Charles Hanson established Hansons Auctioneers in 2005.
Image: The Rostrum/Hansons
Seasoned local auctioneer and valuer Kevin Lines will now head up the Old Bakery saleroom in Roughton, near Cromer.
Hanson told ATG: “When approached by Kevin Lines, I saw the opportunity to work with a team with the drive and dedication needed to achieve what we want to build in Norfolk. The county has great potential”.
He added that for the foreseeable future the firm will be staying in Roughton hosting monthly and specialist sales.
Lines, who spent 27 years at Keys and joined Bishop & Miller in 2022, announced his move via social media. “After a whirlwind of a week consisting of many meetings and late nights, I’m delighted to announce that me and the team have swiftly joined the newly re-branded Hansons Auctioneers of Norfolk. Our first auction will be on November 29.” He will be joined by his son Freddy Lines, Mary Swallow and members of administrative staff.
Hanson established a foothold in Norfolk last year by taking over The Rostrum in Roughton, near Cromer. It is the 11th saleroom to be operated as part of the Hansons group following its expansion from Derbyshire to Staffordshire, London, Kent, Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire and Cornwall. The Roughton saleroom was previously managed by Mark Nelson Griffiths who, with other former staff members, has now left the business.
Headquartered in Stowmarket, Suffolk, Bishop & Miller expanded into Norfolk in 2022. The firm built a new 3000 sq ft saleroom and offices on a redeveloped site close to the Glandford Shell Museum.
Managing director Oliver Miller said the changes were an opportunity to return to his original vision of the venue as a gallery operating as a local arts hub holding 12 selected sales a year. He told ATG he was currently in discussion with candidates for two positions: one to run the ‘culture and art hub’ side of the business and another to be a “roving valuer and business getter for the region”.
