Reply With QuoteWell if somebody is having a hard job moving on their unwanted pieces on SC are you going to be any more successful?Originally Posted by Bozza
Of course who the seller is will usually have a bearing on how quickly a watch (or anything) is shifted.
Yes and no, i do worry about the 'no box or papers', as they truly are a nightmare to move on for the same money, i've been stung a couple of times with that and won't do it again in a hurry.
But, as with the others, i tend to think that there's just not that much money about as there used to be, and from current knowledge, i've had two listed and both have had a fair few swap offers, but nothing really grabs me, i'm guessing the same thing is happening with others.
Well if somebody is having a hard job moving on their unwanted pieces on SC are you going to be any more successful?
Of course who the seller is will usually have a bearing on how quickly a watch (or anything) is shifted.
Cheers,
Neil.
As someone who is currently in that position & may be one of the people you are referring to, i wasn't taking it personally!
I too had assumed that there are fewer, quick high value transactions happening & it might just take a while.
Maybe my strategy of gradual reduction in price isn't the best way to go & a rock bottom asking price is best started with, although it arguably leaves you worse off if all offers are lower?
When i see something hanging around i generally assume 1)too high a price 2)not a popular make/model 3)less £ around.
I wasn't getting paranoid until i read your thread :lol:
I've been a member of a few watch (and other) forums for ages now, and I think that this is a fairly recent trend.
When cash was plentiful, the sales page was often slim pickings unless you got in quick!
Recently, it seems that there has been a new 'redundancy' thread every week. Times are really hard, and when cash thins out a bit, luxuries are the first to suffer unfortunately.
On top of that, as you say, there are a lot of new members hitting SC as soon as they can and then wondering why no-one wants to hand over hundreds of pounds to a complete stranger. :lol:
While there are lots of keen 'flippers' on any of the forums, there are often traders too - which never goes down well with the collecting community.
And of course, some pieces are just overpriced. Trying to sell a £5000 watch at £4500 because its 'like new' just doesn't work. I'd rather haggle the 10% off with an AD and get my own name on the guarantee card thanks. Or using the tactic 'there is a price increase in a few weeks, so this will sell for xxxx'. Er, ok, but it cost less brand new a few weeks ago than you're asking now.... :roll:
The real bargains - SMP's and Super Oceans have recently cropped up around £600 for example - always sell quickly. Everything else, people are asking 'do I need this?'
If you like the look of a watch then resale should never be an issue. If you feel like you're paying a fair price then there is no problem. You'll almost always re-coup your money (or most of it) buying from somewhere like here.
What's the alternative? Buy new and drop a quarter of its value in a year? Buy from e.bay and risk the big sting?
I am surprised at some stuff that doesn`t sell. However, thesedays TZ is very much biased towards large 'tool watchs' IMO and consequently some of the classier stuff struggles to sell on here. As an example, I put a superb late 90s bicolour 36mm Omega Seamaster 120 on SC last year....and didn`t get ANY interest whatsoever, yet it subsequently sold well on eBay. There's a general lack of appreciation of anything <40mm and anything gold on here.
As for the comments re. box & papers, there seems to be an obsession with this on TZ. Lots of dealers offer watches for sale without B & P and have no problems selling them, albeit with a price correction in most cases.
There's another major factor to consider; we are going through hard times financially and many prospective buyers don`t have the money to spend. This is affecting sales of the heavy stuff, with fewer folks having £3-4K in their back pocket thesedays.
Also, to be brutally honest, some of the stuff on SC isn`t brilliant. Standards of presentation also seem to be falling with all too many poor pictures taken on mobile phones (usually with some lame apology) .
Paul
I have a watch on SC at the moment. It has been there since December '09. It has been valued by a couple of 'experts' in the order of 400 Euro's. I have it on SC at around the £100 mark. Every 6 months or so I give it a bump and a price reduction. When the right person comes along, I'm sure it will sell. I have only sold one or two items before, so don't have a large H & V listing, maybe that's why it hasn't sold. I'll bump it again nearer Christmas.
Cheers
Peter
I see this all the time and there are too many factors to put forward - one watch at the same price may be a whole different ball game and it is very difficult to compare like with like. Does it need a service, will it need one soon - does it have all bits - how much would it cost to add them all? If I don't like it will I be able to sell it on for not too much of a hit etc. etc.
