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View Full Version : A Reasonable Response From A Reasonable Auction House - Ha!!



TriplexXxSports
01-27-2010, 11:14 AM
In short, I have been in contact with 2 auction houses about moving some of my current inventory to raise a little cash so I can focus more on my collecting priorities in 2010.

Each house had different dates they were running their auctions so in order to maximize visibility and potential sales I went with the auction house that was running the earliest auction first.

Throughout this time I stayed in contact with with the 2nd auction house working on consigning stuff to them which may include some of the items that did not sell in the 1st auction (if there were any). The gentleman that I was dealing with at this particular firm was nothing short of professional and helpful. We agreed and I was told to contact him when I was ready to make the move on consigning my items to them and we would get to work on the details.....

So, I sent an e-mail this morning giving an update and to get some more detailed info about their process to get the ball rolling. The response that I received (from a different individual) was unwarranted and unprofessional, to say the least!

(here is a copy of a couple of the e-mails that I exchanged with this auction house. For the protection of the company and parties involved, I did a little editing.)
__________________________________________________ ______________
From:
Subject: Re: Possible Consignments
To:
Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 7:56 AM

Thank you. I believe I have all I need. I am working with another firm to get some items listed in an auction with a earlier closing date . When that auction is completed I will be in touch as to which items I will be looking to place in your April auction. I am trying to maximize visibility for my items and move them as quickly as possible. Thank you for all your information and time.

I will be in touch in regards to the April auction.

Matthew

Response:

From:
Subject: Re: Possible Consignments
To:
Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2010, 8:06 AM

Matthew,

Is there anything else I can do to assist you in making your decision? Any more questions I can answer?

__________________________________________________ _______________________
From:
To:
Sent: Wed, Jan 27, 2010 8:14 am
Subject: Upcoming Auction Consignments

As we spoke before, the (1st) auction is about to end (edited)....Therefore, I would like to pursue the option of consigning some items with you folks in your next auction.

I was looking for some information on how the process needs to work. Please let me know and I will begin to get things together on my end.

Thanks Again for your time,

Matthew

RESPONSE (different party than the original person I worked with):

From:
Subject: Re: Upcoming Auction Consignments
To:
Date: Wednesday, January 27, 2010, 7:55 AM

Sorry it does not work like that. You should have given it to us in the first place. The public has already seen what did not sell. Why would we want to run also rans. If you have something fresh and good please let us know.
Thank You
__________________________________________________ _______________________


Interesting response to say the least. I am being penalized for not using them in the first place. What is that? As stated before, I wanted to maximize visibility for the items I am selling. Now since another auction house touched them they are all of the sudden no good? They are not fresh? What's the difference if I had been running them on eBay this whole time?

Needless to say I feel it is very unprofessional to contact me in that manner, especially when the original party at this firm and I agreed on this process. One would think that the auction houses would be happy to give things a go, especially since it is potentially money in their pockets.

Very frustrating, and very unprofessional....

rj_lucas
01-27-2010, 11:50 AM
Proof that ego trumps greed :)

Rick
rickjlucas@gmail.com

joelsabi
01-27-2010, 12:07 PM
Proof that ego trumps greed :)

Rick
rickjlucas@gmail.com

auction house should have used more tact in their response.

if they see something not sell at another auction house, i guess they have a right to refuse it.

bigtruck260
01-27-2010, 01:06 PM
Matt -

By not dignifying them with a response, you are doing yourself a favor. Not everyone knows about every auction house. People learn as they go...and some folks might not bid on items at one auction house - yet bid on them at another because they are more comfortable with the final transaction. For instance, had you named this auction house (smart for not doing it) I would have thought twice about doing any type of business with them. That's just me.

Good luck with your stuff.

mariner_gamers
01-27-2010, 01:31 PM
There is nothing better than someone telling you "We don't want your money!!!" Even in this economy it continues to happen and absolutely baffles me. Any professional auction house should know collectors frequent different sites and their expendable income fluctuates. There are tons of threads on this very site where people discuss why something closed so much higher from one auction to another......

otismalibu
01-27-2010, 01:39 PM
Why would we want to run also rans.

