Cut and run or stay and play??

[buzzhead]

I listed that piece of Rhodes sterling in a 30 day auction...



I posted this on my wall on Facebook to try and figure out what to do.... Any opinions from here? I'm torn on what to do... 5 watchers in 1st 4 days.... None left. I picked up another with about 10 days to go.... Lost one with about 7 days to go and picked up another with 4-5 days to go.

 

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[GibH]

I would never list anything for a 30 day auction. Lower your starting price and run it for 7 days.

 

[buzzhead]

It's got 3 days left. If I don't decide to take the offer and I don't get any bids.. I'm going to list at $1000 starting bid for 5 or 7 days. I listed as 30 days because I knew it was going to be a "specialty" item that's not a hot seller.

 

[tamrock]

This is all your call, but for me I would have taken the 500. being what you got the piece for. To me "Cash Flow is King" I've sold many items on ebay for less then then record sales for the same item and I'm happy to do that. Listing it for a grand does sound reasonable, but the person who agreed to give you 500 may spend the money elsewhere and won't have it give to you later down the road.

 

[Beachkid23]

How much did you pay for it? If they sell around $2700 I don't think I would take $500. If you do, it Will probably be relisted on eBay for a lot more than $500. If the person were a serious collector they would pay more for it but someone is looking to resell it is going to offer less I would think. I would try the auction around 1200 or just put a buy it now or best offer up there and forget about it. After Christmas and January might have people who have more time court looking for that piece. So I guess either take the money and run or try to maximize your return on your initial investment. I would hold out for more than $500 though especially if you know for a fact that designer sells for a lot more. If he only paid a couple dollars for the thing to I would just buy it now or best offer and just let it sit. Unless your in need of the $.

Now I have also in the past if I had something like this I emailed people who have sold them or have anything like it and told them I had one and I'll be starting it at auction this Friday night if they wanted to check it out! I seem to get a lot more responses back saying they would take a look at it.

Or start the auction at like $700 for $899 or something $1200 whatever. If I don't have a lot of money wrapped up in something I don't mind if it sits for a while taking three months to sell something and make him an additional thousand dollars or more off of something is worth the time.

I mean when you put it into perspective take your initial investment go buy a stock and see how long it takes to make $1200 off of it! If you have something special it might just take a little bit of time to find the right buyer.

 

[buzzhead]

I paid $95 for it, two pieces of gold and three other pieces of sterling. I scrapped the gold at $225. (3.47) was what I paid individually for the piece. Basically nothing.

I reread what I typed last night to start the post and it seems a bit vague... I have it listed at $1200 starting bid right now.. With 6 watchers that basically were there from the beginning. I know for a fact the bidder doing the offering sells modernist jewelry on eBay and is trying to get it for a song. (I checked her items she or he is selling) I'd love to be able to turn this piece of $3.00 jewelry into an ounce of .999 gold. I've had one question asked about the piece, That was when the auction started basically. I'm leaning toward holding my ground at my $1200 offer at this point... As I have zero doubt this piece would end up on eBay at the $500 offer.

 

[trdhrdr007]

Where did your comps come from? If you found an identical piece that sold for your starting price or more I'd hold out for more than $500. If the comp was on a different piece from the same maker I'd do more research. Without comps on an identical piece or one that was very similar there really isn't any way to know the true value. Pieces by the same maker can vary widely depending on when it was made, what type of item it is, materials, & the style. If you are confident in the value and don't need the money immediately list it BIN & forget it. Someone will eventually pay your price.

 

[buzzhead]

I'm pretty sure this designer did one offs. There is another thread with a few links in it made by the same maker. I've researched online auction pages, online everywhere and cannot come up with more than that one other piece listed at $2750. I emailed that company and asked about it. They said it was going to be tough to move quickly being a religious piece. (It's a cross of sterling and wood design)

 

[gunsil]

One cannot always base the value of an item on completed ebay listings. Many many times I see an item go for way more than it is worth in general, and never see a similar item reach that price again. All it takes is for two people who really want an item regardless of what they have to pay to get it go head to head in any auction format for an item to go for crazy money. Once it is sold and another one comes up for sale the underbidder from the previously listed item often gets the second one for a fraction of what the first one sold for. Happens every day. I also agree with GibH, most of the things I see put up for 30 days are over priced, and I feel that the sellers often have little knowledge of their item, they are just fishing. If it is a good item and the price is right it will sell in a week. If not, it can always be re-listed. Tamrock also has a good point about cash flow, especially if one does not have a lot tied up in an item.

