Bid13
Bid13 is a Toronto-based online marketplace that auctions abandoned self-storage units, connecting independent and small-chain storage facility operators with individual buyers across all 50 US states and all Canadian provinces on a 15% buyer-premium take rate.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersToronto, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Bid13 does
Bid13 is a Toronto-based online marketplace that auctions abandoned self-storage units, connecting storage facility operators with individual buyers across all 50 US states, DC, and US territories, plus all 13 Canadian provinces and territories. The platform replaces traditional in-person storage auctions with a digital workflow: operators list units with video walkthroughs (processed by Bid13 in roughly 10 minutes), apply free tamper-proof seals to guarantee condition integrity, and run timed auctions featuring proxy bidding (incremental $1 bids up to a user-set maximum) and a soft-close mechanism that extends the final five minutes by one minute per new bid to prevent sniping. Bid13 also offers a public API and Host Feed embeddable widgets with prebuilt plugins for WordPress, Drupal, Joomla and libraries for Code Igniter and Symfony, plus free integrations with the five dominant self-storage property management systems (Sitelink, StorEdge, Hummingbird, Cubby, Storage Commander).
The business is a two-sided marketplace with a freemium seller side: storage facilities list and sell units at no cost — no listing fees, cancellation fees, or contracts — while buyers register free and pay a 15% non-refundable buyer's premium on winning bids, plus provincial sales tax for Canadian units and a $200 refundable cleaning deposit paid directly to the facility. Bid13 monetizes solely through this transaction fee, with revenue collected automatically to the buyer's stored credit card immediately upon auction close. Buyer acquisition runs through email notifications, paid social (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Reddit), search, and classifieds (Craigslist, Kijiji, KSL, Ebay Classifieds), supported by a community forum and free promotional materials supplied to facilities.
The company is privately held, has not disclosed any outside funding or institutional investors, and operates with a headcount reported as 11–50 employees. Founded in 2012, Bid13 has built a long-tail customer base of independent and small-chain self-storage operators and an unspecified pool of individual bidders, but has not disclosed revenue, GMV, or transaction volume. The strategic positioning is a defensible niche vertical marketplace rather than a venture-scale growth story, with the moat concentrated in PMS integration breadth and accumulated bidder density across North America.
Bid13 firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Bid13
- Legal name
- Bid13
- Website
- https://bid13.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Bid13 is a Toronto-based online marketplace that auctions abandoned self-storage units, connecting independent and small-chain storage facility operators with individual buyers across all 50 US states and all Canadian provinces on a 15% buyer-premium take rate.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Bid13 industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Storage Auction Marketplace
- NAICS
- Lessors of Miniwarehouses and Self-Storage Units (53113), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Self-Storage Unit Auctions & Lien Sale Services (HSAKAGAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Online/Virtual Real Estate Auctions (Marketplace Platforms) (BPAJAEAJ), Government & Tax-Lien/Tax-Deed Property Auctions (BPAJAEAH)
Keywords
Where Bid13 is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Toronto
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Bid13 business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Buyer's Premium (15% Transaction Fee): Bid13 charges winning buyers a 15% non-refundable premium on the final bid amount immediately after auction closes. This is automatically charged to the buyer's credit card on file. Provincial sales tax is also collected on this fee for Canadian units.
- Provincial Sales Tax (Canada): Bid13 collects and remits provincial sales tax on buyer's premiums for storage units sold in Canada in addition to the 15% fee.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free listing for storage facilities |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | 15% Buyer's Premium on winning bids |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | $200 Refundable Cleaning Deposit |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Bid13 product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Bid13 operates an online marketplace where self-storage facility operators list abandoned or lien units for online auction and individual buyers register and bid remotely. The platform provides unit video marketing, proxy bidding with soft-close to prevent sniping, tamper-proof physical seals, payment processing, and free integrations with major property management systems. Storage facilities list and sell units at no cost; buyers pay a 15% non-refundable buyer's premium on winning bids.
Product overview
Bid13 operates as a single unified online storage auction marketplace serving both buyers (individuals and businesses seeking storage unit contents) and sellers (storage facility owners/operators with abandoned units). The platform's core offering is the online auction marketplace where facilities list abandoned units with video marketing content and buyers bid in real-time auctions. The product ecosystem includes the main auction platform, a Host Feed feature for embedding auctions on facility websites, proxy bidding and soft-close auction mechanics, and tamper proof tags for content verification. Services are offered free to storage facilities; the company generates revenue through a 15% buyer's premium on all completed sales.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- Storage facility testimonial: 'Hosting our auctions online is infinitely easier. We were pleasantly surprised at how quickly the units were emptied. We are very satisfied!'
