Birns & Sawyer to Sell Excess Assets in Online Auction in Advance of Company's Sale to Employees and Relocation

New and professionally maintained cameras, lenses, lighting, and more no longer needed for continuing operations of historic Hollywood rental house to be auctioned by Tiger Group on Dec. 13

News provided by

Tiger Group

Nov 29, 2018, 07:41 ET

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Nov. 29, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Ahead of the 2019 retirement of Birns & Sawyer Inc. owner William Meurer, Tiger Group will conduct an online-only auction on December 13 of excess rental and sales inventory. Items up for bid from the historic motion picture equipment rental and sales house include cameras, lenses, conventional and LED lighting, heads, sliders, follow focus, matte boxes, monitors, digital wireless and data storage, and electronic viewfinders.

The Dec. 13th auction features a variety of new and professionally maintained cameras and other equipment curated from excess inventory of Birns & Sawyer, the historic motion picture equipment rental and sales house.

The auction's offering also includes a wide range of new and professionally maintained lenses and lens sets from Cooke, Ultra Prime, and Zeiss.

The sale is aimed at trimming the North Hollywood company's inventory in preparation for a planned January relocation from its 8,000-square-foot facility in North Hollywood to a 4,500-square-foot site in Burbank. The auction will feature many new items, including Zeiss lenses, Panasonic and Sony digital cameras, Quasar LED tubes, as well as slates, hi hats and other products manufactured by Birns & Sawyer. Also included is a large selection of K5600 HMI lighting, Kino Flo LED Select lights, Porta Jib with track, and current model digital cameras and lenses.

Online bidding will start on December 6 at www.SoldTiger.com and will close in rapid succession, live auction style on December 13, beginning at 10:30 a.m. (PT). Previews of the assets being offered will be held at the Birns & Sawyer facility located at 5275 Craner Ave., North Hollywood, on December 12, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (PT). The event represents the latest in a series of sales and auctions from Tiger for AV companies across the U.S.

"After many storied years, we are pleased to see the Birns & Sawyer legacy continue as we assist the company in its transition plan and the move to its new location," said Tiger Group Executive Managing Director Jeff Tanenbaum. "The auction will feature equipment from Arri, Panasonic, lens sets from Cooke, Ultra Prime, and Zeiss, plus many more top-notch gear makers at competitive prices."

Founded in 1954, Birns & Sawyer is Los Angeles' original motion picture camera rental house. The company rented equipment used on classic movies like Lawrence of Arabia, Easy Rider and Bullitt. In 1998, cinematographer/gaffer William Meurer acquired Birns & Sawyer and merged the legacy business with his existing lighting and grip company, Gunner Lighting, making Birns & Sawyer a full solution rental house for any production.

Following his retirement, CEO Maurer will be handing responsibilities for day-to-day management to Cinematographer and long-time employee Jeff Jackson and industry veteran Michael Shugrure. Mari Acevedo will continue to manage the company's sales division.

In addition to the items noted above, the auction will include a large quantity of lens filters, camera accessories, brand-new production inventory, signal generators, memory cards, battery systems dollies, stands, flags, hardware, memorabilia, and office furniture.

For further information, including a full list of items, visit: www.soldtiger.com

Media Contacts: At Tiger, Jeff Tanenbaum, Executive Managing Director, (805) 497-4999, [email protected]; at Parness & Associates Public Relations, Bill Parness, [email protected], (732) 290-0121 or Mobile: 732-673-6852.

SOURCE Tiger Group