Kind of Strange Question

thepoppet

wind sylph
Jul 25, 2010
3,217
6
I have a bag I'm going to be selling and there is sort of some strange circumstances surrounding it and I need some advice.

Basically the bag was celebrity owned but I'm not sure I can prove that. A friend worked for the celebrity and she received the bag as a gift. The celebrity received it in a swag from a major awards show.

However, there's really no way to prove it (there's no note that went with it). The celebrity didn't carry the bag so there are no photos with her with the bag (although that wouldn't really prove it was owned by the celebrity anyway).

So, I have two questions:
1. Should it even be mentioned on the auction?
2. Should it be mentioned if a potential buyer asks where the bag came from?

Also, one last tidbit as it may make a difference: the celebrity passed away. Does that make it tacky to mention it at all? I am leaning towards not mentioning it, but thought I should get more opinions.

Thanks in for any advice. ;)
 
Don't mention it at all. If someone asks where you got it, the answer is a gift from a friend that worked in the entertainment industry who herself received it as a perk. End of.
 
Thanks. That's an excellent response to give. Now one more thing, what about the final buyer? Do you think they would want to know the history of the bag? Or just leave it? I can see how for some that might be an interesting detail. It's hard for me to understand because I actually wouldn't care and wouldn't necessarily want to know. But some buyer might?
 
I'd tell them after they bought it just because that's a story I'd like to know personally. Even if there was no proof it would be a kind of neat story.

But, I'd only tell after they bought it because that way it wouldn't seem like you were making it up to get more money.
 
^^Maybe I wouldn't tell them. Depending on the celeb and circumstances of the death a lot of people I am learning believe in karma and might fear that the bad karma might pass on to them.
 
Great, that's what I wanted to know... If the buyer would want to know the history. And definitely it would be told after they already received the bag.

Thanks so much for all your advice!
 
Since there's no proof, I don't think I'd mention it at all, either in the auction or after the fact. If the buyer hates the celeb and then found out that the bag once belonged to them, who knows, they could raise a big stink and demand to return it.

It is an interesting story, but for ebay I don't think I'd bother. If a buyer asked how you got it, I would simply state that it was a gift, as that is the truth, but leave it at that.
 
................. i wonder if people will buy the bag if they know the bag is from someone thats no longer ard.


i wont advise u whether to post it as what u want etc but if someone asked abt history of the bag, then i feel that its more honest to tell the person abt it. if u lie abt it, i feel that its bad to do so over $$$ when someone raised the Qn & is concern abt it (thats why they asked).its not nice to tell the person the history only after the person bought the bag. Thats just so bad. shouldnt one inform the potential buyer abt it when they asked abt it. i know my view is different from the rest but i am putting myself from both sides. when someone asked a qn, they really expect or trust the person to tell the truth or whatever they know.
 
................. i wonder if people will buy the bag if they know the bag is from someone thats no longer ard.


i wont advise u whether to post it as what u want etc but if someone asked abt history of the bag, then i feel that its more honest to tell the person abt it. if u lie abt it, i feel that its bad to do so over $$$ when someone raised the Qn & is concern abt it (thats why they asked).its not nice to tell the person the history only after the person bought the bag. Thats just so bad. shouldnt one inform the potential buyer abt it when they asked abt it. i know my view is different from the rest but i am putting myself from both sides. when someone asked a qn, they really expect or trust the person to tell the truth or whatever they know.

I agree. If you aren't going to tell them before they buy it, don't tell them after the fact. Since you won't reveal the person, we don't know the circumstances around how they died and whether it was their time or something unexpected happened. However, if I bought a bag from someone and then they told me a dead celeb owned it, I would be freaked out, would feel lied to and wouldn't want to be around the bag. It would be like living in a house someone died in. Some people might not mind, but a lot of people would, so legally, it's not supposed to be disclosed. Purses don't have such rules, so you have to decide on this yourself.

Either go all out and tell the full story with a giant disclaimer that it's not a proven fact-just word of mouth.....or don't mention anything to do with any celeb at all, period. You can't just lure people in with celeb factor and then not tell them who it is or any further details.
 
Either go all out and tell the full story with a giant disclaimer that it's not a proven fact-just word of mouth.....or don't mention anything to do with any celeb at all, period. You can't just lure people in with celeb factor and then not tell them who it is or any further details.

I agree with this. I'm not planning to put it in the auction, but if I did tell the buyer, I'd tell them the whole history.

There are some really interesting points brought up here; some things to think about. But I'm wondering... does it make a difference that it wasn't used by the celeb but owned through the swag and that was then given as a gift to my friend? And just generally, what's your thoughts on comparing something like this to say buying something from an estate sale?

This is all very interesting and it's good to see some of my reservations were confirmed. And it's also interesting to see different perspectives on the issue. So thank you to everyone who has taken the time to comment! :flowers:
 
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i'm sure there are many things on eBay that were owned by someone who is no longer around, just as is the case with vintage pieces. Personally, I'd rather not know or think about it.