Generally I pay a little more than I'd like to for the best condition and complete watches - I generally offer a price I feel fair for anything that doesn't fit this description, provided I really want the watch - or I'll let it pass me by. Or I just say I'll take it by pm - plenty will attest to my immediate "yes please" pm's I'm sure.
So a similar age watch may have a number of reasons why it does not sell for the same price.
Additionally the seller has an impact. I like to think that similar to the way I buy, I provide a no nonsense buying experience to whoever wants to buy one of my watches and where possible I'll go out of my way to make sure they are happy. Essentially I am a buyer of watches who occasionally sells off/trades a watch or two.
We all have a value in mind that we would like when we list a watch - and sometimes that price is too high, sometimes it was too low and sells within minutes! I tend to price what I think is fair and let someone make an offer of what they think is fair - if they offer suits me I'll agree to it - if I know the watch will sell for the asking price somewhere then I am more reluctant to agree to accepting (much) less.
The real issue is the SC is a fairly small audience and much higher prices could be achieved for some items - or slightly high prices are paid for others, especially if they are "in fashion" on the forum that month or season lol
It is always true that if the price is right it will sell - but you should take into account that that price has different criteria - i.e. it may be priced high on the SC because the last two people to sell may have needed the money quickly or simply under priced their watches (this can and does happen).
I'd pay slightly more for the same watch from a particular seller simply because I know their watches are always mint or very well looked after for example - or that I know they post out within a day of receiving funds.
So... same watch/watches - lots of variables.
It's just a matter of time...
If it's an 'in' watch, then it'll sell, SD's rarely stay long, some panerai and the likes as well, the funny thing is that some watch brands over here aren't really deemed as good as others, but on the continent they're wanted, now if only i could speak German :lol:
One of the things I find offputting is numerous 'bumps' followed by a few reductions, then the 'if no-one has this, it's going to the bay' threat followed by a few more reductions and bumps.
Seems a bit like selling houses, something that is in excellent condition and doesn't ofter come to market will sell well even in slow times while ordinary stock in need of a bit of TLC will only sell if very keenly priced. On sales corner if you then factor in a low post seller with little transaction history things will slow things down even more.
When I first joined a couple of years ago I remember you had to be pretty quick (a couple of minutes in some cases :( ) off the mark to pick up anything that even remotely looked like a bargain. Now you seem to be able to ponder the possibilities for a couple of days.
Tough times, buyers market; great if you have the cash and are happily building a collection without the need to sell. Unfortunately I'm skint but at least all the slots in my watch box are full :)
regards
grant
in the end, is that there is NO MONEY
watches are something that is a luxury, and prior to purchasing one, you might have to pay schooling to your kids, pay some
parking fees...or even buy your wife an anniversary gift...
2 , 3 years ago, money was around, and watches werent´that expensive...that´s why now, people try to safe, and,...
IMHO only Rolex, Panerai or Patek can maintain there price range....
It is understandable that watches can sit for a while, even if they're at a very good price, if the pictures are bad quality and the seller has low post count then how do we know to trust them?
But its not only that but also does anyone really want the watch? sure it might be a nice watch at the right price but anyone who might buy it may already have similar and any who have the money might not want it, surely there is a point of saturation for certain watches? SD for example i imagine a large percentage already have SD when will it come that everyone who wants one in their collection has one? never i imagine as the SD is popular, but i just used it as an example there...
If it's not selling its too expensive. Simples!
Whilst I would agree that times are harder financially there have been some higher priced items moving on the SC lately.
Something which doesn't help sellers at all is the truly shocking sales posts, I don't mean they are lacking a bit, I mean they are lazy and in no way will assist in the sale of a watch regardless of condition. Comments like "it's the same as one on google images", really, well sorry but a) if you can't be bothered to post pictures I sure as hell ain't going surfing for them and b) how the hell do I know you have the watch if you can't be bothered to photograph it?
