When does a "great deal" become "screwing over" someone?

[fastballspecial]

A boardie on here provided a really good example a few years ago.

 

Some guy came up to him at a show and told him he had several early Tec Batman's. They were like 28 and up from memory. A very nice collection of books. In decent grades for the age of the books.

 

The seller was an older man who had spoken with several dealers all who tried to screw him over. The seller had done his homework he knew the value of the books he had.

 

So this dealer sat down with him went thru each of the books, and assessed a value and made him what was apparently a very good offer.

 

The dealer/boardie got all the books that I thought were in a bank safety deposit box. He got the books because he treated the seller well and made him a decent offer. He might not have made a ton on those books, but I can gurantee you he expanded his customer base and earned a lot of respect from many like me.

 

How did ephe expand his customer base? The guy that sold them is done and your respect doesnt pay bills.

 

He expanded his customer base by reselling all those books he bought to other collectors/dealers. Is that really that hard to understand?

 

[ComicConnoisseur]

I know I sound flippant, but its just to make the point that judging others is soooo tough because we don't know how people are looking at things and the amounts and returns of what is 'ok' can just be so arbitrary. At what point is the extra moral obligation created? "You just know" is not the right answer.

 

Are you kidding? Judging is fun and easy! We do it on the boards all the time!

 

[kav]

A boardie on here provided a really good example a few years ago.

 

Some guy came up to him at a show and told him he had several early Tec Batman's. They were like 28 and up from memory. A very nice collection of books. In decent grades for the age of the books.

 

The seller was an older man who had spoken with several dealers all who tried to screw him over. The seller had done his homework he knew the value of the books he had.

 

So this dealer sat down with him went thru each of the books, and assessed a value and made him what was apparently a very good offer.

 

The dealer/boardie got all the books that I thought were in a bank safety deposit box. He got the books because he treated the seller well and made him a decent offer. He might not have made a ton on those books, but I can gurantee you he expanded his customer base and earned a lot of respect from many like me.

 

How did ephe expand his customer base? The guy that sold them is done and your respect doesnt pay bills.

 

He expanded his customer base by reselling all those books he bought to other collectors/dealers. Is that really that hard to understand?

If he has screwed the seller he couldn't have resold them to other collectors/dealers?

[jsilverjanet]

He was able to expand his customer base because he had different books to offer, the books were available to him because he made a decent offer compared to the other people

[kav]

[Bomber-Bob]

If he has screwed the seller he couldn't have resold them to other collectors/dealers?

 

He would not have had the opportunity to resell the books if he had tried to screw the seller. He only got the books because he did not attempt to screw the seller. It scares me that you are missing the whole point here.

[kav]

[Quicksilver Signs]

A boardie on here provided a really good example a few years ago.

 

Some guy came up to him at a show and told him he had several early Tec Batman's. They were like 28 and up from memory. A very nice collection of books. In decent grades for the age of the books.

 

The seller was an older man who had spoken with several dealers all who tried to screw him over. The seller had done his homework he knew the value of the books he had.

 

So this dealer sat down with him went thru each of the books, and assessed a value and made him what was apparently a very good offer.

 

The dealer/boardie got all the books that I thought were in a bank safety deposit box. He got the books because he treated the seller well and made him a decent offer. He might not have made a ton on those books, but I can gurantee you he expanded his customer base and earned a lot of respect from many like me.

 

How did ephe expand his customer base? The guy that sold them is done and your respect doesnt pay bills.

 

He expanded his customer base by reselling all those books he bought to other collectors/dealers. Is that really that hard to understand?

 

Most people's offer and attitude change when they know there are other interested parties.

[miraclemet]

A boardie on here provided a really good example a few years ago.

 

Some guy came up to him at a show and told him he had several early Tec Batman's. They were like 28 and up from memory. A very nice collection of books. In decent grades for the age of the books.

 

The seller was an older man who had spoken with several dealers all who tried to screw him over. The seller had done his homework he knew the value of the books he had.

 

So this dealer sat down with him went thru each of the books, and assessed a value and made him what was apparently a very good offer.

 

The dealer/boardie got all the books that I thought were in a bank safety deposit box. He got the books because he treated the seller well and made him a decent offer. He might not have made a ton on those books, but I can gurantee you he expanded his customer base and earned a lot of respect from many like me.

 

again a good scenario but they all have slightly different tinges.

 

Sounds like the seller was soliciting offers from dealers, he got a series of offers from other dealers. He then came to your friend who also made an offer after taking time with the seller to review the value of each book and make a more fair offer.

 

I wonder if the seller had an idea of the books values from the start, so he knew that the initial offers were less than competitive. (trying to call an offer fair or not fair when dealing something that is as scalable as money is difficult to nail down.. is a 50% of market a fair offer? Does that mean 49% of market is suddenly unfair? If that 1% is a dollar does the answer change? If the 1% is 10k?

 

Point being. Books were offered to dealers to make offers. They had to assess the situation and make an offer. The other dealers apparently mis-assessed the sellers understanding of the books value, or maybe mi-assessed the value the seller would put on taking time for a personable interaction (here's Im just guessing what made the seller not take one of the earlier offers, unless his intent was always to visit all dealers at the show before deciding).

 

Again the difference in this situation is the books weren't offered at a price. If the seller had offered the books to dealer #1 for $1000, and the dealer said "sure" I don't know if he would have then been offered the other books, And unless you know the seller, you dont know either.

 

Maybe the books were being offered as a "test", who knows.

 

Here's a related scenario: Non descript, middle aged guy comes to your table at a show. Offers a small batch of books for pennies on the dollar, ASM129 for $20, an IH181 for $50 and so on. You agree to his asking price, and he "gets cold feet" and moves on. A few more dealers do the same thing and the guy keeps moving. Finally one of the dealers being offered the books tells him they are worth more, shows him what the books are worth in Overstreet and makes a dealer level offer on the books that is percieved as "fair" to both parties.

 

Do the other dealers do anything wrong by being willing to buy books at the asking price? Was the seller baiting the dealers?

 

Now again, that scenario is different than an offer of books with no price (just make an offer).

[FineCollector]

Here's a related scenario: Non descript, middle aged guy comes to your table at a show. Offers a small batch of books for pennies on the dollar, ASM129 for $20, an IH181 for $50 and so on. You agree to his asking price, and he "gets cold feet" and moves on. A few more dealers do the same thing and the guy keeps moving. Finally one of the dealers being offered the books tells him they are worth more, shows him what the books are worth in Overstreet and makes a dealer level offer on the books that is percieved as "fair" to both parties.

 

Do the other dealers do anything wrong by being willing to buy books at the asking price? Was the seller baiting the dealers?

 

Now again, that scenario is different than an offer of books with no price (just make an offer).

 

In that scenario, you have to up your game as a dealer. If the seller sells the books, and tells someone else what a deal they missed, the response will likely be "he hosed you." Regardless of the way the transaction went down, it'll make the dealer look like he took advantage of someone, and that word will spread.

[youmechooz]

He was able to expand his customer base because he had different books to offer, the books were available to him because he made a decent offer compared to the other people

No sign they were different than what he carried. He probably sold them to his usual customers

[kav]