It was a bizarre sight for tourists in Adelaide.
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Tasmanian student Andre Briffa, 18, started spruiking a South Australian property to imaginary bidders in the middle of the bustling square.
But the preparation served the Launceston Church Grammar School student well as he won the Australasian Real Estate Institutes’ Auctioneering Schools Championship in Adelaide on Thursday.
Originally the thought of standing out in public creating an imaginary bidding war would have been too embarrassing, Andre said.
Now he was “perfectly happy” auctioneering.
Competing against five other budding auctioneers from across the country, Andre was given one week to prepare his spiel and prepare for a bidding war.
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He watched the seniors compete in their heats in the lead up to his final, which used the same house brief Andre was given.
It was about showing people what a property could mean for them and “holding attention in a room whilst multi-tasking”, Andre said.
Auctioneering involved thinking on your feet, and being professional while adding jokes to put people at ease, he said.
He has not ruled out working as an auctioneer after he leaves school at the end of the year.
Roberts Real Estate property consultant and mentor David Jackson said Andre had put in the hard work and had been an excellent representative of Tasmania.
The win meant Tasmanian students had won the last two Australasian Auctioneering Schools Championships and Jackson said the talent in the state continued to impress him.