Subject:
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Re: DYA -> eBay 8880 money-making scheme
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.general, lugnet.market.theory
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Date:
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Sat, 4 Sep 1999 16:59:05 GMT
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Reply-To:
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lpieniazek@novera=Spamcake=.com
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Viewed:
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897 times
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Totally agree with Mike here (1) Arbitrage is a good thing. Arbitrage
also drives prices to where they belong. Taking advantage of market
inefficiencies in and of itself increases the efficiency of the overall
market in the long run.
This ground has been covered before and I think what I said before was
where I got a bit frothy was when people make their listings misleading.
We saw that when Star Wars sets came out.
People were claiming things as extremely rare or non available when they
were all over the US in just about every store. That kind of chapped me
and I gave some people neutral feedback (with embedded clues to buyers
on how to find it themselves) for it.
My take is be honest. I'd even go so far as to reveal my sources. Your
mileage may vary.
Paul, someone offline commented to me that OZzies tend to automatically
take the side of the apparent little guy. Is that the case here? Worthy
sentiment but not always one that gets you on the "right" side of the
discussion. :-)
PS I added market.theory to the groups, I think the discussion belongs
there.
1 - except for the sniper thing... I don't do that. Mike's well within
his rights to do so and he's exploiting a huge flaw in eBay but that's
the way the rules are written, so be it. His choice. But he's a bigger
brick than I am.
Mike Poindexter wrote:
>
> In lugnet.general, Paul Baulch writes:
> > I noticed today that people are paying around $150 - $200 for new 8880 (and
> > 5571) sets in eBay auctions when they could be buying them from DYA shopping
> > directly and saving (in some cases) a ridiculous amount of money. Is this
> > just because the eBay users are ill-informed, or do they gain some sort of
> > subtle benefit that is nearly impossible to comprehend?
> > If not, and in case there is anyone reading this post who is contemplating
> > bidding for an 8880 or 5571 on eBay (although here on LUGNET I guess that is
> > doubtful), DON'T DO IT!!! Buy from here instead:
> >
> > http://www.dya-shopping.com/uk/boutique/home2offre.html
> >
> > I'm sorry, but I just can't stand by and watch people get ripped off blind,
> > it offends my sensibilities.
> > Hmmmm, hopefully I haven't just helped sabotage one of LUGNET's sources of
> > revenue..... :-\
> >
> > Paul
> > http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Shuttle/5168/
>
> Paul,
>
> The actions you are seeing are referred to as arbitrage. That is where one
> area has items for sale for less than another area. This is a commin
> occurance and is supposed to occur from time to time. Some people feel this
> is ripping people off. I see shooting cannons selling for $10-15, yet they
> are still available for $5 in Europe. Is this not the same thing? Sure, DYA
> will ship to the US and Lego Sweden/Denmark, et. al will not, but this still
> is simply arbitrage.
>
> I purchased 8 Supercars from DYA and posted them on eBay. People can get them
> from me for cheaper than DYA because I saved $30 each on shipping due to
> volume and normally people would have to spend that extra amount. I could
> afford to sell one cheaper than somebody who bought just one. My opening bid
> was $1 for the first 4 I offered. It is not my fault that they reached $150+
> per item. Also, the money I make just gets reinvested into more Lego.
>
> Often times, I have seen people buy a set that has sat on a shelf for a long
> time and got it for a song. They turn around and sell it for a huge amount of
> money and pocket the difference. These sets are very hard to find, but so are
> 8880 and 5571 sets. It seems as though only a couple of places have them. I
> can only think of 2 places to get a 5571 and one to get an 8880.
>
> I can see how you may feel this is ripping people off. Really, though, they
> are providing a service. Some people feel that charging 99 cents for a
> burrito is ripping people off, yet it is a service that must turn a profit or
> it disappears. Finding obscure Lego sets or parts is the same thing. I felt
> that Auczilla X was a rip-off, but that is absolutely not Todd's fault. When
> 6x16 gray plates go for $5 each, it is just silly. You can buy Rain Dance
> Ridge at TRU for that and get a bunch of pieces plus the 6x16 plate. These
> things just happen. If somebody paid too much, well, it happens. I spent
> $200 for my first 8880, which was used. I thought it was a great deal until I
> got the next ones for $100 each.
>
> If I was willing to spend $350 for a Metroliner and found one, bought it and
> was happy, was I ripped off? What if the guy got it for $80 a week before?
> Was I ripped off then? Both times, I must say no. I was willing to spend it
> and if I overspent, it is entirely my fault.
>
> People on LugNET and RTL can complain about eBay all they want, but it is a
> simple fact. Supercars went for $350 on eBay. People said, "Wow, I can make
> some money." Now, they sell for $150. If arbitrage didn't happen, then the
> Supercar market would not have been flooded and they would still sell one
> every two weeks for $350. Instead, they move 4-5 a week at $150. If anybody
> was being ripped off, was it the people I sold to at $172.50 plus $6 shipping
> for an item I bought two months prior for $100 or the person who paid $350
> from some dude who maybe wasn't "trying to make a buck" but did anyway.
>
> I did this same thing with the 5571. They are still available at Lego. Shop
> at home STILL has them. I saw them got for a lot of money. I smelled cash
> and bought 5 at $139 each. I though it was a great deal until I heard Tom
> Stangle got 50 or so fo them from $30 to $70 each. (Yes, thirty dollars -
> MISB!) Anyway, I sold the first ones for about $265 or so. The last one I
> sold was for about $150. Now, they go for about $120. Once again, arbitrage
> brought the prices DOWN. Sure, they could have got them cheaper from S@H, but
> how? They didn't know about it and it is not my job to advertise for Lego for
> free. They [Lego] did a poor job of marketing the set, since they removed it
> from their catalog and reported it as discontinued. It was just luck that I
> asked if they were still in stock. Should I not get a cut for helping them
> market their sets? TRU does, Target does, Wal-Mart does. Again, I started
> the bid at $1. Is it my fault that some people spent that much? Now, thanks
> to arbitrage and people like me, they are cheaper and easier to find.
>
> Maybe it is just me, but I think that these sorts of things are great. They
> make economies work. It drives DOWN prices (as seen in previous market
> examples) when they are high and increases sales where they are low. Somebody
> is going to buy Lego. And somebody is going to make money selling it. Why
> not me? After all, don't most of us do this same thing in some way? If we
> weren't all out after that extra dollar, why are there so many auction
> postings? And if we weren't making money doing it, why would we bother? (If
> you tell me for the good of our fellow man, go to China, you communist. :-))
>
> I don't think you sabotaged my source of revenue. The market will correct
> itself and tighten all money-making systems over time. Another one will just
> show up to take its place. And if not, I still have my day job.
>
> In the end, people like me do more than you realize to make sure that those
> who want a set get it at a fair market price and that sets move off of the
> shelf. Now, if they would just let me auction off my extra kidney...
>
> Mike Poindexter
> self-admitted eBay scalper and 5 second sniper
--
Larry Pieniazek larryp@novera.com http://my.voyager.net/lar
- - - Web Application Integration! http://www.novera.com
fund Lugnet(tm): http://www.ebates.com/ Member ref: lar, 1/2 $$ to
lugnet.
NOTE: I have left CTP, effective 18 June 99, and my CTP email
will not work after then. Please switch to my Novera ID.
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Message has 1 Reply:
Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: DYA -> eBay 8880 money-making scheme
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| (...) area has items for sale for less than another area. This is a commin occurance and is supposed to occur from time to time. Some people feel this is ripping people off. I see shooting cannons selling for $10-15, yet they are still available for (...) (25 years ago, 4-Sep-99, to lugnet.general)
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