G. J. Wisdom & Co

G.J. Wisdom & Co was set up in 1987 to serve what was then the bailiff industry, and that origin still shapes the business. It acts for insolvency practitioners, commercial landlords, finance companies, private enforcement agents and High Court Enforcement Officers — which means the stock arrives because someone has failed to pay, and it usually has to be cleared from a building on a deadline.

What you can buy

• Business contents — the fit-out of a bakery, an office, a hot-desk suite.
• Catering equipment.
• Plant and machinery, including heat exchangers and commercial pumps.
• IT and office equipment.
• Wines and spirits — a recent lot was the cellar of a high-end London restaurant.
• Specialist stock such as medical examination trainers and simulators.
• Property occasionally, including garages.

How the bidding works

Three routes run in parallel and the front page labels each one: online auctions with a closing date, sales by tender, and assets simply "available for offers" at a phone number. Lots get postponed and re-listed as insolvency timetables move, and the site says so openly rather than quietly removing them. A mailing list lets you subscribe by category — catering, plant, IT, luxury goods and others.

What to check before you bid

The house publishes four separate documents: general conditions of sale, conditions of online auction, conditions of sale by tender, and website terms. They are not interchangeable, and which applies depends on the route the lot is being sold through. Insolvency and enforcement lots are sold as they stand with no warranty of title beyond what the appointment allows, and collection is from the premises within a short window.