Liquidity Services
American e-commerce surplus asset management company
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Liquidity Services, Inc. is an American e-commerce company providing surplus asset management services through a network of online marketplaces. It serves businesses and government agencies by facilitating the resale of surplus, returned, and end-of-life goods. Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, United States.[1][2]
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Nasdaq: LQDT S&P 600 component | |
| Industry | Surplus asset management E-commerce |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Founders | William P. Angrick III Jaime Mateus-Tique Ben Brown |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Key people | William Angrick III (CEO) |
| Brands | GoIndustry DoveBid GovDeals IronDirect Machinio Network International Liquidation.com Secondipity sierraauction.com |
Number of employees | 687 |
| Website | liquidityservices |
History
The company was founded in 1999 by William P. Angrick III, Jaime Mateus-Tique, and Ben Brown, in 1999, launching initially as Liquidation.com, a B2B auction marketplace.[3][4][5]
In 2001, it acquired SurplusBid.com, gaining access to contracts with the United States Department of Defense.[6]
Liquidity Services went public on NASDAQ on February 23, 2006, with an initial valuation of $76.9 million.[7] Prior to going public, Liquidity Services opened online auctions for European corporations and government agencies to sell their surplus goods on the international market.[8]
From 2008 to 2012, the company expanded through acquisitions, including GovDeals, Network International, the remarketing division of Jacobs Trading Company, and GoIndustry DoveBid.[9][10]
In 2015, it lost major contracts with Walmart and the Department of Defense for surplus vehicle auctions, though it retained the DoD's scrap property contract.[11][12]
In September 2016, the company launched IronDirect, a marketplace for construction equipment.[13][14]
It acquired Machinio in 2018, Bid4Assets in November 2021, and Sierra Auction in 2024.[15][16][17]
Services
Liquidity Services operates several e-commerce platforms including:
- Liquidation.com – Surplus retail and consumer goods[18][19]
- GovDeals – Government surplus auctions[20]
- AllSurplus – Centralized marketplace across categories
- Bid4Assets – Government real estate auctions
- Machinio – Used industrial machinery listings
- IronDirect – Construction equipment
- Secondipity – Returned and refurbished consumer products[21]
- Sierraauction.com– Vehicle and equipment auctions[17]
- GovLiquidation.com,[22]
Its marketplaces support over 500 product categories across sectors such as:[23]