issues with a local shop owner

[mosika84]

I was recently convinced by a local shop owner to sell some memorabilia on his ebay page a) because I don’t have much experience with the matter b) to give his page some higher sought after merch.  He recently called me to let me know that the merchandise had sold.  Earlier today I noticed my item on the sold items on his page for a lot more $ than what he had told me. Is it possible that what is sold it for won’t match the “sold for” amount on the ebay page?

[momcqueen]

Yes, it is possible. One is a sale by Best Offer, the other may be from a Markdown that ended. Both reflect a bit oddly on that Sold filter page result. It’s not completely trustworthy. If you need examples, I may be able to find some of my own in my listings but it’s a bit of a job to do it.

[momcqueen]

I’ll add (even though you didn’t ask) that Selling someone else’s stuff is a big job. It’s very time-consuming and the seller bears all the risk if a consignment goes wrong. I don’t know what deal you struck with your seller, but I charge 50 per cent of an item’s final selling price to cover all the fees and recognize my time and expertise with taking photos and answering questions at cetera. If you’re paying less than 50 per cent of the commission to your seller, consider that you got a good deal of the arrangement.

[mosika84]

Thanks for the input. In my situation we agreed that I would pay the fees +  20%. My shop said they had sold something of mine for $200 on their page the item claims to be sold for $583.23 (which was a best offer)

[momcqueen]

The Sold price for a Best Offer will show the pie-in-the-sky asking price, not the actual selling price. If you’ve got reservations, ask to see his Sales Record or PayPal transaction of payment.

[momcqueen]

Did you agree it was worth only $200 of $500+? That’s a pretty big difference, so I can see the reason you’re wary.

[femmefan1946]

Should we assume that you have a written contract?

Ask for a printout of the eBay and Paypal invoices to go with your cheque and other paperwork.

EBay sellers pay in fees 10% on the selling price, 10% on the shipping cost, 30 cents plus 2.9% on the Paypal payment.

In addition, there were costs in labour for photography, description, uploading. Expect to pay a professional more than the 18-25 cents a minute that is minimum wage.

And a listing in an eBay Store can cost from 30 cents to 3 cents a month, depending on what kind of account he has and how quickly it sells.

[mosika84]

Thanks for the input