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It's all about context...

Sunday, July 6, 2008

Getting away from retail...

One of the things I don't like about this business is retail selling. That sounds ridiculous - why even start a business selling china if you don't do retail?

Well for one thing because packing china properly for shipment is an exacting, exhausting, frustrating chore. Because putting things up for auctions online is extraordinarily time-consuming. But mostly because customers can be a problem, and not just for non-payment. After all, if they don't pay, I don't send them anything - we're even, no hard feelings. Nor would I complain about the people who report breakage. It happens no matter how well packed, and I send a partial refund immediately.

No, worst is the customer who gets a box full, tells you it's all broken, fails to send clear pictures of the breakage, and then insists on all the money back. I can see from other feedback that this person has pulled this stunt with other sellers, and then smeared them up and down if there was any other outcome than a full refund. It's unlikely everything in the package was broken, but this person knows darn well my reputation is worth more to me than the fifty bucks, and my time is worth more to me than the arduous process of proving a pattern of such behavior, so I refund the payment. All of it. And then feel sick for awhile.

But I don't want to give up on selling, either. I was able to provide nearly an entire set of Noritake china at a very good price to a family who wanted it for a wedding gift. Many times I've been able to replace individual pieces from beloved heirloom dinnerware sets - and have regularly gotten thank you notes from those buyers. You can't beat that.

I'm getting hints, however, that you can avoid selling directly to the consumer, but still keep in touch with them. It's harder to make money than on eBay, but it's do-able. Any consignment shop or antique mall, for example, takes the retail off your hands; they collect the money, deal with problems, answer questions, secure your merchandise, mail anything that needs to be mailed, and submit the sales tax to the state. You don't even need a tax ID number. I can still direct previous good customers to them and help out my fellow vendors at the same time with good marketing practices. The couple of thefts I've endured at the mall are somehow not nearly as creepy as being cheated online by someone in direct contact with me.

And I can sell from my own website, where I can make my own rules and develop a smaller, but better customer base. Yet another possibility is selling directly to specific collectors or dealing with collector's organizations. I don't know enough yet to do that, but it's an idea.

Finally, another venue I'm trying out is re-auctioning items at a higher-end auction house. Fingers crossed. First try this summer. The problem here, of course, is that the customer is kept at too great a distance, if not cut out altogether. That's not what I had in mind. If the main point of this business is getting something no one wants into the hands of someone who does want it, another auction disrupts that process, or at least lengthens it. I think what I'll do is put new things up either in the mall or on my website for a specific period of time and then take them to be re-auctioned if they don't sell there. Rotates the inventory, too.

Stay tuned.

--Gail

Sunday, June 15, 2008

The Microsoft TechEd Auction (or maybe circus sideshow)

Just got back from a gigantic information technology conference sponsored by Microsoft (TechEd, for those of you in the field). Educational from several perspectives, some of which don't seem apparent to the typical attendee.

There are extremely few women in technology. I think we knew that, but I didn't get the full force of it until I saw it in action. The only woman on stage during the entire keynote address headed up the entertainment - an excellent African-inspired percussion ensemble - and she did not speak words, only musical calls and shrieks. The technical session leaders were virtually all male (Carolyn Chau an exception), although there did seem to be a larger female contingent at the vendor booths. Among the attendees, maybe 1 in 20 was female. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the "Women in Technology" luncheon was standing room only, but unfortunately that wasn't because so many women were there but rather because the room was not particularly large.

Now lest you think I'm about to start on some shrill rant about the evils of male domination, forget it. Despite scholarships, trade organization initiatives, spotlights, programs and downright begging on the part of some tech sectors, there still aren't many women in technology (with the exception of biochemistry, which is about half women now). The innate ability exists, the educational opportunity exists, there are many welcoming open doors in industry, and still women usually spend their talents elsewhere. I don't know why either, but it might be wise to look for some new angle on cracking this open.

It's easy to see how Tech-Ed is like a circus sideshow, and the whole event is a giant marketing campaign, but how is it like an auction?

  • To start, there is a lot of diverse material for sale, with a specific theme. And they're selling more than just software. they're selling community, comraderie, and friendship

  • The auctioneer - whether session presenter or keynote speaker - whips up interest in the material itself, but also strokes the buyer. (An astonishing amount of effort went into convincing the attendees that we were heroes - an important, underappreciated tribe who get impossible things done.)

  • The audience bids not directly with money but with brand loyalty and purchasing potential. We take home a sense of community and a staggering amount of useful technical information, but also a determination to buy.


Think about it the next time you're at a conference.

--Gail

Saturday, May 31, 2008

What's it worth? Who will buy it?

