THERE are plenty of breeders with decisions to make in the coming weeks on which stallions to use, and there are people out there with shares in stallions who have nominations they want to sell.

Just over two years ago bloodstock agents and breeders Ted Voute and Luke Lillingston launched Buyanom, an online service which provided a secure marketplace where nominations could be traded in confidence.

Now the website has been significantly upgraded and Lillingston is encouraging breeders and nomination holders to give it a go.

“This is our third year in operation and the site has been considerably updated,” he reported. “Frankly it is much more functional than it was at the beginning. We’ve got an efficient website that works well and is very user-friendly. Not only can you buy and sell nominations through the site, you can even sign the contract online once a deal has been agreed.”

A couple of major changes have been made with the aim of getting more people on board. Lillingston explained: “It costs nothing to register a stallion with Buyanom and offer a nomination for sale. That’s free and that’s a new feature this year.

The only charge is when you sign a contract and that is just £150 plus VAT. Furthermore, if the mating fails to produce a live foal the vendor of the nomination will get their money back.”

There is even better news for mare owners. “The service is free all the way for the broodmare owners. They don’t pay anything to Buyanom. We’ve made it free to get more people to engage with the site. They have nothing to lose.”

So how does it work? “You register your mare on the Buyanom.com website and look through the list of stallions with nominations for sale.

“The general advertised fee for each stallion is shown but you can simply click on the stallion you’re interested in to make an offer.

“That offer will be transmitted to the nomination owner. If more than one person is offering nominations to that stallion, they will all receive your offer simultaneously. They have 48 hours to respond before the offer expires.”

In theory you can offer as little as you like though the nomination owner is likely to have set a minimum figure they will entertain. Breeders won’t know that number when making an offer but any ‘nuisance’ bids below that sum won’t even be sent to the nomination owner.

Lillingston is quick to reassure stallion owners that Buyanom won’t allow stallions to be devalued. “Rule number one is that no stallion nomination can be listed for less than the advertised fee of that stallion. The actual price paid is a private matter between the buyer and the seller, but we are fully respectful of the stallion master at all times.”

Thoroughbred breeders are often described as conservative and traditionalist but the sector showed plenty of initiative during the pandemic and we all know technology has to be embraced at some stage or you risk getting left behind.

Couple that with the very real prospect of saving money and you’ve got some very good reasons why breeders should try their luck on Buyanom. It’s hard to see the downside of trying it out.

If you need a bit more convincing, or if you have any questions about the service, Charlie Dee of Lillingston Bloodstock is there to help.

Email: charlie@kernlillingston.com

Tel: 0044 7725 837055

Web: buyanom.com