how do you feel about resellers?

[fashionispoison]

so let's face it...how do you feel about sellers such as naturalgasgirl and other CL sellers who mark up retail prices on shoes we love and can only get on ebay since they're sold out?

i personally was very very against it. especially if the shoe was ridiculously marked up. but who am i kidding? if i couldn't find the shoe i loved and someone did before me, they have a right to sell it for more than what they paid. it really stinks to have to pay more...but that's the ebay isn't it?

 

[Kirie]

I have to think it's fabulous since I'm in Sweden and even though we do have a boutique here in Stockholm the selection is extremely limited. Since I can't travel as much as I would like to as I work full time and have a family, Ebay is pretty much my only way of finding the ones I'm really looking for.

 

[Kamilla850]

Sigh...not this conversation again.

I will tell you my opinion on this matter, I have been buying high end items for years now, but I have never bought anything high end from Ebay. Perhaps because I live in NYC and have access to basically anything that anyone could possibly want or need - we all know the saying, if you can't find it in NY, you probably don't want it!

Anyway, it wasn't until I came across a lovely pair of CL shoes a few months ago that slipped out of my hands did I start searching on Ebay for *that* shoe. I came across a famous ebay seller, we all know who, that had this shoe, and I couldn't understand how she was able to get so many pairs of this shoe that I knew to be sold out. I thought to myself that perhaps this seller has a retail store and is an authorized retailer of Louboutins, oh how ignorant I was at the time, I later learned the real method of acquiring the shoes.
In any case, when I actively became a member of TPF, I realized that a lot of people that I was chatting with on TPF were also selling items on Ebay for a profit. So I figured, I would give it a shot...and well it worked.
At this point, I still feel that it is unfair for an individual to wipe out the entire stock of one specific style at various stores, but if you don't like it, then don't buy from them. As far as I know, it's not illegal and I've had conversations with an SA that actually works with one of these resellers, and he actually values her business because he knows that it is guaranteed business/commission.
But now that I know that there are people on ebay that do not have access to the various stores that I have access to, when I shop for myself, I pick up an extra pair of shoes and list them on ebay.

I did actually stock up on a well loved shoe when I finally found it because my GF was able to hook me up with a good discount. And what I learned is that people are willing to pay hundreds of $$ over retail just to get a shoe they love which is why famous resellers are able to 'stay in business'. Isn't that the nature of ebay? And I am sure that we all notice how certain items become more frequent once sale season starts, just do a search for shoes that have been marked down and you will see tons of them on ebay listed at the original full retail price.

 

[Kamilla850]

I am also sure that many of these resellers actively peruse these type of boards as well to know what's on the most wanted list. And perhpas to take advantage of the posts in the good deals sections, ie the Nude Very Prives on Bluefly - I am sure that you will see those listed on Ebay in the coming days.

 

[lovespeonies]

Although I do think that resellers serve a purpose by making available HTF shoes (albeit at huge markups), often the reason that the shoes are HTF in the first place is because resellers buy them up from department stores.

I think that in the short run, SAs benefit from higher commissions by selling the entire inventory of a popular shoe style to a reseller. But in the long run, the department store may suffer as customers start elsewhere for items they cannot find at the department store. This would not just affect shoe sales. Anytime I walk into Saks, Barneys or NM to buy shoes, I also end up buying cosmetics or accessories. I have noticed that some online retailers like Saks limit the number of certain items (usually designer handbags) that a customer may purchase.

 

[LavenderIce]

I try to avoid resellers. I enjoy the process of shopping directly from the retailer too much to go that route. I like to go to a store and try on a shoe and see what it looks like on me IRL and imagine the outfits I could pair it with. I like going home with a shopping bag filled with goodies. An online reseller cannot provide me with that. One could say buying from them is no different from buying from an online retailer or out of area retailer, as you are going by a picture of the shoe and you are having it delivered to your home. The difference is I like knowing that I am not paying above retail. I also do not want to pay the retail price that a reseller is charging for an item that has gone on sale. They have the right to do whatever they want with merchandise they purchase. However, I do not want to support a reseller that wipes out an entire inventory of a shoe so that they are the only resource in finding that shoe. Bottom line is this: I prefer to buy from a retailer not a reseller, but I will buy from whoever has the cheaper price and if a shoe I want is only available from a reseller priced above current retail or sale price, I go without.

 

[fashionispoison]

kamilla i am totally understanding of your response. i was completely and overly against those who profit a few hundred off ONE pair of shoe. and you're totally right, it is not illegal! i recently started selling some shoes on ebay as well but NOT marking them up by a lot. i figured if it worked it would be my spending money. much to my surprise, it did so now this is my disposable income.

it is totally sucky when ALL the sizes of a certain style are sold out at stores and can only be purchased on ebay above retail but yes, that is the nature of ebay. i put up shoes i found on sale $100 above what i paid and got some hate mail from an ebayer asking why i was selling them for more than the sale price? i was in disbelief when i read her message and felt horrible but heck, i was not even asking for hundreds above what i paid!