Some sellers IMHO over price their stuff, not always by massive amounts but enough that most people know the routine which is:
1. Seller XXXX has just posted a watch on the SC
2. I like it but it's over-priced and he has made zero effort with his sales post
3. This seller generally bumps twice a day and reduces his prices every day / every other day
4. Because he bumps it so often and has over-priced it people ignore the post or post negative comments like "where are the pictures"
5. The seller is now desperate / wants rid and is now still having no joy even though he is, at, or below market value
6. The watch is now a bargain but people don't like the fact the buyer started with an over the top price which was potentially taking the p*ss so on principal won't buy it and wait for a forum member they trust and know who has the same watch and generally sells at fair prices from the outset
7. Somebody swoops at the last minute and grabs a bargain (or was it) or it is withdrawn.
There are some bargains on SC but not often these days. The second hand prices are following the new prices and just going up and up in most cases. Add in the lazy sellers and SC is what you make of it. Would agree on the no box and no papers advice above....... very tricky to price and get it just right
Paul
Definitely agree on the lazy sales posts issue. That, over-pricing, overseas sales and less than perfect reps can all cause an item to hang around longer than anticipated.
I've also noticed that some sellers - coincidentally all from the European mainland, actually - ask way, way (way) too much for their wares. I don't even read their sales posts any more.
Bottom line and end of story.
I agree with you. If you see a watch listed for below its going value and if the watch is desirable it will go quick! I had sold watches in less than 5 mins quite a few times when I priced them either lower or just right, but so so desirable watches will be harder to move simply because there are smaller crowd looking for that watch. I currently have a boutique diver watch listed in another forum and there hasn't been a solid bite yet probably because not many are looking for this particular watch hence the daily bump with little bit of reduction every now and then... :bounce:
There are some watches that are just too expensive to start with, but many who have bought new do not want to take a bath (and who can blame them?)
and then there are some that GET more expensive- there is one watch that openly sold for a grand, went back on with a trade value of £1100 days later, and was last on at £1200!
I was gutted it was withdrawn, I wanted to buy it because by Xmas it would be worth the same as a Comex!
Is that because the Euro is stronger these days and so they appear more expensive?
I wonder if that's because Eddie predominately sells largish tool watches? Are the forum favourites more biased towards dressier watches on, say, the CW forum?
"I forget who it was that recommended men for their soul's good to do each day two things they disliked ... it is a precept that I have followed scrupulously; for every day I have got up and I have gone to bed."
Money's tight probably, there have been a few cracking bargains of late though.
I do agree entirely.Bottom line and end of story.
I buy and sell a fair few watches, but I swap and trade more - it is more fun in my opinion.
I also drop my asking prices quickly - if a few hundred people have seen it and I've not had an offer then clearly I have priced it too high, so I'll drop it until I find the biting point. This may cost me money - but then if you can't afford the hand, don't play the game is my philosophy. Once i have taken the decision to part with a watch I don't want to have it hanging around for weeks. I want it gone and to move on. Endless bumping at the same price, or with tiny reductions on expensive pieces just clogs up SC and suggests to potential buyers that the watch isn't desirable.
At the end of the day, SC should be about relative bargains shared and passed on between enthusiasts and collectors in my opinion. Asking a high price is any sellers right, but it simply won't sell if it is overpriced. My advice is sell as cheaply as you can, help drive prices down across the board, and keep turnover on SC rapid.
I also, and I can't stress this enough, recommend people to offer watches for sale and trade - you would be surprised how much fun trading is, and you might well get offered something you like but had never thought of. Partial trades with cash adjustment are also a good idea.
I have huge fun with SC, and urge others to do the same.
:)
So clever my foot fell off.
My pet gripe on SC of late has been the "for sale at £x, no offers."
It then proceeds to drop in price with every bump until it's below what I would have offered in the first place, by which time it's off my radar. 3 times now :evil:
One of the factors that that helps me to decide whether i will buy a watch from a member of this forum is their general behaviour on the forum. I will not buy a watch from those foul mouthed rude members as those are not the sort of people i would like to deal with and hand over large amounts of money to. manners maketh man.
Tough market at the moment combined with job uncertainty will always be major factors. Saying that there have been some fantastic offers on SC recently but I put that down to desparate sellers needing funds urgently, one mans dilemma etc!
For me I have found patience is all that's required especially as I don't need to drop my pants in deseration.
“Don’t look back, you’re not heading that way.”
I don;t worry about it.
I always seem to pay way over the going rate for any watch I buy anyway.
