EndzoneSports
02-17-2006, 01:30 AM
Recently, I posted a statement of facts surrounding a series of transactions by a particular seller on the forum. This was done not with the intent of questioning the integrity of the seller or even to call attention to the transactions, but rather to elicit a public response from the seller that had been, up to that point, privately withheld from the affected buyers. Unfortunately, rather than elicit the response that I had hoped for, what it yielded was a response from the seller that amounted to defensive tirade that effectively lambasted me as a bold-faced liar, a number of unrelated side discussions, and a couple of private e-mails that really cut to the heart of the matter.
In one, a frustrated writer who described himself as a novice collector asked how, with all of the doom and gloom throughout the news, can one go about figuring out which sellers/dealers you can trust? After giving this a good amount of thought, I responded that, whether novice or seasoned pro, being comfortable with a seller really comes down to trust. I would venture to say that trust in the person with whom you are dealing is probably more important that your technical knowledge about the item you are buying. If you can truly and honesty trust the other person, you can leverage their knowledge and gain from it.
Over the years I've dealt with a number of dealers and have established relationships with several that I know that I can just trust implicitly. I know that any item from their inventory has passed their scrutiny and thus, I have confidence it will pass mine. Of others, I am a much more leery. For a less experienced collector who may not have the advantage of these established relationships, asking questions of others about who they trust, who they do business with, who they would recommend, etc. can be very valuable information. The same goes for auction houses and authenticators as it does for dealers. The good, bad and ugly are all intertwined and it takes a bit of community networking to sort it all out.
Finally, to any sellers who may teeter on the ragged edge of ethical impropriety, please allow me to offer one small bit of advice. This is 2006… Be on the up-and-up with your customers. It is better to tell them nothing at all of the provenance of an item and let a valid piece stand on its own merits that to make up some line of BS that won’t stand up to scrutiny. Trust me, if you try to pull a fast one, in this day and age you will be found out. The hobby is just too well connected anymore for anyone to get away with anything. I recall when I first started collecting that my attachment to the hobby was a weekly add from Ball Park Hero’s in SCD (lamenting on the fact that some collector in Chicago always got his copy in the mail two days before I did)… If you wanted to put a face to anyone in the hobby, you went to the National once a year. The Internet has changed all of that and literally put thousands of us in touch with one another in real time. The shenanigans of bygone days won’t fly anymore.
If you’ve made it this far, my appreciation for your indulgence.
Best Regards,
In one, a frustrated writer who described himself as a novice collector asked how, with all of the doom and gloom throughout the news, can one go about figuring out which sellers/dealers you can trust? After giving this a good amount of thought, I responded that, whether novice or seasoned pro, being comfortable with a seller really comes down to trust. I would venture to say that trust in the person with whom you are dealing is probably more important that your technical knowledge about the item you are buying. If you can truly and honesty trust the other person, you can leverage their knowledge and gain from it.
Over the years I've dealt with a number of dealers and have established relationships with several that I know that I can just trust implicitly. I know that any item from their inventory has passed their scrutiny and thus, I have confidence it will pass mine. Of others, I am a much more leery. For a less experienced collector who may not have the advantage of these established relationships, asking questions of others about who they trust, who they do business with, who they would recommend, etc. can be very valuable information. The same goes for auction houses and authenticators as it does for dealers. The good, bad and ugly are all intertwined and it takes a bit of community networking to sort it all out.
Finally, to any sellers who may teeter on the ragged edge of ethical impropriety, please allow me to offer one small bit of advice. This is 2006… Be on the up-and-up with your customers. It is better to tell them nothing at all of the provenance of an item and let a valid piece stand on its own merits that to make up some line of BS that won’t stand up to scrutiny. Trust me, if you try to pull a fast one, in this day and age you will be found out. The hobby is just too well connected anymore for anyone to get away with anything. I recall when I first started collecting that my attachment to the hobby was a weekly add from Ball Park Hero’s in SCD (lamenting on the fact that some collector in Chicago always got his copy in the mail two days before I did)… If you wanted to put a face to anyone in the hobby, you went to the National once a year. The Internet has changed all of that and literally put thousands of us in touch with one another in real time. The shenanigans of bygone days won’t fly anymore.
If you’ve made it this far, my appreciation for your indulgence.
Best Regards,