Topic: Antique Malls as an Alternative to Ebay?

Return to Archives of AuctionBytes


Weight Loss Supplements
Natural supplements that burn body fat,
suppress appetite and support a healthy diet.
Antidepressant Medications
Handle stress, elevate the mood,
treat anxiety disorders.
Casino Classic
Best Online Casino!
Get $500 free on the house!
Shared Movies
Over 80 Million Movies and TV-Shows
No Charge per movie, No download limit!


Posted at May 7, 2005, 9:39 pm:

BURIED TREASURES says:

John….your antique mall(s). Anybody else do it? Are they worth the time and effort? Are they profitable? Here is why I ask.

This is a very interesting observation that is not in my 13-tip article. Although, I can’t say for sure if this is a permanent trend, but it appears to be leaning that way. But it’s not a definite observation.

I remember the good old days when you could start an auction on Ebay for 7-days and get bids each day right up until that big finish. But this has changed drastically.

It seems that since last summer, Ebay has lost quite a bit of their luster with buyers. For whatever reasons, items that would bring good money last year aren’t even drawing attention this year. It could mean just a change in interest in certain items or markets. But regardless how differently I purchase, the results seem the same. Frankly, I think it is because back in 1998, it was fun to bid and punch it out for a week. And if you got your item 2-3 weeks after winning, you thought that was pretty quick shipping.

Now, nobody wants to wait that week, and they start emailing you after 4 days about not receiving their item yet. Back in 1998 or 1999, you would never consider running a grilled cheese sandwich. Ebay would have pulled it. And bidders would have thought you were the stupidest person in the world. But today, it seems they would rather pay $5000 for a half-eaten sandwich, and not give you the time of day for a chest of sterling flatware.

Last summer many sellers on the AOL Auction Board were debating 5, 7, and 10 day auctions. One thing that was discovered was called “Dead Days”. For example, in a 7 day auction, you get some action on days 1 and 2, then get your big push day 7. In the interim, days 3-6, you get little, if any bidding whatsoever. Sellers who ran 5-day auctions reported no decrease or noticeable change in results compared to running 7-days. What they did notice was fewer “Dead Days”.

The theory on 10-day auctions getting more “Exposure” is totally a waste of time. We are finding out that as of late, bidders are not interested in waiting 10-days for an auction to end. 10-day auctions have a huuuuge “Dead Day” period and most people using 10-day auctions report their results disappointing. And now it’s coming down to the point (myself included) that people don’t even want to wait 7-days. In other words, Ebay isn’t really an auction site like it used to be. Now it’s a Show and Tell site for 6 days, get bids on day 7! I have had many 95-cent auctions go 6 days without an opening bid just to see all the action on the last day.

There has been a sharp decline in sales since last November. Previous years were opposite. As a matter of fact, my sales were so miserable the first two weeks of November, I halted any listings the last two weeks. December rebounded nicely. But opening months of 2005 weren’t much better than the poor November!

I agree with John, and was forced to expand into other retail markets. This is something I wouldn’t have considered in 2003 with Ebay doing so well. When Ebay raised their storefront rates and people were quitting, we finally opened one. In addition, we opened a retail site on Tias in February. But naturally, when you are holding out for retail, this causes a storage problem.

I too have been tossing the idea of renting space at a local antique mall. Like I said, just tossing. Maybe just to help solve the storage problem. These antique malls might be a viable addition to online selling, both retail and auction style. Anybody else have any opinions about this?

Original of the message was taken from http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/

Replies:

Possibly the term "adjunct" rather than alternative.

The main thing I can say about brick & mortar antique malls is tha...

-+Oh, isn’t that the truth! But there is one thing you forgot to poin...

No inventory rotation, very high prices and misrepresented items have ...

One thing I failed to mention in the other thread with regards to the...

I'm not going to go back to the after war years or the 50's, 60's etc.

I agree with most of the points made here.

Just to build on what Holdonrex mentioned, about duty days.


Other Topics of AuctionBytes:

BidPay Concerns

Trouble saving Ebay Auction Webpages on computer drive

Hello all, new to collecting

Starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel ...

Today took the brownie.

DVD: Funny Valentine

Is There a Good Reference Source Available

Odd Fellow Hair Mourning Jewelry

eBay gave me an alert

Forum Upgrade Complete...

Felt Scarf

Tax ID?

Help! Just opened online eshop with no business

1976 Reagan High School Yearbook - Houston Texas

Tired of packing and shipping? Then sell these!

How can European eBayers get more US customers?

Funny ebay item w/ almost 100,000 visits.

eBay copyright image infringement

ebay bulkloader

other then ebay

Does Anyone Recognise this czech pottery mark?

SEO - Search Engine Optimization for eBay listings & Sto

LP ALBUMS

Fulton J Sheen, This is THE MASS, (not Spinal Tap)

60-Second Online Auction Site Survey

Can't remember my bid notification to cell phone service

Niche/Specialty Auction Sites. Where are they?

affiliate programs of online auctions

Need Help Finding Looney Tunes Shirts

Looking for Email Newsletter Manager Program? Suggestions?

Fish Story ?

Shipping & Postage Tools

Where shall i buy online and what brand:

Hand Picked Registrations?

New IP / Business Method for Auction Sites

Ok, Is there anyone else NOT Disapointed in Ebay Performance

Do you belong to a local group of online sellers?

Question about mark

OAI Community Get Together...Ebay Live...Friday Night

Ebay stuff

Little Blue Plate


File Sharing Service  Image Sharing Service  Usenet Newsgroups Reader
Guide to Serials and Shows  English Subtitles For DivX Movies  Lyrics Catalogue
Over 5000 Cocktail Recipes  Hot News Archive  Funny Jokes and Anecdotes
Cooking Recipes Catalogue  Cool Online Encyclopedia  Computer Games Cheats
Pets Department  Spam Free Guestbook Service  Medical Catalogue


Free Web Stats