and has been the chairman of Auctionair since its launch.

Duncan Hilleary (Chief Executive)

Prior to launching Auctionair, Duncan, 46, had spent 15 years in the in-flight media business. He founded Spafax Airline Network in 1985 and was the Chief Executive until 1998. He expanded the company to serve 40 airlines from 6 offices around the world, achieving an annual billing turnover of US$100m. Duncan left Spafax after selling his shareholding in the company. The company is now owned by WPP.

Adrian Cox (Non-executive Director)

Adrian is currently Executive President and General Manager of Ask.com Europe. He joined Auctionair as a non-executive director in 2006. Before joining Ask Jeeves as it was then known, Adrian held executive marketing positions at Cadbury Schweppes and St Ivel. Ask.com is now a division of IAC Search & Media.

Neil Worgan (Non-executive Director)

Neil is the Managing Director of the Sure Group, a marketing services and advertising group of companies based in London. He is also the Chairman of Paradise Music a music label and distributor with offices in Hertfordshire and Florida and a Non Executive Director of Marlin Cars. He was Finance Director and then Chief Executive of Aspen Communications PLC from 1991 to 1996. Neil is a qualified lawyer and Chartered Accountant and has been with Auctionair since launch.

Andrew McRae (Non-executive Director)

Andrew McRae, A.C.A. 48, is Managing Director, International for Hays PLC, the UK, publicly quoted, specialist recruitment company and has responsibility for all of Hays’ businesses outside of the UK & Ireland. Andy has more than twenty years of international business experience, much spent within the support services sector. A qualified UK Chartered Accountant, prior to assuming senior general management roles, Andy held a number of senior financial positions in the UK. In 1999, Andy led the public-to-private management buy-out of Coutts Consulting Group with backing from 3i. Having acquired the business for some £40 million, the company was sold to a leading US competitor in January 2002 for more than £70 million. He joined Auctionair in March 2004.

Who are the management team?

Alec Shaw Stewart (Webmaster)

Alec is a software, IT and web development professional. Between 1985 and 1996 he worked as a programmer for Rolls Royce, Morgan Grenfell, BP, Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank, Raytheon Group and ICI. In 1996 he worked for Venus Internet for 2 years before branching out as an independent web developer in 1998. Alec built the Auctionair web site and is responsible for e-business and online marketing and has been with the company since launch.