Does it bother you?
- Thread starter Grace123
- Start date
The only thing that would bug me, would be if I'd sold the bag fair and square, but the person who'd bought it and resold it had shill bid the price up on their own auction.
Not that I really blame sellers for shill bidding (as long as they don't do it to nibble up the price to just above the high bidder's max. bid and then claim a NPB and offer the highest genuine bidder a Second Chance Offer), even though it is illegal, as it often seems to be the only way to get a decent price on eBay.
Not that I really blame sellers for shill bidding (as long as they don't do it to nibble up the price to just above the high bidder's max. bid and then claim a NPB and offer the highest genuine bidder a Second Chance Offer), even though it is illegal, as it often seems to be the only way to get a decent price on eBay.
That is slightly different, though, as, if you are good at what you do, you are providing a restoration service; not just flipping.
I think, going back to the OP's situation, the thing to remember, is that if the flipper gets more for the bag than the original seller did, that didn't cause the original seller to get less for it.
So they aren't guilty of anything (unless they've shill bid).
Actually, I doubt that.
I'm pretty sure that, at that price, they are just trying to recoup their money and are breaking even at best.
A bag like an Edith would cost about $150 to have handmade in Italy, perhaps $100 with economies of scale and then Chloe would charge the store between $400 and $500.
Meaning that you probably got it for around wholesale price.
Although I agree with you in general (as stated in my previous posts), I think I should point out that there are some major differences between paying retail in an authorised store and buying from an eBay seller.
Firstly, in the case of most products, they can only be bought through retail outlets and even when they can be bought from the manufacturer's/design house's website, they are still sold at retail (so as not to undercut their retailers).
Therefore, as a customer of an authorised store, you don't have to worry that you are, inadvertantly, paying way more than you would in another authorised store.
Also, a good retailer will be a useful go-between between the customer and the manufacturer, if there is a problem with the product after purchase and it needs to be repaired and will be particularly useful in the case of items where the manufacturer is based in a country where they don't speak the same language as the customer.
I have sometimes bought items directly from the manufacturer and have often been disappointed at the level of bias they have shown when there has been a problem; whereas, a decent retailer will refund you without quibbling and then take up the problem with the manufacturer themselves (meaning the customer doesn't have to).
Whereas, eBay resellers can charge what they like, rarely offer refunds and (unless they have bought the item directly from an authorised store, which cannot be the case in this instance), have no contact with the manufacturer if it turns out there is a problem with the item.
OMG. Are you being serious here??Do you actually do this?!
Of course not and I never would!
I didn't say I did it myself! 
In fact, I always try to warn buyers of the widespread existence of shill bidding and I rarely sell on eBay at all.
I just observe eBay a lot (more than is healthy, probably!) and can understand why so many (otherwise honest) sellers do it; what with the prohibitive cost of setting a reserve and the fact that many buyers seem to be put off bidding if the seller starts the auction at the minimum amount they're willing to receive (even though auctions for similar items, that started low, will often end at well above that amount).
A modest shill bid, as long as it is set at the minimum a seller is willing to accept, just equals a free reserve price, really, doesn't it?
I'm just being honest!
The problem with auctions, is that they depend on two or more buyers being interested in a certain item at the same time and if only one buyer is interested at that time, the seller is pretty much bound to lose money, unless they start high (in which case the interested buyer may not bid), set an expensive reserve, or shill bid.
I reckon around two thirds of the auction-style auctions I view have some form of shill bidding going on.
The thing is, at the end of the day, as long as the buyer pays a fair market price for the item and (if only one genuine bidder is involved) the least the seller can afford to receive, does it really matter if eBay aren't receiving their exorbitant reserve fee?
BTW, there is a type of bidding practice in bricks and mortar auction houses in the UK, called 'bidding against the wall', where, when only one bidder is bidding, the auctioneer will make up bids from a fictitious bidder, in order to get the item up to its reserve price. This is not illegal, as far as I know (it wasn't last time I checked, anyway) and is more-or-less akin to the type of 'shill' bidding I am saying is understandable.
The type of shill bidding that I find despicable and inexcusable is the type I mentioned before, where the seller shill bids their item up, until they have just passed the genuine high bidder's maximum bid and then they claim that their shill bidding 'winner' is a NPB. They then offer the highest genuine bidder a Second Chance Offer at their maximum bid; meaning that if they accept, the buyer ends up paying far more than they would have otherwise had to in a genuine, above board, auction (or even an auction involving the more innocent form of shill bidding/bidding against the wall).
That type of shill bidding is disgusting and is illegal for very good reason, IMO.
I forgot to add that the buyer might even end up paying more, if the seller has to set a reserve - to help cover the reserve fee!
It wouldn't really bother me but it would probably make me think "why didn't i sell at that price to begin with?"ush:
hehe. same here!
Ah I see what you are saying. I got all freaked out for a second there!
What I do as a seller is just eat it on the listing fees and start my items at the price that I will take for them (or just use a fixed price and accept offers). If they get bid up higher, great. If not, c'est la vie.
I personally would never risk my eBay account by shill bidding in any shape or form--and honestly I have a hard time excusing it from any seller. I'm kind of a stickler for rules, which is a source of constant amusement to my husband who's a lawyer and therefore quite good at bending rules.
BTW, I am familiar with bidding against the wall--it is really frowned on at auction houses in the US, though of course I can't say for sure that it never happens. That industry is pretty well regulated here though so I don't think it's a common practice. (We go to a lot of antique & art auctions, both in the states and occasionally in Europe)
What I do as a seller is just eat it on the listing fees and start my items at the price that I will take for them (or just use a fixed price and accept offers). If they get bid up higher, great. If not, c'est la vie.
I personally would never risk my eBay account by shill bidding in any shape or form--and honestly I have a hard time excusing it from any seller. I'm kind of a stickler for rules, which is a source of constant amusement to my husband who's a lawyer and therefore quite good at bending rules.
BTW, I am familiar with bidding against the wall--it is really frowned on at auction houses in the US, though of course I can't say for sure that it never happens. That industry is pretty well regulated here though so I don't think it's a common practice. (We go to a lot of antique & art auctions, both in the states and occasionally in Europe)
I am guilty of this, I'll buy something. And either think about keeping it or want to make some money on it. But usually I try to buy under retail. And then I price low and if it goes over retail that's not my fualt. The bidders did that! LOL
But yeah sometimes I buy and then sell. But that's common.
But yeah sometimes I buy and then sell. But that's common.
ITA! that's exactly what i was thinking. the only thing that would bother me is the thought that i could have sold it for a little more lol
Sorry! I didn't mean to freak anybody out!
ush:Good for you!
I personally would never risk my eBay account by shill bidding in any shape or form--and honestly I have a hard time excusing it from any seller. I'm kind of a stickler for rules, which is a source of constant amusement to my husband who's a lawyer and therefore quite good at bending rules.
I don't think it's really approved of here, either, but it's not actually illegal.
I saw it happen in a property (real estate) auction and the auctioneer got found out because the genuine bidder pulled out before the reserve was reached.
The auctioneer looked a bit sheepish, I have to say!
OMG! LOL That must have been embarrassing for him, to say the least. I think it's actually illegal here but I really am not sure. I do know that the few instances I have heard of where an auctioneer was "caught" shill bidding, they lost a ton of credibility and a great number of clients. One auction house (a medium to small one) actually went out of business because of it; no one would buy there anymore.
