Subject:
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Re: Was P.T.Barnum Right? -Or- Should I feel Guilty?
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.market.theory
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Date:
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Sun, 30 Apr 2000 20:18:38 GMT
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Reply-To:
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ICESTORM@INWAVE.avoidspamCOM
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Viewed:
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577 times
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Mike Stanley wrote:
>
> In lugnet.market.theory, John Hadd writes:
> > OK, I did some bulk Lego auctions on Ebay (from 3033 Blue Tubs). A bidder wins
> > one at a kinda high price, but bids and loses on the other 3 colors. He Payapls
> > me the winning amount. Then he inquires about the other colors I may have. I
> > tell him this and that and he buys them all. So... the total he pays is $86.89
> > including shipping for the entire contents of 2 buckets. I did not think he
> > would take them all... What to do?? John
>
> Johm,
>
> You should sell him the items he wants. When the SW sets first hit I sold 10
> scout troopers for $50 on eBay, which is what it cost me to buy 5 copies of
> 7128. The buyer got what she wanted - the pieces and didn't get the hassle of
> having a lot of stuff she didn't want.
>
> And like Kevin said - maybe the buckets aren't available where he lives.
I've been subsidizing my "habit" for a while with occasional auctions.
Sometimes people pay an outrageous price, but almost always seem happy with
the deal. I understand why John feels guilty, but one thing I do with
bidders who are interested in more bricks and seem very decent in their
e-mails is explain what I'm doing. I had one bidder that made a request
similar to John's bidder, and I told him it would be cheaper to buy them
himself off the shelf of TRU or some other store. If, after knowing they'd
be spending more than they have to, they still wanted to deal with me, and
if I thought it would be worth my time, then I'd make the deal. I'm not a
businessman at heart.
Maybe I'm on a tangent here, but I'm a little confused. I know snipers are
loathed, but I've also seen many posts wanting to stop/disrupt irreputable
traders on Ebay. The McDonalds set from S@H for $60, The SW sets when they
first came out, etc., there was a strong interest here to protect and
educate the buyers out there. I've even starting telling some of my bidders
about Lego Direct. Maybe not good for business, especially if LD provides
basic bricks at a tub-competitive price, but it seemed to be the concensus
of the community here that that would be a right thing to do.
If the bidder understands that he is paying more than what he can buy them
for retail, then John shouldn't feel guilty. If John was pitching them as
"Rare Green Bricks", and someone id'ed as John recently did that, I don't
think I could support the deal.
http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=314086817
Hey, there are many wonderful people here, and the communtiy is unique
compared to what I've encountered elsewhere on the net. Wasn't or didn't
Larry P. sell one of those McDonalds sets as an attempt to educate buyers? A
Sysiphian<?> task, but I liked the idea an effort. And some buyers may not
be inclinded to learn, but we can at least try.
John, if you've explained the facts openly and honestly, and the buyer
understands and still wants the side deal, go for it and sleep well.
Mark
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