I can Almost guarrantee If I buy a watch two days later the same watch will be up for sale for £200 less :)
Plenty of useful info there, thanks.
i've been browsing this site for quite a while on and off, often the sales corner. What actually made me join was a really nice glycine at a great price. Then when I joined I needed 25 posts - so missed it. Anyway, what I'm getting at is that at the right price people will go out their way to buy - even a lurker like me. So if it isn't shifting it's too expensive at that moment in time. Maybe you expect a lot more for an item but maybe you've also failed to realize tastes have changed and your item's no longer as desireable. Nothing a price drop won't fix though.
B.
As a fairly recent member I would love to be able to splash some cash, but I need to put a bit more time in on the forums :) What i would say though, is that anyone (with the cash and a job!!) who is looking to buy, now is probably a good time. You are probably better off buying a quality watch than watching your hard earned savings evaporate on the stock market. Every recession has a silver lining ...
I would like to mitigate that statement by saying that I feel for people going through difficult times.
It's a market.
Sometimes it's at the right price, excellent product, well described, great seller and plenty of views - just not by the right buyer at the right time.
Trades complicate things somewhat as there can be loads offered but none suitable.
Number of views does not reflect the number of people interested either as each visit meters a view. Anyone who owns the model may visit to see what theirs is "worth" - and some people will follow a particular seller just to see what they're up to.
I expect any really cheap desirable watches are as likely to be snapped up by a dealer as they are by an enthusiast.
Gray
I think its just down to cash shortage. everyones tightened their belts. I would also agree about the poor quality sales posts and the firm prices, then bump and dumping the price. I tried to buy off a new member and asked for one of the forum members to act in escrow and 10% down in price from what he was asking. Was told no and 2 weeks later it sold for 200 pounds less than id offered. I live overseas and try to limit my buying to when im going to be in the UK to recieve it. In my case i have a fair stash now but im going for a new Ennebi so thats my SC action out the window for a while.
A point to remember is "It's only worth what someone will pay for it"
Niall
To be fair not all of us are great with a camera though!
& as a newbie seller (& relatively newie member) it's somewhat disheartening when the forums 'clique' keep bumping each others watches to the top of Sales Corner.
I've seen quite a few inexperienced sellers (like me) ask for advice re: the price of their watch & that's often ignored while regular-sellers/more established members similar watches are promoted with "GLWTS mate", "Surprised this one's still here" etc even though said similar watches are very comparably priced or perhaps even more expensive.
There is also the fact that certain brands are as popular is syphilis on here. With those I would expect a better return on eBay or a different forum.
Superb!! :lol:
True!
Gray
Oh no, I would far rather have syphilis than wear a G-Shock for example.... :D
So clever my foot fell off.
You can always expect a better return on ebay I'd have thought. It's a commercial auction site and a vast market, whereas SC is supposed to be a sideline facility for TZers.
It's probably easier to get rid of syphilis than it is a G shock :D
Oh no, I would far rather have syphilis than wear a G-Shock for example.... :D
Great pictures, good nick box and papers is the only real way to get it sold quickly.
I've been look at quality watches for the wife, when good ones come up they go straight away.
I think that the economic climate is probably the main factor of watches not moving at the moment. There is also another factor for me and that is the attitude of the seller. I was looking at a relatively low priced item the other day which I liked and would fit in with what I need quite well, but the seller came across in the initial and subsequent posts as quite aggressive and unhelpful. This of course is my interpretation only and it may have been completely wrong, but I just thought I'm not buying of this guy and moved on.
The item is still for sale though i think it is fairly priced. As we all seem to say "buy the seller" it seems daft to me to be needlessly unpleasant in your replies to enquiries, even if the person enquiring has asked what you think is a stupid or irritating question.
Best
Den
I haven't been on here long but could it be the case that the SC market is pretty much for SS Sports watches hence some things are slower to shift as doesn't quite suit the audience. Looking at Blowers' pages plenty of very expensive watches eg 7 k Hublot & 22k JLC both sold in a few days.I agree with you. If you see a watch listed for below its going value and if the watch is desirable it will go quick! I had sold watches in less than 5 mins quite a few times when I priced them either lower or just right, but so so desirable watches will be harder to move simply because there are smaller crowd looking for that watch. I currently have a boutique diver watch listed in another forum and there hasn't been a solid bite yet probably because not many are looking for this particular watch hence the daily bump with little bit of reduction every now and then... :bounce:
Whilst I agree price is too high to sell quickly on here, doesn't necessarily mean the price is too high per se just as others say is not an "in" watch ?
