posted on February 24, 2003 11:20:04 PM new
I sell pre-owned, brand name clothing and I've noticed that within the past few months, the bids and buyers have decreased SIGNIFICANTLY. Do you think this is due to the poor economy, the probability of war, or what? Where are all the buyers?
posted on February 24, 2003 11:45:16 PM new
For you sellers who are still giving it a GO on eBay, what are you doing to attract the few buyers that are out there? I've had to cut my starting prices just to get buyers to look at my auctions.
posted on February 25, 2003 01:39:43 AM new
hubby and I are planning to move in the spring so we have stopped buying any inventory and are just trying to clean out the garage and storage until after the move.
hopefully, by then, things will have picked back up.
the items I have listed still get the lookers, but very few bids until the very end.
posted on February 25, 2003 04:56:32 AM new
I sell to collectors, relatively low priced ($9.99 to $40) items. While there is been some drop-off, I have begun to niche my items. I know by now which collectors seem to be recession proof. It seems like the new buyers (feedback < 10) seem to have dropped out but the older ones are still hanging in there.
posted on February 25, 2003 05:26:02 AM new
Have you been out of the house lately?
We went to our local mall the other day, and the stores are STILL selling off winter merchandise. At Sears, we bought 10 items (shirts and sweaters, some Lands End). They were marked down, then there was an additional markdown at register. Then, they took an extra 10% for using the Sears charge card. Total: $81.00. And no shipping charges! At this rate I am beginning to think they will start just throwing stuff at you as you drive by.
We also have TJ Maxx stores in our area. I was looking for a lampshade, and saw that I could buy a lamp cheaper, throw the base away and just keep the shade I want.
New York Times this weekend had an article on how people will no longer buy unless it is on sale.
At this rate, Ebay (just like fleamarkets) will no longer be profitable for sellers of new merchandise (unless they are getting it for free or close to it), or if it is a high-demand item that is not widely available.
Perhaps we are spoiled with the number of discount retailers in the Northeast, but as I travel around, it seems that the local "outlet mall" is a standard feature no matter where you go.
posted on February 25, 2003 07:34:54 AM new
Regarding the New York Times article, I have been seeing the "wont buy unless it's on sale" mentality for several years.
Being that I work in a well established brick & mortar operation selling and servicing Harley-Davidson motorcycles, we've been dealing with the discount mentality for better than 10 years. Actually since the mid-80s.
But this mentality is not limited in the least to our retail sector of the economy. Wal-Mart now has the clout to dictate wholesale pricing from it's suppliers. And they have tons and tons of suppliers.
The automobile industry as been dictating pricing in their vendor contracts for years. If you were ford or GM, and bids recieved from Chinese and Brizalian steel producers are 1/10-1/20th the cost of American steel, and then the contract signed requires the winning bidder to successively reduce the ammount charged by 5% per year of the life of the contract, who do you think Ford and GM will go with. And any buyer for said companies will tell you, Ford and GM could care less whether or not the company with the winning bid goes out of business in the process of fulfilling thier obligations
(I know, no one here is selling auto parts wholesale but the example is relevent)
The point of my examples is that having to discount to the point of not being worth the effort and expense to list an item at auction is not limited to Ebay or any other auction service. Our national mentality, rooted in commercial cost savings, drives most of us to squeeze the last penny out of a vendor because we are taught to do so.
