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With rents high and business seasonal, Ruthy's Bakery owner Patrizia Alessi decided the ship had sailed for her Chelsea Piers location.

"We just couldn't afford to keep this place anymore so we decided to bite the bullet and move on," says Alessi.

The contents of the corner cafe were then put auctioned by Herb Mauthner, the owner of Mountain Auctioneers.

Mauthner says 20 years ago he noticed a lot of businesses going out of business and decided to make it his business to help them through that process.

"We're able to sell all of the fixtures, all the tables, racks, chairs, all of the inventory, equipment," he says.

In the current economy, Mauthner is busier than ever, hosting as many as five auctions a week and drawing a crowd as varied as the items on the block.

"Could be some distributors, could be some wholesalers, could be jobbers, could be exporters, could be eBay buyers," says Mauthner.

One bidder at the Ruthy's auction is Debbie Tompkins, a small business owner who operates a food truck in Peekskill, N.Y. and is looking to open a tea room with her sister.

"We're looking for equipment. We're starting out a small business with very limited funds and hoping to get some good items at a very good price," says Tompkins.

Purchasing at an auction means Tompkins has to scramble to find a truck, since items purchased need to be picked up by noon the next day, but she says the savings makes it worth it.

"I could be saving anywhere from 60 to 80 percent of retail," says Tompkins.

Of course, business owners do not want to give the items away and may wish to hold out for a higher price. Auctioneers say, however, that businesses owners might want to take the offer on the table, because holding on could end up costing more.

"Sometimes it gets put in storage and we have the auction three months later, but that would just incur additional expenses, additional advertising and marketing. The best bet is just to conduct the auction right then and there at that time," says Mauthner.

In the end, if done correctly, an auction can be a win-win situation. The buyer saves money and the business owner recoups some losses.

"You don't have to do anything. They come in and take inventory, and like I said, do the dealing and wheeling and everything else from beginning to end," says Alessi. "They just make your life so much easier."

That way, not a lot of time and patience is lost in the process.