 

[blackbird]

And I am sure that we all notice how certain items become more frequent once sale season starts, just do a search for shoes that have been marked down and you will see tons of them on ebay listed at the original full retail price.

That part of reselling really annoys the hell out of me. I see a lot of stuff that was at something like the NM Last Call store that people list on eBay for the full retail price or even above that with all this "rare find!" crap when I saw dozens of them at the outlet. Sometimes items are super cheap at the outlets because no one really wanted them and that's why they're actually widely available.

I get annoyed also with people who say go and buy the entire Madonna or Roberto Cavalli collection at H&M and then sell it on eBay for three times the retail price. Those resellers just walked into the store and paid full retail price so they could try and do a ridiculous mark up and have an illegitimate business.

For resellers like NGG and the like though, I'm fine with what they do as sometimes you can get a really good discount on shoes that they got a good discount on. And if I had a pair of really rare shoes and was selling them, then I probably wouldn't mind getting more than retail price. But people like NGG have a legitimate business and that's their day job as opposed to those (like I mentioned above) that do everything "under the table" and keep your hard earned cash without them even paying taxes on their income.

 

[Kamilla850]

^^Fashionpoison, If your buyers don't agree with it, then tell them to shop elsewhere. No one is forcing the buyer to purchase them from you or any other ebay reseller.
Long gone are the days where Ebay was a place for good deals, now it is a real profit center. Especially with hard to find, in demand items.

I always laugh when I think of the time that I was looking for a sold out shoe, and I just walked into Bergdorf Goodman and my SA waived me down telling me that the shoe I was searching for had just come in that day and it was already sold out because an ebay reseller purchased every single pair that very day. Luckily he put a few pairs aside for me and I was able to pick them up. Of course, the following day those shoes were all listed on ebay by said reseller.

Funny how it is now 2 months later and those shoes are now on the sale racks at BG. Oh the irony.

 

[Kamilla850]

That's an interesting point re: taxes, you think that resellers report their profits? I wonder what the laws on ebay profits are.

Blackbird - do you really think that if the item was widely available at an outlet or off price retailer that the item would do well on Ebay, I can't imagine so, but that is just my opinion.

 

[fashionispoison]

Fashionpoison, If your buyers don't agree with it, then tell them to shop elsewhere.

that's exactly what i told her. if you could find the shoes for less, why don't you go get them? why are you sending me hate mail harrassing me? i also asked if she planned on messaging everyone who listed that shoe.

as for taxes, sellers such as NNG are supposed to report their income. my bf started an ebay store recently and tons of books about everything and anything an ebay store owner should know re insurance, taxes, etc.

 

[ledaatomica]

I personally am totally ok with this, namely because its so hard to find CLs where I live and I am not always "in the know" when new styles come in at the boutiques and department stores unless I call and am looking for something in particular. I also dont have too much time to go to a store and shop. I work 10-14 hour days , have a very active social life and prefer to pay extra for the convenience of saving time. So I say if there is a market for it then so be it. However although I am willing to pay a couple hundred over retail I certainly would hesitate to pay double or some ridiculous mark-up.

I cannot begin to tell you all how much I appreciate it when stock information is shared here on TPF ! All you ladies have recently been so helpful in this regard and many times I have been able to make retail purchases vs. ebay ones because of this.

 

[javaboo]

I'm ok with them selling it at above retail prices too. If its a shoe I love and I really want it and can't find it then I'm going to pay for it (obviously not if its outrageous). The only source of CL here is Holts and its very limited. Plus the fact that I wear a small size...its even harder!

I've purchased from NGG and others before and feel safe I'm getting the real deal. They provide good customer service (especially if you're a returning customer..duh) and they know the 'shipping process' it takes to send something internationally.

Anyways, some times buying it online from those resellers are actually cheaper than purchasing it from Holts!

 

[compulsivepurse]

I think people buy from these resellers because they find out about a hot shoe after the fact and they are sold out (and a lot of the buyers are buyers like you and me that happened to get them) so they are happy to find it anywhere. I will not buy from NaturalGasGirl because of the rediculous mark-up, but even she isn't selling most of the shoes she marks up. I'm sure she reports the items on her taxes. With the amount of pictures she does and how long it must take this is probably her full-time job.

That said I was at NM King of Prussia today and their CL collection is attrocious. They have about 7 shoes, none of which were any of the ones I was looking for (and I would have bought 3 or 4 different styles). Basically I am going to have to call around and order what I want from somewhere else anyway. And on eBay I get better pictures.

 

[catcat]

I sounds ridiculous but I do live in France and you cannot get CL's here. The only places you can buy them are the two Paris shops as well as one in Monaco...So I depend on ebay or Net/Mytheresa.
I don't like to buy shoes online but it's a "necessity"!