Tweet
Re: Mears/Lou Lampson/Grey Flannel...Who do you believe?
Hello Howard,
Unfortunately, I am going to have to disagree with you on this point. While I'm not trying to be negative here, my experience regarding Mears' buyback policy was a complete disappointment. Without rehashing everything here, I will say I was involved in a bat purchase where critical information was not disclosed by Mears that would have had a tremendous impact on my purchase decision. At the time, factory records were not available to the broader collecting community as they are now and I think we clearly demonstrated the problems with Mears' assessment. Here is a link that summarizes the situation for all who would like to read it:
Unfortunately, we (there were two other parties also involved in the purchase) are now in possession of a bat that we know is inconsistent with Tris Speaker's ordering patterns but we have been told the authenticator's opinion stands. Thus, if we would like to seek any form of remuneration we will need to go to court in Wisconsin. Personally, I don't have the time to do this right now but it appears to be the only recourse that is now available. While I think Mears may now be trying to be more diligent in their authentications, that isn't going to help me with the bat I have in my possession. I think this is a very unfortunate situation and one that I wouldn't wish on anyone. As such, I would agree that collectors should not rely on buyback policies but be more proactive in the purchasing process.
Along those lines, I believe GUU has done a number of things in the hobby to help collectors get the information they need PRIOR to making a purchase. To me, that information may include opinions from authenticators but those opinions should be viewed as data points and not absolutes. Further, GUU has developed an auction system that we believe will take things to another level by allowing collectors more ways to get information in the purchasing process. For those who haven't read it yet, here is a link to an article that appeared in SCD regarding what we are doing:
'Next Generation' Auction.pdf
As is stated in the article, there should never be a situation in GUU’s auctions where someone buys an item without fully being aware of what they are buying. The Game Used Universe system itself will make sure of it. If a collector is unsure of something, all they need to do is ask. It is now up to collectors to make sure they use the system so they have the questions answered they need before making their purchases.
Sincerely,
Chris
Hello Howard,
Unfortunately, I am going to have to disagree with you on this point. While I'm not trying to be negative here, my experience regarding Mears' buyback policy was a complete disappointment. Without rehashing everything here, I will say I was involved in a bat purchase where critical information was not disclosed by Mears that would have had a tremendous impact on my purchase decision. At the time, factory records were not available to the broader collecting community as they are now and I think we clearly demonstrated the problems with Mears' assessment. Here is a link that summarizes the situation for all who would like to read it:
Unfortunately, we (there were two other parties also involved in the purchase) are now in possession of a bat that we know is inconsistent with Tris Speaker's ordering patterns but we have been told the authenticator's opinion stands. Thus, if we would like to seek any form of remuneration we will need to go to court in Wisconsin. Personally, I don't have the time to do this right now but it appears to be the only recourse that is now available. While I think Mears may now be trying to be more diligent in their authentications, that isn't going to help me with the bat I have in my possession. I think this is a very unfortunate situation and one that I wouldn't wish on anyone. As such, I would agree that collectors should not rely on buyback policies but be more proactive in the purchasing process.
Along those lines, I believe GUU has done a number of things in the hobby to help collectors get the information they need PRIOR to making a purchase. To me, that information may include opinions from authenticators but those opinions should be viewed as data points and not absolutes. Further, GUU has developed an auction system that we believe will take things to another level by allowing collectors more ways to get information in the purchasing process. For those who haven't read it yet, here is a link to an article that appeared in SCD regarding what we are doing:
'Next Generation' Auction.pdf
As is stated in the article, there should never be a situation in GUU’s auctions where someone buys an item without fully being aware of what they are buying. The Game Used Universe system itself will make sure of it. If a collector is unsure of something, all they need to do is ask. It is now up to collectors to make sure they use the system so they have the questions answered they need before making their purchases.
Sincerely,
Chris
Comment