Attended a very interesting auction yesterday (J. Pandur) - lots of good china and collectibles, good atmosphere, some great deals. Wacko prices, though - the sheer range was astonishing. Someone purchased an empty cardboard box for $400 just because it had a picture of Hopalong Cassidy on it. On the other hand, someone else walked out of there with about 20 antique windup wall clocks for $20 each. I was looking for bargains - and I don't know much about clocks - so I didn't bid very often, but I did get some blue Willow china, a few pieces of depression glass, and a cool metal condiment server with 6 etched glass carafes. Let an entire set of Noritake dinnerware go for $20 to someone else because I didn't know the pattern and I don't have room for it in inventory, though.

I go hot and cold on inventory. There are days when I think I should just buy good quality things as they come up and store them until the right person comes along to buy. Other days I look around and think "Enough! Let's get this stuff out of here!" Some compromise, I suppose...6 months? A year? I was about to take all the big china sets to a high end auctioneer and get rid of them last week, and then someone ordered several pieces through the website.

OK. I'll hold on to them a little longer...someone might need them.

--Gail

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Researching China Patterns and Value

Updated 22 May 2015: 

Occasionally people write to me for advice on selling a set of china, or ask me to buy a set from them. In general, Grandma's gorgeous set isn't worth as much as you'd hoped (except for relatively few patterns), and selling to a dealer will always raise (far) less money than selling to an end user or collector. I don't even buy from individuals because of this (I buy only at auction), and I sometimes advise people to just give it to a relative - far more satisfying than selling in many cases. Not what most people want to hear, but with that said, here's a start on determining value and trying to sell for an acceptable price:
  • For the maximum price, look at Replacements.com: http://www.replacements.com/identify.htm. If you don't already know about these guys, they maintain an enormous inventory of china and silver, and they sell it at very high prices. If you know the pattern, you can look it up on their website. If you send them pictures of the object, particularly the backstamp and details of the rim/center, they'll try and identify it for you (no cost), and may be able to give you some idea of its value. (Note: their notion of value will be its current market value in general, not its value to a collector.) They also buy china, but at wholesale rates, and you have to pay the shipping. 
  • For the minimum price, go to the advanced search on eBay, put in your search terms, and make certain to check the box marked "Sold". People try and sell stuff on eBay for all kinds of exhorbitant prices, but what customers actually paid is the important number, so you want to see only the sold items. 
  • Also, try TIAS.com - they publish a newsletter and maintain a showcase area for various antiques and collectibles: http://www.tias.com/showcase/. Some of the vendors specialize in certain manufacturers or patterns and may be able to help you.
  • After that, look for pottery museums, collector's groups, and appraisers/auctioneers who specialize in china. Is there an auctioneer in your area who could tell you what it might draw at auction? Be careful here (maybe put a reserve price on it, or make sure it goes up for auction when a number of collectors or dealers are in attendance) - I've gotten whole sets of dinnerware for under $50, but I've also seen a set go for over $1000. Depends (as with Replacements.com) whether the pattern is in demand.
  • Antique Trader magazine is a good source for buyers, sellers, and the simply curious - they have an extensive classifieds section: http://www.antiquetrader.com/ and it's not particularly expensive to advertise something for sale.
  • AuctionBytes was formerly a very active and detailed antiques/collectibles newsletter and blog: http://www.auctionbytes.com, but now does general ecommerce. For other antiques sites, Google it - you'll find hundreds.
  • Find out if there are antique malls in your area. The business model of a mall is to have booths that many different vendors rent to display items for sale. The mall owners do the retail part (taking money from customers, paying sales tax to the state, etc). Some vendors - or the mall owners themselves - may put your set up for sale on consignment.
  • For finding auctions in your area, try AuctionZip: http://www.auctionzip.com
  • If you want to get rid of a set with the least hassle, donate it to a legitimate charity and take the tax break.
  • If you are determined to sell the set yourself online, sell it by the piece rather than altogether. It's nearly impossible to sell whole sets of old, good china online these days unless the pattern happens to be in high demand. Ebay (despite the multiple fees, byzantine rules, and chaotic feedback system) is still the most likely place to make a sale.
Good luck!

--Gail

Ebay changes

I have closed my Ebay store. I had been considering that action for some time anyway, but now that they've further damaged the feedback system and want to charge even more to sell, I'm out of there. I participated in the initial Ebay boycott with a number of other sellers (despite the increasingly shrill rhetoric), but then figured that I might as well go elsewhere altogether and give Ebay some competition. Found a couple good alternatives, too. UPDATE: NeoLoch is no longer an auction site - they now sell various electronics. One is NeoLoch.com, a brand new site with no listing fees - only opened in late February of this year (so some initial bugs and growing pains) - but there's something interesting about making a bet on a real new business. Also joined www.onlineauction.com, which charges a flat fee per year, not per item. I'll be listing some things there, too.

Mostly, though, I'll be improving and upgrading my gailsfinechina.com website (UPDATE: now closed). Signed on with Mal's E-commerce for a shopping cart, and applied to the post office for access to their shipping calculators.

--Gail