Yet, I've seen one auction house be the only bidder on another auction house's item, only to list it on their site.

TriplexXxSports
01-27-2010, 01:45 PM
Matt -

By not dignifying them with a response, you are doing yourself a favor. Not everyone knows about every auction house. People learn as they go...and some folks might not bid on items at one auction house - yet bid on them at another because they are more comfortable with the final transaction. For instance, had you named this auction house (smart for not doing it) I would have thought twice about doing any type of business with them. That's just me.

Good luck with your stuff.

Thanks. I did respond to their last response and all I said was that I was sorry things did not work out, wished them the best of luck in their upcoming auction, and said I would take my 15% elsewhere.

I do not feel the name of the place is relevant, as it would serve no purpose to call them out on one consignors problem. Process of elimination will most likely lead you to the name of the auction house, but it is not for me to say. Just not in my character, I guess.

I guess I was wrong in assuming that certain auction houses would be honored to help consignors reach the maximum visibility and profit for their items and rewarding both parties in the process.

Lesson learned.

The owner of this company's response to me this morning says alot about their character over there and, if that is the type of reputation they want, then that is fine. Word travels quickly in this industry. I'm glad they are privileged enough to be able to refuse possible income.

TDKID
01-27-2010, 01:54 PM
Yet, I've seen one auction house be the only bidder on another auction house's item, only to list it on their site.



You know,some of these Auction houses will "shill-bid"(it says it right in the bidder agreement of a couple) They will "max-out" a high bid. Usually do whatever the seller asks to squeeze a higher price out of an item Then there's that 20 percent BS "Buyer's Premium" on top of your total.(That one has kept me from buying many times.) I mean, you win an item for $800 right ? Then you have to pay some chump another $160 plus shipping(which is usually the highest available.) So an $800 item turns into a $1,000 item. On the flip-side they are charging the seller consignment fees and taking a rake off the sale. I can see, if I'm buying some ultra-rare, "Holy Grail" type item. I'll occasionally pay the "fluff" on top of the selling price. But, make a habit and buy like I do from Fleabay ? Not a Chance !

earlywynnfan
01-27-2010, 02:50 PM
Just to play devil's advocate, why would an auction house want to try to auction something that didn't sell a couple months (or less) earlier?

Ken
earlywynnfan5@hotmail.com

TriplexXxSports
01-27-2010, 02:53 PM
Just to play devil's advocate, why would an auction house want to try to auction something that didn't sell a couple months (or less) earlier?

Ken
earlywynnfan5@hotmail.com

I think Dave had it right when he stated....

"Not everyone knows about every auction house. People learn as they go...and some folks might not bid on items at one auction house - yet bid on them at another because they are more comfortable with the final transaction."

dcgreg25
01-27-2010, 03:02 PM
Just to play devil's advocate, why would an auction house want to try to auction something that didn't sell a couple months (or less) earlier?

Ken
earlywynnfan5@hotmail.com

Good point Ken. Auction houses want fresh, exclusive items to build their reputation. However, it seems they should have communicated this with you before you placed the items in the other auction. Not seeing the full communication, I do not know if this could have been communicated earlier. In my (limited) experience as a consignor, one of the questions I have been asked about items is if they have been in auctions before, how long, etc. Regardless, the email certainly could have been phrased in a more positive way so they did not lose a customer. Perhaps they could have encouraged you to consign it for an auction later in the year or something.

TriplexXxSports
01-27-2010, 03:13 PM
...and I would have been fine with that.

The original communications were that I was going to run some items in one auction, and then run some more in another auction that was at a later date, possibly overlapping some of the items from one to another (assuming that not all of them sold in the first auction).

That was communicated between myself and the 2nd auction house. Nothing was said until "D-Day" about not allowing my items for consignment.

