Looking for advice on selling jewelry.....

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#316
I have a few estate pieces I am interested in selling and, so far, have received terrible quotes from potential buyers. I have been offered less than one-third of what I paid for the pieces and I know they have gone up in value from the dates of purchase. I don't expect to recover what I paid, but I would hope to receive more than 33%.

Have any of you had any luck selling estate pieces? If so, I would appreciate suggestions or referrals or jewelers or resellers that have made fair and reasonable offers. I may try consignment as well but was hoping to make a direct sale.

I am not interested in selling on ebay or similar auction sites. I just fear the scams. I want to sell direct to a jewelry store or other buyer/re-seller of estate jewelry.

Any advice/recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!
 
#317
The point is, if you sell to a re-seller, you will always get less than selling the piece to an actual customer who buys it for himself. I´m sorry but I have no clue where you could get a better price. Sometimes I have seen people selling their stuff in some specific forums, where they could advertise and mostly they found a buyer. Good luck!
 
#318
LovingDiamonds said:
The point is, if you sell to a re-seller, you will always get less than selling the piece to an actual customer who buys it for himself. I´m sorry but I have no clue where you could get a better price. Sometimes I have seen people selling their stuff in some specific forums, where they could advertise and mostly they found a buyer. Good luck!
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Thanks. I realize that, I just didn't anticipate it being so low. I am too worried about scams with direct buyers to go that route. I have heard too many ebay horror stories to feel comfortable. It is just discouraging. Thanks again!
 
#319
G&Smommy said:
I have a few estate pieces I am interested in selling and, so far, have received terrible quotes from potential buyers. I have been offered less than one-third of what I paid for the pieces and I know they have gone up in value from the dates of purchase. I don't expect to recover what I paid, but I would hope to receive more than 33%.

Have any of you had any luck selling estate pieces? If so, I would appreciate suggestions or referrals or jewelers or resellers that have made fair and reasonable offers. I may try consignment as well but was hoping to make a direct sale.

I am not interested in selling on ebay or similar auction sites. I just fear the scams. I want to sell direct to a jewelry store or other buyer/re-seller of estate jewelry.

Any advice/recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!
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Ebay is no better/no worse than any other avenue of sale. You do get more exposure.
It is interesting, but I live in WA, and most people who buy from me are in FL or NY.
It is just interesting! I can't explain this phenomena.
Looking at it I would guess it would of been hard to sell on craiglist.
OK, back to business.
The first thing I did was to buy a macrolense for my camera. Buyers (me including when I look for items), want to see as detailed photos as possible.
I bought few pieces of used jewelry and I am OK if they are listed this way, and all the scratches, damages are fully disclosed.
I bought one pendant and fully remade it, because it was just the style I wanted. It looks much much better now when I first got it.
Another thing I noticed from a good antique or estate sellers, they try to repair, polish, present an item in a best possible way. If it is tarnished, please clean it. If gold does not sparkle, please, clean it too. There are easy way to clean it even at home.
The last thing - sometimes it takes forever to sell the item. Prepare to wait. And have a price in mind you are willing to part with your beloved piece of jewelry. If it is lower when you want to sell it for, don't sell it! Wait.
Feeling regret because you basically gave it away is no better than waiting for a right buyer.
Good luck!
 
#320
Another thing about ebay - follow the rules. If it is over 200 - buy signature confirmation.
I almost always buy insurance - for me - not for buyers. If it get damaged/lost/stolen - i would be able to recover my money.
 
#321
alice87 said:
Ebay is no better/no worse than any other avenue of sale. You do get more exposure.
It is interesting, but I live in WA, and most people who buy from me are in FL or NY.
It is just interesting! I can't explain this phenomena.
Looking at it I would guess it would of been hard to sell on craiglist.
OK, back to business.
The first thing I did was to buy a macrolense for my camera. Buyers (me including when I look for items), want to see as detailed photos as possible.
I bought few pieces of used jewelry and I am OK if they are listed this way, and all the scratches, damages are fully disclosed.
I bought one pendant and fully remade it, because it was just the style I wanted. It looks much much better now when I first got it.
Another thing I noticed from a good antique or estate sellers, they try to repair, polish, present an item in a best possible way. If it is tarnished, please clean it. If gold does not sparkle, please, clean it too. There are easy way to clean it even at home.
The last thing - sometimes it takes forever to sell the item. Prepare to wait. And have a price in mind you are willing to part with your beloved piece of jewelry. If it is lower when you want to sell it for, don't sell it! Wait.
Feeling regret because you basically gave it away is no better than waiting for a right buyer.
Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice! I have walked away from several offers because I just didn't feel good about them. I am just leary about selling directly. My pieces are in excellent condition and do not require any repairs. It is just a matter of finding the right outlet to sell them safely and for a reasonable price.
 
