Born in Quarndon, Derbyshire, in January 1989, Izzie Balmer is a renowned gemologist and auctioneer at Wessex Auction Rooms. Apart from that, she is a television personality and a public figure well-known for appearing as an auction expert on BBC’s Antiques Road Trip Series 9 in 2019.
Izzie went to Birmingham’s School of Jewellery and completed a diploma course in diamonds and gemology. Thus, her career change has been a topic for debate. She grew up in Quarndon with her parents, Toby and Shiela, and brother, Hugh. Toby is a businessman, Shiela is a homemaker, and Hugh is a sports player.
According to her statements in interviews with Stylist and BristolLive in 2019, she was jobless, poor, and homeless after finishing her degree. So, she tried her luck in auctioning in 2018 and continued doing it because she loved it. Moreover, they offered her a full-time job after two weeks of internship. Currently, she lives in Wiltshire.
Izzie Balmer Partner
Some sources claim to have found Izzie Balmer’s partner after a long research. Accordingly, she married Will Hawley at St. Alkmund’s Church on 16 November 2016. It was an intimate wedding ceremony that consisted only of their family members. Meanwhile, no one knows about Hawley’s profession and their kids.
Balmer has been tight-lipped regarding her relationship history. Reportedly, Hawley has a private account on Instagram, @foxcompaq, with 140 followers and 60 posts. Meanwhile, some sources state Izzie is unmarried, while some confess that they do not know about her private life.
Izzie Balmer’s Career Change
Izzie took more time to find her talent in auctioning because she did not dream of having such a career. She wanted to be a musician during college but did not remain interested in it for a long time. Further, she joined Bargain Hunt because no one else had stepped forward to do it.
Izzie remembered how she was unprepared during the first auction before the camera in Bargain Hunt. She did not wear makeup except for the microphone. She did not even see the items kept for auction before the shoot.
It is how Izzie impressed the BBC producers. Besides that, she keeps her fans updated on Instagram regarding her love for beekeeping. Besides Antiques Road Trip (for thirty episodes) and Bargain Hunt, Izzie co-hosted BBC One’s Street Auction in 2018.
In an episode of Antiques Road Trip, Izzie finds a small pendant that turns out to be a jackpot because it is nine-carat gold. It shows how unpredictable the world of auctioning is.
According to Izzie’s profile on BBC One’s Bargain Hunt, she does not want to have a boring job if she does not do auctioning. She would have owned a café, serving seasonal and locally sourced food, if she was not into auctioning.
Izzie loves Bargain Hunt because it contains risks, ups and downs, laughter, and competitive contestants. She learns something new every day due to the uniqueness of every fair and team. Other experts on the show are Ben Cooper, Gary Pe, Jonathan Pratt, John Cameron, Tim Weeks, and more.
Izzie claims to be an optimistic person who does not think about loss. However, she finds Charles Horner brooch the most profitable thing on Bargain Hunt, a show where two pairs of amateur collectors must purchase antique items and sell them at the best prices.
Izzie admits that auctioning is a male-dominated industry where she gets underestimated by men, especially older men. However, she proves them wrong every time. She earns a lot through her television appearances and social media presence, which lead to a luxurious life. She has a net worth of $1 million.
Apart From Auctioning
Izzie likes meeting new people and having fun with them along the way on Bargain Hunt. Moreover, the expressions on the contestants’ faces when they face profit and loss excite her. During her free time, she likes to spend time socializing with her friends, going out, gardening, and having a cup of coffee.
She often shares her photos with drinks and her friends on Instagram. The most expensive thing sold by her is George Turner’s, a painter from Derbyshire, painting for £22,000 ($27,722), which generally gets sold at a ten times lower price.
Izzie was a classical musician and a former member of Great Britain’s National Youth Orchestra when she was sixteen, though it did not work for her.
