Buying and Selling on eBay: Tips, Tricks, Problems & Questions

[1ofTheCoolKids]

^ Ah the good old days when eBay was The Wild West. Loved it! This video reminds me of that time

 

[haloitsme]

Well yeah, but I'm 23 years in on the 'Bay. I'm sure at least a few of the gang here had the same experience back then. I remember @SpooPoker was around, although I knew him only by his eBay handle; a few others like Daniel Weigand (wowniceshirt) and topshelfapparel were hustlin'. StyFo was embryonic, so I was learning from askandy (where I never go now).

I remember in the mid aughts listing a Kiton Blanc Blu suit with a huge gash on one of the pants legs. Frantic bidding took it up to $450, as it was the only Kiton suit that size on eBay at that moment in time. The buyer was thrilled. Today there are 631 Kittys, many NWT, thanks to the jobbers, but almost 200 used. You just didn't see that back then. You were lucky if you saw one. And frankly, since both askandy and styfo were starting to educate people about CM, and there was a burgeoning interest, a huge number of people were doing their experiments with CM, and buying it in significant quantities, trying to build their wardrobes, often for the first time. So they were fighting over it. I was one of those people. At one point I had 70 suits and 150 sport coats in my own wardrobe. Packages arrived every day. Remember, this was the first time we could easily get a $3-6K suit for $150-$350 (or ten bucks at a thrift). ****, before that I didn't even know a $6K suit was even a thing. The spare bedroom was filled with racks of my own stuff, while the eBay stuff was in the basement. Now, I've got only half a dozen SCs and 2 suits that I never wear (though they're Kitty, Isaia, Tom Ford, Attolini, Campagna etc). So that entire cohort of people who were literally frantic about building their wardrobes are pretty much all gone as buyers, including me, limiting their purchases to occasional grailey items, and being super-cheap about it to boot.

I know this seems like fantasyland for all of you who are grinding it out in the current difficult marketplace, but those were the glory days when we could put everything on auction and make out like a bandit. No need for BIN/OBO like now. So stuff moved. I don't remember exactly when I made the switch away from auctions (mb 10-12 years ago?), but it was purely in response to watching auction end prices start to plummet, and with no or few competing bids, reflecting massively increased supply and equally reduced demand. A constant, progressive decline. I would have to dig into backup drives to get you the exact numbers, but even trying full time I can't make even half of what I used to for what feels like 2-3 times the work and a whole lot more frustration. And CM? I rarely pick it up nowadays unless it's primo primo, and then it still sits, and sits. Neither demand nor supply are there. Back then, in New England in the mid-aughts, I would often arrive at the checkout with two carts, overloaded with nice suits and outerwear that sold fast for $150-600 a pop. Even a decent HF would get $150. And Ferragamo shoes always sold at $250-350. Doesn't take a whole lot to get to $100K when your average sales price is up there. Those were the days. I rarely get into 3 figures for 'Gamos now, and don't even kop HF unless it's either pristine or on $1 day.

So yes, that really happened, and others may chime in to confirm what it was like, but those glory days are gone forever . . . Too many flippers, not enough buyers (and the buyers want flipper pricing) . . . Simple economics.

You are right. I was not around on the bay, only made first account in 2004. In Austria the internet was pretty new ^^.
Now with major seller on the platform you can only make profit if you are in a niche where the competition is not so big. I witnessed on ebay race to zero. Just look at Kiton SACCO sellers, NWT 800-1100$. I remembered selling used for that amount. If you want to sell in that price range you only make a couple of $$ if you buy bulk from company, or buy some limited QTY from store sale and liquidation. Then the market is crowed and the ebay low-ballers are on the go... Its getting ridiculous sometimes.
But I tell you, you can make money on ebay but you need to invest a lot. You have to put down 50-100.000€ to buy bulk so its worth dealing in NWT. Also an issue, if you buy from company, sometimes now allowed to sell on ebay.

....

 

[MJMcRibb]

Anyone have issues with auctions ending tonight? I had 6 items with bids show up in my list of unsold items and they don't show as awaiting payment. Others ended and showed up just fine.