 

[buzzhead]

The other piece I found (diggumup found) was listed privately, Not on eBay. I totally understand what you are saying gunsil.

 

[trdhrdr007]

Did the other piece sell or is $2750 their asking price? If it sold when was the sale? You seem sure that the person making the offer is a dealer. Unfortunately there is absolutely no way of knowing what their required profit margin is. If they have a ready market for the item $500 could be close to retail. If they expect to sit on it for a while then retail could be closer to $2000. I know I'll pay $500 for an item if I can clear $100-200 or more on it because I have a ready buyer, but if I'm going to hold it in inventory I want a lot more profit.

 

[buzzhead]

You can find a link in my post "pics of the Rhodes Sterling" I'm going to assume it's still for sale as I just checked and it was still listed there. I know for certain they are a "dealer" as the auctions under her eBay handle are all for "modernist" jewelry pieces.

 

[trdhrdr007]

In that case you can bet they have a profit margin built in at $500. How much is the question. I've got a love/hate relationship with stuff like this. It falls into what I call low demand high value items. To maximize value you either have to wait until you get your price or you have to have 2 bidders show up at the same time. It's aggravating waiting the amount of time it takes for one of those things to happen. I generally go with 7 day auctions starting at the minimum I'd accept with a BIN price well above that.....& keep relisting until it sells.

 

[buzzhead]

I decided to decline the 500 offer, relisted today for a 10 day auction, 1200 starting bid $1700 buy it now.... May end Thursday evening and relist to end Thursday evening or Sunday evening. I know having it end at 930am on a Tuesday was not the best option.

 

[mugsisme]

I had a bracelet up for a few weeks. I lowered the price, and still, no watchers, nothing. This week, I suddenly had a few watchers. Yesterday, someone asked me if they could buy it for the starting price. I said SURE. I would rather have the money that have watchers. Last night, I got an email from someone. She said she was watching the auction, and what happened? (I ended it early to relist with a buy it now.) I told her, someone offered me a BIN, so it's gone. I felt like saying, if you really wanted it, you should have bid. You played the game and you lost.

Watchers could be interested, watchers could be other sellers. I watch a lot of stuff that I sell to see what they are going for. Did you check how many were listed vs how many were sold? Finally, can you sit it out? I had a 18K cameo that I refused to come down on. One day, boom! It sold. That sucker sat there for a very long time, but I got what I wanted, and the buyer was thrilled to have "grabbed" it. Only you can decide.

 

[buzzhead]

I would have said.. Should have bid, too late.

 

[cheese]

I'd hold out for more if I thought it was worth 2k.

 

[diggummup]

You may want to consider co-signing that piece to an upscale gallery or jeweler, if there is such a thing in your neck of the woods. $500 is a wholesale price for it. Someone with a real interest in it will eventually see it on eBay, it just may take a good while. Good thing is, it's small and doesn't take up space.

 

[buzzhead]

There is no such animal in my area. I had the offerer pegged as soon as I looked at her sellers list. I'm figuring at least 3x what she offered.

 

[dejapooh]

I had a bracelet up for a few weeks. I lowered the price, and still, no watchers, nothing. This week, I suddenly had a few watchers. Yesterday, someone asked me if they could buy it for the starting price. I said SURE. I would rather have the money that have watchers. Last night, I got an email from someone. She said she was watching the auction, and what happened? (I ended it early to relist with a buy it now.) I told her, someone offered me a BIN, so it's gone. I felt like saying, if you really wanted it, you should have bid. You played the game and you lost.

I've had that happen before. They offer to buy it for the starting price... I always tell them, Sure, Go ahead and bid, and if there are no other bids, they will get it for the starting price. I learned through a stroke of bad luck. There was a guy in england listing some incredibly rare Olympic stuff from the 1908 London Games. I asked if he would sell me everything, He quoted back, yes, 500 pounds. I agreed immediately, but there were bids between the time I said yes, and the time he got back online. even though the price was below 500 pounds, he said he didn't end auctions with bids. He ended up making about 35,000 pounds from his collection. I was shocked at the price. I was thinking I would get 1500 to 2500 for the lot.