Brixham Fish Market goes digital: smooth launch of KOSMOS

4th June 2019 was an historical day for both Aucxis and Brixham Trawler Agents (BTA), as the UK fish auction was the first to introduce KOSMOS, our brand-new cloud-based trading and information platform. 

The managing director of Brixham Trawler Agents, Barry Young, said: “Monday, June 3 was the very last time we witnessed the traditional shout auction taking place at Brixham fish market. After several hundred years of selling fish this way, it was time for a change. Time has moved on and trawler-men want a wider market for their catches. “KOSMOS” is a world’s first that enables fish buyers to purchase their fish at the Brixham fish market auction by logging in to the system via the internet, using their PC, tablet or smartphone.”

First web system of its kind in the world

Mr. Young continues: “The new ‘Dutch Auction’ cloud-based system is “the first of its kind” to be introduced as a platform for selling fish, anywhere in the world and will open up the market to a wider audience.”

The first sales went very smoothly, with about 70 buyers logged in and buying fish “in the cloud”. Some buyers had been anxious about using the new fish market auction system but afterwards, the feedback was very positive with many stating that they were much more confident to use the system. 

Quote of a buyer who had expressed his worries on the move to the new clock auction: “In all fairness, the sale went very smoothly and I was very pleasantly surprised. It’s a completely different environment but you’ve got to move with the times and embrace change. There were no issues at all, everything was excellent”.

Ready for the future

BTA explains the reason behind the investment: “We took that decision on behalf of the whole fishing community as we believe it is a game-changer for our industry. Our producers, which are the fishermen, have asked us to offer their fish to a wider audience. We do think it will encourage a lot more fishermen to land their fish in this port which would give our buyers a lot more opportunity to buy a lot more fish.”

Of course Aucxis is very proud that the UK’s largest fish market by value of fish sold was keen to play a pioneering role in the launch of its innovative system. While preparing the launch of KOSMOS at Urk fish auction in the Netherlands – which will be our second pilot project – our team will continue to support BTA to smooth out any unforeseen glitches and to ensure that the smooth operation of the system continues. 

Meanwhile, many players in the auction world are interested in the KOSMOS system, as it gives an answer to the further digitalisation of their marketplace. 

Barry Young: “It’s been a great start and things can only get better as BTA and the buyers get more comfortable with this new system.