Magic Millions

Magic Millions Sales Pty Ltd is an Australian Thoroughbred racehorse auction house which holds auctions around Australia each year including its world famous Gold Coast Yearling Sale at Surfers Paradise in Queensland. Seven days of auctions are joined by a major Thoroughbred horse race meeting where all nine races are only open to horses who were bought at auctions staged by Magic Millions over the previous years. The race events includes the $2 million Magic Millions Classic for two-year-olds - a race which carries a $500,000 bonus for all female raced runners. The Gold Coast Raceday alone boasts prizemoney of $10 million and was the first race meeting held in Australasia with a $10 million total purse.

The Gold Coast Yearling Sale is considered to be a top level auction in global racing circles, with buyers from Hong Kong, Japan, Europe, South Africa, New Zealand, China, the United States and the Middle East. The record for an individual horse purchase as a yearling was made by Patinack Farm twice at the 2008 Magic Millions where that team spent $2.2 million on two Redoute's Choice colts - one a three quarter brother to Dance Hero and one a three quarter brother to their stable star Casino Prince.[1]

The National Sale - comprising weanlings, yearling, broodmares and racehorses - is one of three world's most important breeding stock sales and is held each year in late May and June. The all time auction record for Magic Millions was set in 2016 when outstanding broodmare Listen Here (dam of G1 winner Shooting to Win and G2 winner Deep Field) sold for $3.4 million.

In the late 1990s the auction house was almost bankrupt. It was bought by three business men, including the Australian retail entrepreneur and horse breeder Gerry Harvey and Australian advertising entrepreneur John Singleton. Both set about reviving the fortunes of the auction.[2] As of 2015, Magic Millions is co-owned by Harvey and his wife and business partner, Katie Page.[3] The company is now owned in its entirety by Gerry Harvey and Katie Page after they purchased interests of the other partners in 2011.

Better funding, advertising, networking and public reportage have led to the Magic Millions growing considerably in national and international stature. The international profile of the auction has also been helped by the recent development in the breeding world of 'shuttle stallions' - the practise whereby the very top stallions in the world are now flown between Australia, Asia, Europe and the US to be put to service. The end result of this is that whereas ten years ago only Australian champions would have bred progeny on offer in Australia, there is now just as likely to be the offspring of a Kentucky Derby or Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner as that of a Melbourne Cup champion.

Magic Millions has sold many champions over the years including the current world's best turf galloper Winx - a $230,000 purchase from the 2013 Gold Coast Yearling Sale who won 25 Group One races including 33 in succession.

References
  1. Tony Arrold (31 March 2008). "Buyer whitewash at Magic Millions sale". The Australian. Retrieved 30 March 2011.
  2. "Magic Millions Sales and Carnival". Retrieved 30 March 2011.
  3. Korporaal, Glenda (20 February 2015). "50 most powerful women in business: 4. Katie Page". The Australian Business Review. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
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