#322
alice87 said:
Another thing about ebay - follow the rules. If it is over 200 - buy signature confirmation.
I almost always buy insurance - for me - not for buyers. If it get damaged/lost/stolen - i would be able to recover my money.
Click to expand...

I always use signature confirmation and insurance. I have just heard horror stories of the person claiming the piece is fake, or not as represented, and then you don't have the jewelry and Paypal freezes the funds. It puts honest sellers in a very difficult place.
 
#323
Allisonfaye said:
Reselling jewelry is very difficult. Where are you located? If you are in the US, a company called Circa will buy it. It will be hard to get a jeweler to buy it and if they do, it will be a very low amount but I am guessing it would be more than a pawn shop.
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I just met with Circa yesterday and got offers at less than one-third of what I paid for the pieces over 10 years ago. It was very disheartening. Now I am looking at consignment or trying some other local jewelers.
 
#325
G&Smommy said:
I always use signature confirmation and insurance. I have just heard horror stories of the person claiming the piece is fake, or not as represented, and then you don't have the jewelry and Paypal freezes the funds. It puts honest sellers in a very difficult place.
Click to expand...

The stories I've read here were almost always about Chanel bags :graucho:. And sellers "always" forgot to buy insurance, tracking number, signature confirmation for one reason or another. These extra 2-5 dollars bring a lot of piece of mind.
I've got funny offers in the middle of bidding to get me rid of the item :graucho:
I've got wonderful offers from buyers that suited me.
The one great advise I got from this board was not to price it at the point where you can't go any lower if you have "made an offer".
Quite a few of them were from military people, I actually felt pretty good about it, even if I sell it for less than I initially wanted.
 
#326
alice87 said:
The stories I've read here were almost always about Chanel bags :graucho:. And sellers "always" forgot to buy insurance, tracking number, signature confirmation for one reason or another. These extra 2-5 dollars bring a lot of piece of mind.
I've got funny offers in the middle of bidding to get me rid of the item :graucho:
I've got wonderful offers from buyers that suited me.
The one great advise I got from this board was not to price it at the point where you can't go any lower if you have "made an offer".
Quite a few of them were from military people, I actually felt pretty good about it, even if I sell it for less than I initially wanted.
Click to expand...

Most of the stories are about designer bags, but I feel there is a similar risk with jewelry, especially valuable pieces. I just don't want to take any chances. I do have prices in mind where I would be comfortable selling, but unfortunately can't find the right buyer yet. I'll try a few more jewelers and keep my fingers crossed that I find one willing to make a reasonable offer.
 
#327
Haute to Trot said:
Okay, I got divorced a couple of years ago and now I want to sell my diamond engagement ring and my wedding band. I just don't know where to go to do this. Do I sell it to a jeweler? A pawn shop? Ebay? Does anyone have any experience or advice?

Thanks for any help!!:flowers:
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Jewelers usually cut %35-40 off as the handcrafting. The rest amount is the material. If your ring is not in a very special or extraordinary shape, they are sold easily and the jeweler pays you much. Otherwise i.e. if you have an emerald cut or pear shape, it is hard to resell so the jeweler pays you less. All about the resale market demand. I would try to sell it by myself at first then I would take a chance on the jewelers. Not a prawn shop also. And one more tip for you not to tell your divorce story detailly, most of the people believe in bad luck or smth. Good luck with it.
 
#328
G&Smommy said:
Most of the stories are about designer bags, but I feel there is a similar risk with jewelry, especially valuable pieces. I just don't want to take any chances. I do have prices in mind where I would be comfortable selling, but unfortunately can't find the right buyer yet. I'll try a few more jewelers and keep my fingers crossed that I find one willing to make a reasonable offer.
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I happened to meed one of my friend in the mall. She wanted to get a price quote for her diamond ring, which had a 0.75 marquise cut diamond, with OK characteristics. They paid around 2.5K for this ring at the time they purchased it. A woman offered her 250 dollars. My friend become agitated and started to argue with a woman.
I just laughed and ask her why would she even consider it? Such offers are nothing more than laughable...:p
 
#329
anisetta said:
And one more tip for you not to tell your divorce story detailly, most of the people believe in bad luck or smth. Good luck with it.
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I would agree with this part. Being science driven, I still believe in karma.
And while there is nothing wrong with used jewelry, buying a ring with such "karma" may not be a motivating factor.
It is possible to "clean" the jewelry. Make it your own in a way...
 
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