TriplexXxSports
01-27-2010, 03:19 PM
Not only that, but it was told to me in such a distasteful manner. Like I'm some POS, and my items are no good now because they were run by another firm.....

godwulf
01-27-2010, 04:21 PM
The first individual with whom you dealt either didn't know what he was talking about when he agreed to auction your "leftover" items - in other words, he wasn't really authorized to make that commitment - or he was simply overruled at the last minute by someone more in authority in the company - the second person with whom you dealt. If the former, then it was primarily his ignorance of company policy, in promising you something he couldn't deliver, that led to your disappointment.

As for the ill-mannered way in which the second guy broke the news to you...gee, I've never met a sports collectibles dealer who was in any way insensitive or socially retarded. I'm shocked! :rolleyes:

karamaxjoe
01-27-2010, 06:00 PM
I've never met a sports collectibles dealer who was in any way insensitive or socially retarded. I'm shocked! :rolleyes:

That statement says a lot. Most of the dealers I know have been in this sordid business their whole lives and are used to dealing with people in a rough way. They could really use some customer service training if they really want to keep customers. I've spent my whole career in the customer service world and if word got back to my boss that I sent an email like that, I'd be finished.

TriplexXxSports
01-27-2010, 06:04 PM
....... if word got back to my boss that I sent an email like that, I'd be finished.

LOL, it was the boss that sent me my final e-mail. That's that kicker.

godwulf
01-27-2010, 08:07 PM
By the way, I got to thinking about it, and I wanted to make clear that I was not saying that all sports collectibles dealers are that way, of course. I've encountered several who were the nicest guys you'd ever want to do business with.

dcgreg25
01-27-2010, 08:57 PM
Not only that, but it was told to me in such a distasteful manner. Like I'm some POS, and my items are no good now because they were run by another firm.....

I hear ya TriplexXx....they had an opportunity to sell your items and get you a good price in which case, my guess is you would have used them instead of the first auction house going forward. Unfortunately, they blew an opportunity to gain a customer instead of losing several.

TriplexXxSports
01-28-2010, 08:39 AM
Ya know, I am all about the 'fresh' look and all of that. I understand that concept. What erks(sp?) me about it is why is it that I was denied consignments because they were run at another auction house months before. Its not like I am sending them to an auction that starts next week. There is a period of 4 months in between. I was honest with them in my initial communication clearly telling them that I was going to run my items in another auction prior to theirs to maximize visibility and potential sales. All I got was a 'thank you' and 'is there any other questions I can answer'......

As Dave put it earlier in this thread, maybe people would rather buy from one auction house rather than another, based on personal preference. We have all had conversations here about getting items from places like AMI, or Coaches Corner, etc. What if you saw an item in one of those auctions that you wanted but hesitated to bid. It never sold, and 4 months later the same item ended up in Robert Edwards, or Lelands..? You would more likely bid on it then, wouldn't ya?

Another reason out there that might cause a potential bidder to hesitate on bidding on an item is the difference in buyer premiums from one place to another. All the auction houses try to be competitive in the BP's. If an item doesn't sell at one place it may sell at another with a lower BP.

Another thing that 'grinds my gears' is what about the whole Flea-Bay scenario. I am willing to bet that if I were running these items on eBay in the months prior to the 2nd auction houses start date there probably wouldn't be much of a problem. But since I am running them in a 'competitors' auction prior to consigning to them, now there's a problem?!

I just wonder if my items are being victimized because of the competition between auction houses. It would make sense that a place that uses their own personal 'authenticators', for example, would not want to push an item with a Legendary Auctions LOA, or a Mears LOA. Lou Lampson LOA's seem to get away with it since he has worked for alot of these companies in the past, but I can see a direct LOA with a specific auction houses name on the letterhead could cause some conflict.

Now, I don't mean to sit here and sound like a whiny little school girl with my panties all up in a bunch (which I probably do) but, I just cannot see a logical explanation as to why legit game worn gear would get turned down, why this particular auction house would look past potential profit, and why the owner of this company would act in the manner that he did about this whole situation.

Something smells fishy.......