Bid on a bear: Hendersonville's Bearfootin’ Bear Art Walk auction virtual bidding has begun

Bidding for the 2024 Bearfootin’ Art Walk bears began on Sept. 26 and will end at 6 p.m. Oct. 26.

The virtual auction has been a proven success for raising funds for 20 local nonprofits every year, with the 2023 auction exceeding $114,000. The auction will be completely virtual again this year, ending with a countdown celebration at the Historic Courthouse Plaza on Saturday, Oct. 26.

How to bid:

All bidding will occur virtually via accelevents.com/e/bearauction24 . There will be no in-person bidding. Bidding ends at 6 p.m. on Oct. 26.

New this year: All bidders can outbid after the auction ends at 6 p.m. Bidders will all have 60 seconds to continue to outbid each other. Each individual bear auction will close after there are no new bids within 60 seconds.

Starting bids for all bears will be $1,500 and minimum bid increments are $100.

Any bear can be purchased ahead of the bidding deadline at the "Buy Now" price of $10,000. The "Buy Now" option ends at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 24.

Visit hendersonvillenc.gov/bearfootin or accelevents.com/e/bearauction24 for complete details on bidding and acquiring your bear.

End of auction celebration

To celebrate this exciting downtown tradition, the public is invited to a countdown event from 4:30-6 p.m. Oct. 26 at the Historic Courthouse Square on Main Street. Attendees and bidders will meet the bears and their artists while enjoying music and refreshments available for purchase from Mini Batch Bakery. While there won’t be voice call bidding at the event, attendees will be able to bid live via cell phone and can ask for setup assistance at a designated registration table. Bidders do not have to attend the in-person event to be a winning bidder, but winning bidders are encouraged to pick up their bear on the evening of Oct. 26.

Interested in sponsoring a 2025 bear?

Online applications for a bear for 2025 will open at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 29. It will be “first come first served” for all interested parties — current bear sponsors, wait-listed sponsors and sponsors from past years that would like to participate in 2025. To be added to the notification list, see details at hendersonvillenc.gov/bearfootin .

About the Bearfootin' Art Walk program

Since 2003, the Bearfootin’ Art Walk has helped raise funding for Friends of Downtown Hendersonville (a 501c3 nonprofit) and a variety of local nonprofits. In addition to raising funds, the bears offer a window into good work being done by community organizations.

The Bearfootin’ bears arrive as blank slates before local artists transform each into a spectacular fashion, with creative themes ranging from Mona Lisa to Blue Ridge Mountain scenery. After the “Reveal” event in early May, the bears then take up residence in downtown Hendersonville for the duration of the summer and fall, up until the auction. Winning bids up to $3,000 are split evenly between the Friends of Downtown Hendersonville and the nonprofit chosen by the sponsor, while bid amounts exceeding $3,000 are directed entirely to the nonprofit. The 2023 auction raised $116,600 in proceeds to support local nonprofits.

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Bid on a bear: Hendersonville's Bearfootin’ Bear Art Walk auction virtual bidding has begun