Dead right, but have you seen the fee's ebay charge now?
Being an established member of a forum like this works for everyone. It allows (or should allow) the buyer to purchase a good bit of kit, from someone he knows (either personally or through reputation) at a decent price.
On the flip side it lets the seller list a watch for free, paying no fee's regardless of the sale price, to a specialised audience - arguably the best place to find a buyer.
I have seen (on other watch forums, car forums and poker forums) people really take advantage.
For example taking up an entire page on a trade section with unrelated items - essentially using it as a free extension of e.bay.
Then there are always the con-artists - spot the single/double digit post count before heading to the sale corner.
SC is a perk, put there to keep pieces moving about within the community (god forbid Cash Generator get any more - I cringe every time I pass there!) and keep people spending a bit of cash.
I have only been on here for a few months, but I gather our fine host Eddie has closed SC for short periods in the past?
Using SC is a risk. Eddie takes no responsibility for issues caused there, and shouldn't have to. Thats why the mantras of 'Buyer Beware' and 'Buy the Seller' are repeated every time one of these type posts come up.
The SC is a nice little extra, but shouldn't be the sole reason to log onto the site. I would not be in the least bit surprised if TZUK lost 50% of its regular visitors if it was to be axed.
Edit. When I started collecting watches a few years ago, the prices on these specialist forums seemed to be 'mates rates'. People either trading up/down without much concern to losing a few quid here and there.
Trouble is, as mentioned above the cheap watches seem to be snapped up by dealers now. Why underprice a watch just so someone else can make a few quid on it??
I think thats why prices have crept up to nearer 'list' price.
Not everything in life is black and white.Bottom line and end of story.
It could be a number of reasons why a watch hasn't moved, many of which have been mentioned already.
-People's financial situations - generally not good at the mo. There have been some veritable bargains recently and they were there for days, weeks and some still weren't sold. I have also been quite surprised at one or two Sea-dwellers which took a week or so to finally go. Would have thought they'd go in less than a day.
- Popularity of brand - if a brand is not as popular and your one or two potential buyers have spent their money on other things recently or aren't in a position to buy for whatever reason, then you're not going to get a sale no matter how good your price is....Timing is everything...and a bit of luck!
Reputation and location of seller - Relatively low post count, short/no track record of seller's history, being overseas can all count against the seller, most of the time unfairly. I've seen a few pieces from Europe which looked like good buys but seemingly didn't get any decent interest.
Yes, if something doesn't sell..then often the seller is asking too much...but there's a fine line between the 'right price' and being too cheap - which isn't always easy to gauge on certain watches, especially if they're not so mainstream. And the reasons above (and more) mitigate often.
Agree with this too,had a full set tag aquagraph (dive kit new) the watch was complete and as new/stunning, the hole nine yards. i think it was up at 1150 ,no takes so sold off site for 1300 and buyer well chuffed.I got the impression tag's in general are deemed as fashion watches on here (unless vintage autavia stuff or 1000m pro)so not as popular.True!
Fool that I am, I like to offer things to my fellow members here first even if I may make less than an eBay sale. If it doesn't sell here that's another story...You can always expect a better return on ebay I'd have thought. It's a commercial auction site and a vast market, whereas SC is supposed to be a sideline facility for TZers.
But because of that Market size, do you also have to contend with a far larger proportion of nob jockeys? I Mean, some watches are just not priced to sell, irrespective of where they are advertised, however in my experience, people on the bay will offer you a pittance and tell you they're doing you a favour to "to take it off your hands at all", which is always nice.You can always expect a better return on ebay I'd have thought. It's a commercial auction site and a vast market, whereas SC is supposed to be a sideline facility for TZers.
I've not sold on here, but you do see the odd SC post saying "thanks for pointing me to those that have sold and their price" or similar. I mean, at least on here there is a serious archive of sold watches (some of which are very rare), which can give at least A comparison...
Not just watches, but sales in general. Poor adverts, be it pics, text content and speedy replies. If any of this is missing, then a well priced sought after item can still fail to sell. Buyers can loose interest quickly.
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