Tallone
Hero Member
Last night I listed the item below:
This is a rare, pre-war pattern of Royal Doulton china. As I understand it, the factory where this pattern was produced was bombed and destroyed during the war so the pattern was lost forever. It is also a very unusual type of piece known as a "Dessert Plate and Cup". Today I received the following message about this item: "Is this the only set you have or are there more of the same?"
I received a similar query a few weeks ago about a different item and my response was, "Why do you ask?" In that case, the questioner did not respond until after the auction closed and his answer was, "Well, in the case that I didn't come out as the top bidder..." I suspected this was why he posed the question which is why I gave such a non-responsive answer.
I made the same response to today's question about the Royal Doulton piece as I suspect the person asking is trying to figure out if this, perhaps, their one and only chance to ever acquire this rare piece in which case they might be willing to bid considerably more. If, on the other hand, there are more of these pieces coming, the price may drop and they can get one cheaper. Personally, I feel like this is an impertinent question. It is nobody's business but my own whether or not I have any more of these.
I'm curious if anyone else has received similar inquiries and, if you have, how you responded.
This is a rare, pre-war pattern of Royal Doulton china. As I understand it, the factory where this pattern was produced was bombed and destroyed during the war so the pattern was lost forever. It is also a very unusual type of piece known as a "Dessert Plate and Cup". Today I received the following message about this item: "Is this the only set you have or are there more of the same?"
I received a similar query a few weeks ago about a different item and my response was, "Why do you ask?" In that case, the questioner did not respond until after the auction closed and his answer was, "Well, in the case that I didn't come out as the top bidder..." I suspected this was why he posed the question which is why I gave such a non-responsive answer.
I made the same response to today's question about the Royal Doulton piece as I suspect the person asking is trying to figure out if this, perhaps, their one and only chance to ever acquire this rare piece in which case they might be willing to bid considerably more. If, on the other hand, there are more of these pieces coming, the price may drop and they can get one cheaper. Personally, I feel like this is an impertinent question. It is nobody's business but my own whether or not I have any more of these.
I'm curious if anyone else has received similar inquiries and, if you have, how you responded.
I highlighted the above sentence because people WILL get upset if you end up selling 10 or 100 of these identical items if they paid a high price for what they thought was a unique item. If you intend to sell 100 of them and you already own them, it is their business to a degree. I would be somewhat transparent about it. If this is the only one you have for sale right now, let them know. Use facts. Create interest around the facts: "I found 10 of these rare prints. This is one of 10! I'm only selling 5!", and so on. I wouldn't mislead anyone, because it will come back to bite you later. If you plan to sell on eBay, you already know your reputation matters. Come up with your sales strategy for how you'll list multiple of these, if you know you'll be getting more. It may be wise to not sell all of them online. It may also be wise to hold onto these. Good luck!
