posted on April 20, 2004 04:11:54 PM
I sell mostly antiques and collectibles on ebay.
In the past I always had a item or two that would sell no matter what. When ebay was slow - I listed something on my list to make myself feel better. Not anymore.
Some of my old sure things that are now lucky to get one bid and sometimes don't get any at all are:
Bakelite earrings
Depression Glass
Wedgwood Jasperware
Lenox (the other thread is what made me think of this post)
Anyone else have a little list that doesn't work anymore?
posted on April 20, 2004 05:00:59 PM
Wallpockets have really tanked! I collect them, and when I started buying them on Ebay about 4 years ago, they would sell for $18 - up, sometimes way up.
Now, some of the ones I bought then that I'm divesting myself of are lucky to get one bid, and at 7.95 or 9.95. Probably this is because the market has been flooded as people discovered the value of wallpockets and began selling them like mad.
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posted on April 20, 2004 06:32:45 PM
LadyJewels, I was the guy that posted about not selling Lenox. Look at this item number 3717501000 Lenox vase. I was told my price of $19.99 was too much, that Lenox stores sell new vases for less. I never knew that Lenox was sold so cheap. You are right Ebay is a flooded buyers market. I am guessing that most items I sell on ebay are great buys. Buyers should be thrilled with the buys they get on Ebay. The one good thing about Ebay prices is that it helps me buy items to sell. When people call me with a xyz item they want to sell, I print out a couple pages off Ebay of that item and what it sold for on Ebay.
posted on April 21, 2004 01:23:41 AM
I agree about Bakelite. It's not only earrings it is any bakelite jewelry. I disposed of mine when the market was good, thank goodness
AintRichYet - do you have any vintage pez? I have a vast collection some very old and many with the old 49000 patent number on. I quite collecting when the patent number changed I think either this year or last year. I do notice my rare Bullwinkle is not as popular as it once was. Pez company has flooded the market and I think that collectors quite buying. Easter pez's this year are really cute.
Did anyone see the Road Show from Chicago. Prices are so out of line. They had a beatles album which they valued at 10 to 15 thousand dollars. Don't you think that is a little to much.
We had a lenox outlet here in Kenosha and the things were quite a bit lower than what was selling in other stores. This was an outlet store and dishes and glassware were pretty cheap.
Like with anything tastes come and go and it is hard to judge what will sell and won't sell.
The Roadshow's valuations are way out of line with the current market. My brother, who is a dealer, laughs at what they tell some of these people. They usually quote the insurance value or retail value, which is way over what an auction value would be. You can price something in a shop for whatever you like. Doesn't mean you are going to get that price. Still, it's an interesting show. I don't take much stock in what they say, though.
It wasn't only eBay that destroyed garage sales and estate sales, it was also the Roadshow. Some people don't prefer living in the real world.
posted on April 21, 2004 06:10:08 AM
cheryl,
if the show tells everyone their stuff aint worth #*!@,do you think it will still be aired??
just like the show 'apprentice',young men and women with tight clothes and glamourous setting provided by trump,would you be glued to the screen if the whole thing takes place in a walmart warehouse??
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 21, 2004 06:26:21 AM
I had just one buyer switch his collecting interest from postcards to vintage records and ever since then my postcards from Los Angeles go for around the asking price..when he was in the Postcard biz he seemed to have endless resources and bought hundreds of postcards/month..I (and I am sure many other dealers) REALLY MISS HIM!
**********************************
Sig files are too much trouble! http://stores.ebay.com/Moody-Mommys-Marvelous-Postcards
posted on April 21, 2004 06:59:01 AM
I'm not so sure that was too far out of line for the Beatles Album as it was in great condition (not an ebay price but a collectors price)
I sold a less rare Beatles Album on ebay for $600.00 and it was scratched and lacking the sleeve. I think in mint condition mine was worth about $2500.00, so I was pleased considering my husband got it at a garage sale for a dollar.
But for the most part the Roadshow is always high!!
posted on April 21, 2004 07:21:26 AM
Yankee Magazine this month has a nice article "What are Grandmother's Treasures Really Worth" about appraising typical New England estates. Some quotes: "Often, selling the contents of an estate brings only a small net profit. A total profit of $15,000-20,000 is considered outstanding." Talking about the Road Show type finds: "He doesn't find them often, only about once or twice a year. Rare, extraordinary things are just that."
Appraiser was Stephen Fletcher of Skinner, Inc., often seen on Road Show.
posted on April 21, 2004 09:19:18 AM
My theory is this......in 1996 when ebay showed up there were thousands of people who needed "that thing" ...In very crude reasoning, in some cases the thousands of people who needed "that thing" has been knawed down to "hundreds of people" ...knawed down because ebay and its offerings has "quenched" if you will, the demand for some items that were otherwise unobtainable in the years previous to ebay....Make sense?
posted on April 21, 2004 10:19:35 AM
Whether sold at eBay, group shops, shows, etc., there are not nearly as many "collectors" as sellers may have imagined. Ebay simply allows them to hit the brick wall of that fact sooner, rather than later. That is not to say that these items are not saleable, just that there is not enough interest in them for eBay today. For the type of factory-produced collectibles littering the majority of antique (and I use that term very loosely) malls, the scenario is something like this: 10 Jadeite bowls are floating around the mall, various sizes and prices.
A collector buys one because of size/scarcity.
Two are sold because they saw ones like it on Martha Stewart's shelf.
One sits there forever because seller didn't notice it was chipped.
One is purchased by someone who broke a mixing bowl that week.
Two are purchased because "it will make a nice gift".
Three purchased by dealers hoping to sell on eBay, not noticing similar ones have failed to sell there or sell for less than they paid.
If these ten were on eBay, you would probably only see the collector's piece sold.
posted on April 21, 2004 10:30:39 AM
another problem is in cyberspace anyone can play retailer.
what does it realy take to be an ebay seller or have a website??as opposed to what does it take to have a brick and mortar shop??
i bet you many ebay sellers used to have a shop,and now they just sell from home.
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
posted on April 21, 2004 03:37:16 PM
I used to ba able to sell lady headvases at good prices- now I can't give them away on EBAY- As far as the Roadshow is concerend my niece is a museum curator- when the Roadshow was coming to town they called the Museum and asked for the names of people in that City who owned art and furniture collections that the Roadshow could appraise on the air-
posted on April 21, 2004 03:55:12 PM
but ebay is also selling more and more non collectibles.
i was seaching for a foam wedge and found the best price on ebay,okay no pillowcase,i can live with that.i dont know if it works but the price is right so it is worth a try.
you know it is rupert murdoch who said internet sales is bad for the retailers,he is right,where is the line between retailer and wholesaler??
i bet the foam wedge found on ebay is sold by the wholesaler.
what should the traditional retailer do??
-sig file -------we eat to live,not live to eat.
Benjamin Franklin
