Pristine Auctions

[Shoeless Moe]

Anyone ever win anything from this auction house?

Reason I ask is I've seen this same Babe Ruth photo in their last 3 auctions. I'm assuming it's not hitting a reserve, but very odd. Never seen that from any other auction house. I've seen other items too being re-auctioned.

https://pristineauction.com/auctions/index/details/id/168584/Babe-Ruth-11x14-Vintage-Matte-Finished-Studio-Photograph-by-Albert-Cook-Church

And not sure how much they are hoping to get for it since it just went at Legendary in the fall for $299

http://www.legendaryauctions.com/LotDetail.aspx?inventoryid=162110

[drcy]

I'd value the photo as worth more than $299. It's unusually large and the photographer is known. The question is what a bidder things of the image. At the least, it's an interesting and out-of-the-ordinary head shot of Ruth.

[joed25]

I also noticed they auction items again and again. Some of these auction houses seem a bit shady.

Joseph Dw.ek

[thecatspajamas]

From their website:
Reserve:
We reserve the right to place a reserve on auctions. Reserves are determined before the start of an auction. If bidding does not meet or exceed the predetermined reserve price, the lot will be returned to the consignor or relisted into a future auction.

Looks like they have "hidden reserves" ?

[ibuysportsephemera]

I have won things in the past....with no problems.

Jeff

[drcy]

You often see some recycling in the non-huge auction houses. It may be the auction owner owns some of the stuff, and the haven't built up the huge following to sell everything. There is always stuff non-sold, not paid for or re-auctioned in every auction, it's just the amount and how regularly. I assume even with REA and Sotheby's there are a few lots unsold or a few non-payers and they put it back up in the next auctions. But the reauctioned items are few and far between.

What they could do is have an eBay account and anything that doesn't sell after a while they put on eBay.

I don't see anything wrong (as in ethically) with a bunch of stuff not selling and it being recycled, it just may not look good aesthetically. Collectors like auctions where 'everything sells.'

P.s., unlike with some, I've never have a problem with auctioneers selling their own stuff. If there's no funny business in the bidding and the items are described accurately, it doesn't matter to me. To me, that's time multiple superior to a 100% consignment auction house that shills and lies in descriptions. The idea that some collectors hold that 100% consignment auction = honesty and auction house selling their own stuff = dishonesty is, at best, a quaint old fashioned sentiment and, at worst, contains no logic. No, at worst (meaning, most accurate), it's wrong, because as we all now know consignment auctions can shill and be as dishonest as anyone else. Give me a known honest knowledgeable dealer auctioning half his own stuff over a dishonest person running a consignment auction house any day of the week.

Duly note that I've never before heard of this auction house and have no knowledge of them beyond that they appear to to auctioning a nice Babe Ruth photo, and none of my comments are about them specifically.

Also note that a representative of a well known auction house once publicly said that they couldn't make a suitable profit if they didn't include stuff they owned. A 100% cognsgment auction house wasn't economically doable, at least, for them. And it wasn't an off-the-record comment between insiders, it was a public statement of fact by someone under his name and auction house. So there are often economic realities that chatboard outsiders may not understand or appreciate. For example, I've always wondered how much it costs just to print the full color REA catalog sent to me. $30? And how many thousands to they send out for free? How much is the total UPSO mailing cost just to ship those free catalogs? $90,000? Another is many bidders have this curious idea that packaging for auction houses isn't a cost, but an auction house hires shippers and packagers and, perhaps within a year, the minimum wage in Seattle will be $15 per hour. And that does not include packaging material, required health insurance, etc.

So while I expect and demand honesty and no funny business as do everyone else, I believe that many people's chatboard notions of how others should run and format their auction houses is based on an economic fantasy world. Start your own 100% consignment auction house, realize you actually have to pay an hourly wage to workers, receive your first quote for how much it will cost to print and ship your catalogs and you will be two steps closer to reality. Learn how hard to impossible it is to get people to consign to your new auction house and you'll be a third step closer. The fourth step may end with you saying "The only way I can have enough lots for my first auction is if I include my own stuff and, even then, I may lose money with all the costs. Why the Hell did I promise only a 5% winning bidder charge and 0% consignment fee? I want my Mommy!" Welcome to reality.

P.s., your mommy never loved you, it was just an act, and your fly is open.