On Dec 10, 2004, at 21:44, Patty Dowden wrote:
Rare Riches (the seller of the Sluis Duchesses piece) sets the price for an auction on eBay based precisely on the amount they paid for the item. In fact they say so right in the auction. "Rare Riches set the reserve prices according to the cost price of the individual item. "
So???? It says *nothing at all*. The charitable explanation could be: they might have - through ignorance - overpayed for the piece themselves.
I've once had someone consult me on how much she could claim as a deduction for a pillow she'd bought at an auction, and intended to donate to a museum. She was really upset when I said $200 would be maximum, even allowing for the suspension of disbelief on age (the cover fabric on the pillow - wool - was mostly moth eaten, but I've seen what moths can do within a year. And the pillow had no provenance. And identical - but pristine - pillows could be had at ca $100 at the time); she'd *paid* $250...
But, also, "price based on the cost" can vary, *wildly*, depending on how much profit one hopes to get/considers "proper". I know some people who're satisfied with the 30% profit margin (used to be considered "normal", some 20 yrs ago) or less. Some feel that 50% markup is the minimum which will make the reselling a worth-while proposition. And then there are the big-time folk, whose shareholders ain't happy until there's a 300% return on their investments...
*All* of them base their selling price "on the cost", and "Rare Riches" don't say which category they're in. IOW, they tell us squat about their cost, while trying to present themselves as "buyer friendly". Sheesh... Am I really the only "Miss Marple, Total Bitch Version 101" left on this continent????
--- Tamara P Duvall http://lorien.emufarm.org/~tpd Lexington, Virginia, USA (Formerly of Warsaw, Poland)
- To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
