Guest Post by Karen Wrege, Founder of Capital Benefit Auctions
When it comes to building a successful charity auction, the way an experience is selected, positioned, and presented can have just as much impact as the experience itself.
We invited Karen Wrege, Founder of Capital Benefit Auctions, to share her perspective after a recent conversation with Winspire’s Jason Champion and Ashley Gardas about what nonprofits and auction professionals should consider when incorporating consignment travel into an event.
Below, Karen shares some of the practical takeaways that stood out to her.
A trip can sound wonderful and still be difficult to sell.
“Wine country getaway.” “Luxury beach vacation.” “European escape.”
Those descriptions create an image, but when someone is considering spending several thousand dollars at a charity auction, the details matter.
That was one of my biggest takeaways from a conversation with Jason Champion and Ashley Gardas of Winspire, a company that provides consignment travel experiences specifically for nonprofit fundraising.
Make the Experience Tangible
Jason and Ashley emphasized something deceptively simple: tell bidders what they are actually buying.
Where will they stay? What experiences are included? Is airfare part of the package? How will they get from place to place?
The more concrete the package, the easier it is for bidders to imagine themselves taking the trip—and to understand what they’re bidding on.
Winspire’s catalog includes experiences ranging from international travel and sporting events to culinary, family, and adventure trips. Organizations can reserve packages without paying upfront and pay only for those that sell.
But the inventory itself was only part of what interested me.
Choose Fewer Experiences—and Choose Them Intentionally
One of the practical parts of our conversation concerned how many consignment packages belong in an auction.
More isn’t necessarily better.
For an event of roughly 350 guests, Jason and Ashley suggested something like one consignment experience in the live auction and two in the silent auction. At around 500 guests, perhaps two live and three silent.
Those aren’t formulas. But the underlying principle is important: consignment should complement donated items, not overwhelm the auction.
A premium experience also needs the right placement. A $30,000 trip, for example, is unlikely to reach its potential sitting in a crowded silent auction. The more significant the purchase, the more useful it can be to have an auctioneer tell the story and create competition around it.
When Two People Want It, Consider Selling It Twice
Consignment creates an opportunity donated items usually don’t.
If two bidders are competing aggressively for a Winspire experience, the auctioneer may be able to offer the package to both at the same price.
That can transform the economics of a single live-auction lot. Winspire allows its experiences to be sold multiple times, including through different fundraising activities at the same event.
The important part is planning for that possibility beforehand. Your auctioneer should know which experiences can be duplicated and how you want that opportunity handled.
Think Beyond Auction Night
Travel fulfillment is another piece nonprofits sometimes underestimate.
Once a Winspire experience sells, the organization gives the winner a booking voucher. Winspire’s travel team then handles reservations and can often help with adjustments such as extending a hotel stay, adding travelers, or arranging additional excursions.
That matters because the winning bidder’s experience with an auction item doesn’t end when the paddle goes down.
A donor who spends thousands of dollars supporting your mission should feel well cared for afterward.
The Takeaway
Consignment travel works best when it isn’t treated as filler for an auction catalog.
Choose experiences that fit your audience. Describe exactly what bidders are getting. Put premium trips where they can be properly presented. Have a strategy for selling multiples when competition creates the opportunity.
And make sure the experience after the auction lives up to the promise you made in the room.
That combination—not simply having an impressive destination—is what turns travel into an effective fundraising tool.
Planning Your Next Charity Auction?
The right travel experience is only part of the equation. Winspire helps nonprofits add memorable travel, sports, culinary, and adventure experiences to charity events without purchasing inventory upfront.
Karen Wrege is the founder of Capital Benefit Auctions, where she helps Washington, DC-area nonprofits turn galas into record-breaking fundraising events, including a $201,450 paddle raise completed in just 90 seconds.
A former FCC and U.S. Department of State CIO who oversaw the FCC’s electronic spectrum auctions, Karen pairs a strategist’s eye with the high-energy stage presence of her son and auctioneer, George Tsamouras. Her clients average a 40%+ year-over-year lift in paddle-raise revenue.
Learn more about Karen and Capital Benefit Auctions at capitalbenefitauctions.com.
A former FCC and U.S. Department of State CIO who oversaw the FCC’s electronic spectrum auctions, Karen pairs a strategist’s eye with the high-energy stage presence of her son and auctioneer, George Tsamouras. Her clients average a 40%+ year-over-year lift in paddle-raise revenue.
