posted on November 3, 2000 03:41:40 AM
I am curious if anyone has sold on "consigment" by approaching antiques dealers who sell offline only and don't use eBay. You could say that you are an "antiques broker" and will find buyers for their items. You take the pictures, write the listing, put it on ebay with a reserve. Sell the item, cash out, get item from antiques store, send to buyer. Done!
Antiques store pays you 10% commission fee, plus you get the margin/profit you made on ebay as well! And the best part is YOU HAVE NO RISK OF UNSOLD INVENTORY CAUSE YOU DIDN'T BUY ANYTHING! Of course, you NEVER tell them where you sold it as they might do it themselves!
If you use the traditional model of consignment, you just get a percentage of what the item sold for. This method I just described gets you a 10% commission for the antiques dealer's price, PLUS all of the Ebay profits for yourself!
posted on November 3, 2000 04:24:14 AM
I don't know any antiques dealers who are gullible enough to just take a flat percent and let ME keep the eBay profits. Most of them seem very well aware of the money that can be made on eBay (even if they don't use it themselves) and I think it is highly likely that they would demand a share of it if they knew where I was planning to dispose of the merchandise. And that's certainly fair. Like everyone else, they are (rightly) trying to maximize their profits. I suppose if you didn't tell them you were planning to sell on eBay you might talk them into it, but that falls into a fuzzy gray area ethically for me personally. Interesting idea though.
posted on November 3, 2000 04:41:48 AM
Well, it is more work than it is worth - you can have personality conflicts, and unless you are selling extremely high end items it is certainly more trouble than it is worth. Because I am in the business, I have been approached by folks wanting me to sell their items on eBay. Four years or so ago, before I had a large inventory, I sold a few pieces for others and quickly learned it took too much time unless the item was very expensive, and definitely it is too much risk.
How strongly do I feel about this, I just turned down a $10,000 item my local town asked me to sell.
The few times I did sell under consignment, I charged 20% commission on the eBay final price, and still found it more trouble than it was worth.
One main problem is if an antique dealer has a piece which has been sitting around for a good while and they wish to dispose of it, it is usually over priced, and many dealers I have encountered have an inflated idea of what their items are worth.
If you think it is a good idea, try it for a while - and I think that should cure you.
Don't mean to be negative, but I don't find this a feasible approach, from my 5 year experience on eBay.
posted on November 3, 2000 10:29:52 AM
I tried this a couple of times, charging 20% commission...NOT WORTH ALL THE WORK AND SHIPPING!!! I only see my own stuff now! It did sound like a good idea.
