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costas
03-11-2009, 09:32 AM
hey guys I recently purchased a nice game worn jersey from a dealer, at first he was offering it for a price I considered too high and we had back and forth negotations until he lowered it significantly and told me I was getting the better end of the deal.

shortly after the purchase, he offered another game used item a bat of a player I admire, had I known he had this one as well beforehand, I would have purchased this instead. So I decided to try to get some funds to purchase this bat by selling the jersey and it sold for close to what the seller had initially wanted, basically I made a profit of a couple hundred dollars.

so now I contact the dealer and tell him I'm interested in the bat and he tells me he doesn't want to deal with me again because I took the good deal he gave me for the jersey and flipped it on Ebay and made a profit. apparently he was aware of the auction.

so now I have nothing, sold the jersey and he won't sell me the bat. have any of you experienced this before, in terms of reputation with other sellers or dealers where? did I break some unspoken code of ethics amongst collectors not to flip something if you got a real good deal on it? thanks!

GarkoCollector
03-11-2009, 09:50 AM
Theres 2 sides to this.

If I gave you a good deal on something because I knew how much you wanted it, I would expect you werent going to flip it. If I wanted to make the money, I would have. I discount only when selling to someone for their collection.

On the other hand, once you buy it, its yours. I think its somewhat unprofessional to try to flip something that was specifically discounted because you wanted it for your collection, but its yours to do with what you want.

I wouldnt flip something that someone gave me a break on unless I gave them a shot to buy it back first. Thats just me though.

cincy13
03-11-2009, 09:57 AM
Did you tell the dealer that it was for your collection? That's usually the reason a dealer with get mad. I have collectors tell me that all the time, and then they go and sell it. I learned a long time ago, that once I sell something, it's theirs, so I better be happy with the price I get. They can do what ever they want with the item.

PwKw13
03-11-2009, 10:35 AM
Did you offer the jersey back to the dealer first for credit towards the bat? That would have been my first step. If he refused to take it back for credit equal to (or close to) what you paid, then I would say you're free to do with it what you want.

costas
03-11-2009, 10:40 AM
thanks for your responses. in the best of both worlds I would have loved to own both pieces, but due to the economy now I can't and would rather the bat. my original intent was to keep the jersey in my personal collection with no plans on selling it and the only reason I did was to raise funds for the bat. I understand why he would be upset but I would buying another item from him, and this time at full price.

costas
03-11-2009, 10:41 AM
Did you offer the jersey back to the dealer first for credit towards the bat? That would have been my first step. If he refused to take it back for credit equal to (or close to) what you paid, then I would say you're free to do with it what you want.

that wasn't an option as his policy is items sold as is final sale.

BULBUS
03-11-2009, 11:09 AM
Why don't you explain this to him, tell him you'd rather have the bat, but didn't have the money for both, sold the jersey not expecting to make a profit, and offer to buy the bat at his asking price and give him a portion of your profit.

helmets
03-11-2009, 11:51 AM
I have had this happen to me, many many times. At first it is upsetting when you give someone a deal and then they flip it for a profit - usually by enhancing the description and/or the photos - as well as the "story."

You feel like the buyer lied to you in order to drive down the price, only to flip it for a higher profit. I have since had to re-wire myself to sell items (helmets) at a fair price for anyone involved, without regard to what the end use or reason for purchase is.

I can take the seller's attitude with this one, however, if the bat is for sale, and you are willing to pay the full price - that he would charge anyone else to buy it, then he should sell it to you - if it is for sale.

Yankwood
03-11-2009, 12:02 PM
Tell him you really wanted the bat and intended to keep it but you had all your money stolen, your house was foreclosed on, you were kicked out into the cruel world with a 3 week old baby who was hungry and cold so a kindly soul let you use his computer to sell it on ebay.

David
03-11-2009, 12:41 PM
I'd say that unless you lied to get a discount, saying that it was for your permanent collection or a birthday present for your dad, you're allowed to do what you want with it.

When I was a regular seller, I was happy if someone bought something from me (at a profit for me) then resold it for a higher price at a profit for him. He would be a repeat customer. He wouldn't be a repeat customer if he sold it for a big loss, as I overcharged him.

I remember I sold a large collection of vintage baseball photos (Ruth, Foxx, Gehrig, etc) to a guy who framed them for his den. Soon after, his wife had a baby, the den was converted to a baby room and he had to get rid of the photos. He put the collection up for sale at the same price I sold them to him. Seeing the price and doing the price calculations per photo, I though "That's a pretty good deal" and bought the collection. He commented that since I was willing to buy the collection at my own set sell price, I had obviously originally offered him a fair deal. I said, I guess i had.