Companies that use Bid13
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Bid13 technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
Feature5 records
Bid13 partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- SitelinkcoreFree integration with Sitelink property management system, allowing storage facilities using Sitelink to seamlessly sync auction listings with Bid13 platform.
- StorEdgecoreFree integration with StorEdge property management system enabling automated listing synchronization for storage facility customers.
- HummingbirdcoreFree integration with Hummingbird property management system allowing facilities to manage auctions directly within their existing workflow.
- CubbycoreFree integration with Cubby property management system, enabling seamless auction listing management for facilities.
- Storage CommandercoreFree integration with Storage Commander property management system for automated auction workflow.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Bid13 competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- SelfStorageAuction.com: Long-running self-storage auction platform serving US facilities and individual buyers with online bidding on abandoned units, directly comparable in product and target customer to Bid13.
- StorageTreasures: StorageTreasures is the largest dedicated online self-storage unit auction marketplace in North America, with the same core product/facility-buyer model as Bid13, including PMS integrations, video unit previews, and a buyer-premium monetization model.
- StorageAuctions.com: Online marketplace specifically focused on abandoned self-storage unit auctions, listing units across the US with a similar buyer-facing auction experience. Direct head-to-head competitor to Bid13 in the same niche.
Broad incumbents
- Xome (formerly Realogy Auctions): Xome operates online foreclosure and distressed-asset auctions serving banks, servicers, and investors. Comparable in auction-as-a-service infrastructure for distressed property, though focused on real estate at higher ticket sizes than storage units.
- GovDeals: GovDeals is a large online auction platform for government agencies (including tax-foreclosed property), sharing the online-auction infrastructure/auction-mechanics model with Bid13 even though its primary vertical is public-sector surplus.
- Auction.com: CoStar-owned Auction.com is a leading online real estate auction marketplace for foreclosure and distressed properties. While focused on real estate rather than storage unit contents, it shares the online-auction/marketplace model for distressed-asset disposition.
- PropertyRoom.com: PropertyRoom operates one of the largest online marketplaces for unclaimed, seized, and abandoned property, primarily for law enforcement, government, and dealers. It is a broader incumbent that handles storage-auction-adjacent inventory at scale.
Others
- PublicSurplus: PublicSurplus is an online auction platform enabling government agencies (schools, municipalities) to sell surplus assets. Although overlapping with Bid13 only at the auction-platform-software layer, it is comparable on technology/marketplace mechanics.
Emerging players
- LockerFox: Lockerfox offers online self-storage auctions with regional focus and facility-friendly listing tools, overlapping with Bid13 in serving small/mid-market storage operators running lien sales.
Regional players
- StorageVault (Canadian self-storage operator): StorageVault operates self-storage facilities across Canada. As a Canadian self-storage operator, it represents the same seller-side customer profile as Bid13 (operators needing to dispose of abandoned units) and a potential platform client given geographic overlap.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Bid13 social profiles
Digital presenceBid13 financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Bid13 leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Bid13 funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Bid13 M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Bid13
What does Bid13 do?
Bid13 operates an online marketplace where self-storage facility operators list abandoned or lien units for online auction and individual buyers register and bid remotely. The platform provides unit video marketing, proxy bidding with soft-close to prevent sniping, tamper-proof physical seals, payment processing, and free integrations with major property management systems. Storage facilities list and sell units at no cost; buyers pay a 15% non-refundable buyer's premium on winning bids.
Is Bid13 a public or private company?
Bid13 is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Bid13 founded?
Bid13 was founded in 2012. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Bid13 based?
Bid13 is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Bid13 make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Buyer's Premium (15% Transaction Fee) is the primary driver. The others are provincial Sales Tax (Canada).
Who are Bid13's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are SelfStorageAuction.com, StorageTreasures and StorageAuctions.com. Broad incumbents are Xome (formerly Realogy Auctions), GovDeals, Auction.com and PropertyRoom.com. PublicSurplus is listed as an others. LockerFox is listed as an emerging player. StorageVault (Canadian self-storage operator) is listed as a regional player.
Does Bid13 have an API?
Yes. Bid13 offers a public API for storage facilities and developers to programmatically interface with the platform. The API enables custom API integrations for streamlining management processes and can be used from backend systems or with CORS from frontend applications. Custom API integrations are free - facilities can request specific needs and Bid13 will build it for them. Additionally, the platform offers a Host Feed feature with prebuilt plugins for CMS platforms (Wordpress, Drupal, Joomla) and libraries for frameworks (Code Igniter, Symphony).
What industry is Bid13 in?
Bid13's product category is Online Storage Auction Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HSAKAGAG, Self-Storage Unit Auctions & Lien Sale Services, with a secondary code of BPAJAEAJ, Online/Virtual Real Estate Auctions (Marketplace Platforms). Its NAICS code is 53113 and its SIC code is 7370.