Yahoo Autos Doug DeMuro talks ‘Cars & Bids,’ Tesla’s competition, and why ‘analog’ cars are the next big bet
If you love cars, and you watch a lot of YouTube, then you know Doug DeMuro.
DeMuro has reviewed cars and written about the auto industry for some time now, but his real claim to fame stems from his YouTube channel, where his earnest, no frills, in-depth, and entertaining car reviews have afforded him a legion of fans. DeMuro’s channel has over 4.6 million subscribers to date and his more popular videos garner millions of views each.
DeMuro’s internet stardom hasn’t kept him from shunning other pursuits, as he dipped his toe into the startup world with his auction site Cars & Bids, which focuses on classic cars from the modern era (typically the ‘80s and up).
Cars & Bids isn’t the first site focusing on car enthusiasts, but it has gained traction even in the face of steep competition from bigger auction sites like Bringatrailer.com. Its popularity led to new funding for expanding the business, with a big $37 million infusion coming from PE firm The Chernin Group.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing though, at least at the start.
“It's been harder than I expected, to be totally honest. I always tell people, if I had known it was going to be this difficult to run a business like this, I would have just started a podcast,” DeMuro joked during an interview with Yahoo Finance. “Of course we launched this business in June of 2020, we thought it was going to fail because it was COVID. But, actually, we launched into the greatest car market in the history of the automobile — so it all worked out okay.”
Even in an era of rising interest rates, inflationary pressures, and general economic unease, DuMuro said the used car market has done better than feared.
“Obviously, things have slowed down from their very peak, which felt to me like the end of '21, beginning of '22, maybe the spring of '22,” DeMuro said, noting demand is still stronger than he was expecting.
“I was thinking, as interest rates were rising throughout '22, cars would really start to slow down, people would start to maybe pull back on their purchases of these things. That hasn't really happened as much as I thought. Good stuff is still bringing good money,” he says.
Even in-person events, such as the big auctions taking place at the Amelia Island Concours over the weekend, jibe with DeMuro's observations, with auction houses seeing record sales. And Cars & Bids is just riding the wave of high interest in classic and older cars, with Americans at least willing to spend some money to enjoy the car of their dreams, instead of just dreaming about it.