A major review of NZB's annual yearling showcase has resulted in a brand new sales format for Karaka 2018.
The first session of the 2018 National Yearling Sales Series will now take place on the evening of Sunday 28 January, instead of Monday morning. With around 100 yearlings to be offered, this night session will also kick off the new-look catalogue structure, being the first of 700 horses catalogued together in the new 'Karaka Book I'.
NZB managing director Andrew Seabrook says these changes will serve two positive purposes in particular.
"I'm absolutely certain this new structure will be a success. Selling 100 horses on Sunday night gets more horses in front of buyers early in the week, and aids the troublesome transition vendors have always faced mid-week.
"We have done a lot of homework over the past several weeks and the feedback received from vendors and buyers has been pretty consistent. They want to see more horses sold in the first book and they want their second session horses, particularly those being sold on the Friday, to be on the property at Karaka in a more timely fashion."
NZB also plans to extend the number of horses sold in Book I to approximately 700, from Sunday evening to Wednesday afternoon, rather than finishing on Tuesday afternoon as the Premier Sale has done for the past several years.
"The aim is to give the international buyers a reason to stay longer by giving them even more horses to look at on the sale ground at one time. In theory there will be at least 200 more horses being offered in front of a full overseas buying bench. It's an exciting change that we think will provide a positive boost to sales week for buyers and sellers alike," commented Seabrook.
The Premier, Select and Festival Sale names will be dropped in favour of Book I, Book II and Book III.
Book II will be reduced to approximately four hundred horses, set to be sold on the Thursday and Friday of sales week, whilst Book III will remain on the Sunday.
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