 

[SpooPoker]

Anyone have issues with auctions ending tonight? I had 6 items with bids show up in my list of unsold items and they don't show as awaiting payment. Others ended and showed up just fine.

oh about 450 of them

 

[goatamous II]

Thank you for being a Bucks member, and a valuable part of our eBay community. We’re reaching out to tell you about upcoming changes to the eBay Bucks program.​ After careful consideration, we’ve decided to retire the 1% earnings reward on everyday purchases starting April 1st, 2021. The good news is, you will continue to receive bonus Bucks offers, so you can keep earning.​ And, beginning April 1st, the Bucks you earn will have a 12-month redemption window, so there’s even more time to score those big savings.​

We hope that gives you more time to enjoy everyday savings and deals on the brands you love. Plus, all the exciting finds you’ve come to expect on eBay: from the rare to the retro to the right now.​ Sincerely,​ The eBay Bucks Team​

Meh. But news nonetheless.

 

[haloitsme]

Anyone have issues with auctions ending tonight? I had 6 items with bids show up in my list of unsold items and they don't show as awaiting payment. Others ended and showed up just fine.

Some of my relist was not visible and ended product showed up again on eBay -.-

 

[txwoodworker]

Some of my relist was not visible and ended product showed up again on eBay -.-

oh about 450 of them

Was there a major glitch or did it all sort itself out?

 

[MJMcRibb]

Was there a major glitch or did it all sort itself out?

My few were corrected when I checked this morning.

 

[dral83]

Hi all.
*This may have been talked about recently and I think I know the answer to this but still asking:
I have an ebay buyer requesting a refund b/c item has not arrived. Item is delayed due to the issues that happened with power outages in Texas due to the cold front (confirmed at USPS office today). Am I stuck giving the refund back now and hoping that the buyer will mail back the package? I am assuming I'll pay for return shipping too.
Thx.

 

[txwoodworker]

Stall him as long as possible on opening a case (assuming he hasn't already) then let the case close naturally (don't take action until required to) and hope it shows up by then. Also, negative feedback should be removable because of USPS delays.

 

[haloitsme]

Just always amused who the sellers are: and of course the buyers .

| eBay

 

[dral83]

Stall him as long as possible on opening a case (assuming he hasn't already) then let the case close naturally (don't take action until required to) and hope it shows up by then. Also, negative feedback should be removable because of USPS delays.

Thank you. I'll try

 

[LaundryRoom]

Hi all.
*This may have been talked about recently and I think I know the answer to this but still asking:
I have an ebay buyer requesting a refund b/c item has not arrived. Item is delayed due to the issues that happened with power outages in Texas due to the cold front (confirmed at USPS office today). Am I stuck giving the refund back now and hoping that the buyer will mail back the package? I am assuming I'll pay for return shipping too.
Thx.

I had a similar issue recently...

Buyer bought a jacket on Feb 17, I shipped same day. USPS sat on it. I finally submitted a "missing mail request" on Feb 28, just to kick-start it.

On Mar 1, they attempted delivery, then claimed that the address was vacant, and took the package back to the local office.

Buyer messaged me and asked for a refund. I gave her the telephone number to the local PO and told her to call them with the tracking number. Or alternately, wait until the 10-day period elapsed and USPS sends the package back to me, whereupon I'd refund.

I got this message from her today:

 

[haloitsme]

Sometimes I love the eBay buyers. Had 1 customer who waited patiently for 1 Month for the package from the EU to the USA. Ended up in a USPS shop, was somehow forwarded to FedEx and he picked it up there.

AND some eBay buyers are pure weasels.

 

[sjmin209]

Hi all.
*This may have been talked about recently and I think I know the answer to this but still asking:
I have an ebay buyer requesting a refund b/c item has not arrived. Item is delayed due to the issues that happened with power outages in Texas due to the cold front (confirmed at USPS office today). Am I stuck giving the refund back now and hoping that the buyer will mail back the package? I am assuming I'll pay for return shipping too.
Thx.

My recommendation: file a missing mail request with the P.O.--this is the only way I've gotten them to ever look into something that's late. In my experience, the nice folks at the Post Office are nice, but don't take any action.

eBay has been reasonably good about dealing with the weather delays. I had a case where a package went missing on the way to Maine; I didn't find out about it until the buyer filed with eBay. Even though it had been 2 weeks since I shipped, eBay put the case on hold for something like 10 days because the trackign showed that I had shipped the item. In the meantime, I filed a missing mail request & the package was moving within 2 days, and delivered in 4. eBay closed the case as soon as I contacted them to let them know it had been delivered.