I know I shouldn't be suprised

[Snapolit1]

. . . but still amazes me when I see a high end card on PWCC that someone just bought at an auction house 10 weeks ago. Guy buys a $20,000 card in May at an AH and then immediately flips to PWCC? PWCC takes 8% of a card over $5,000, so this dude assumes the card has gone up so fast that he'll clear some coin on this? Is this really a viable business model I'm missing out on?

[Leon]

Lots of questions could be asked of this business model.

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

. . . but still amazes me when I see a high end card on PWCC that someone just bought at an auction house 10 weeks ago. Guy buys a $20,000 card in May at an AH and then immediately flips to PWCC? PWCC takes 8% of a card over $5,000, so this dude assumes the card has gone up so fast that he'll clear some coin on this? Is this really a viable business model I'm missing out on?

[Snapolit1]

Maybe it works? Figure that blows up in your face once or twice and you'll find a new game to play.

By the way, here's the dude leading on the Gehrig PWCC auction I've been watching, ending tonight:

30-Day Summary
Total bids: 51
Items bid on: 28
Bid activity (%) with this seller: 94% Help
Bid retractions: 0
Bid retractions (6 months): 5

5 retractions in 6 months? Mmmmm. Makes ya think, no?

[Leon]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Maybe it works? Figure that blows up in your face once or twice and you'll find a new game to play.

By the way, here's the dude leading on the Gehrig PWCC auction I've been watching, ending tonight:

30-Day Summary
Total bids: 51
Items bid on: 28
Bid activity (%) with this seller: 94% Help
Bid retractions: 0
Bid retractions (6 months): 5

5 retractions in 6 months? Mmmmm. Makes ya think, no?

Bid retractions are a black mark, to me, on ebayers. When I see more than about 1, I am suspicious.

.

[Snapolit1]

Under what conditions can I retract a bid?

Whether you can retract a bid depends on the circumstances and timing of the bid. You can retract a bid for the following reasons:

You accidentally entered the wrong bid amount due to a typographical error. For example, you bid $99.50 instead of $9.95. If this happens, you need to reenter the correct bid amount right away. Changing your mind does not qualify as accidentally entering a wrong bid amount.

The item's description changed significantly after you entered your last bid. For example, the seller updated details about the item's features or condition.

You can't reach the seller by telephone or email.

HOW COULD THIS POSSIBLY HAPPEN IN GOOD FAITH TO SOMEONE ONCE A MONTH? PARTICULARLY TO SOMEONE WHO HAS A FEEDBACK TOTAL OF 62?

[glchen]

There is a separate thread where PWCC is trying to work with ebay to crack down on these shenanigans, but there are at least a couple of ways where this can work.

(1) Buyer consigns a 20K card bought in May from an AH. He consigns it to PWCC (or some other AH / consignment shop). During the auction, he "creates a 25K hidden reserve." He does this by creating a dummy ebay account or having a friend bid for him for this card to $25K. If the bidding clears $25K, consignor makes a profit. If it does not clear $25K, dummy account or friend does not pay for item. Card is returned back to consignor unsold with no fees paid. (For insurance, he should have a separate account bid just under $25K so that any Second Chance Offers will also be rejected.)

(2) Same scenario as above, but consignor has two dummy accounts bid the card up to $25K. Consignor wins the auction, and pays for the card, and eats the $25K * 8% fee. However, this card now shows as a sale at that new price point in VCP. He then uses that price to sell this card to another buyer for a profit using VCP data during the negotiations.

[Beastmode]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Maybe it works? Figure that blows up in your face once or twice and you'll find a new game to play.

By the way, here's the dude leading on the Gehrig PWCC auction I've been watching, ending tonight:

30-Day Summary
Total bids: 51
Items bid on: 28
Bid activity (%) with this seller: 94% Help
Bid retractions: 0
Bid retractions (6 months): 5

5 retractions in 6 months? Mmmmm. Makes ya think, no?

Another prick bidding on high dollar cards.

That business model only works in an bull market; a robust one at that. If he's gaming the system (shilling/manipulating), then his odds of making money are in his favor.

Seems like a lot of effort for little reward, and lots of exposure to the downside. Couldn't do this on a small scale; would need to spread your risk far and wide and have lots of helpers.

The common denominator in these auctions is a winning bidder who wants the card so bad he pays 2-5X VCP. We'll be hearing from these "victims" in a few years and how they were duped into overpaying for their cards.

[Snapolit1]

Whether it's PWCC or anyone else, if someone arrives on the scene the night a high ticket item is ending and all of a sudden takes the lead in the bidding with (1) limited feedback and (2) more than 1 retraction in the last 6 months, I'm out. Someone's yanking the chain a little too hard.

[glchen]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Whether it's PWCC or anyone else, if someone arrives on the scene the night a high ticket item is ending and all of a sudden takes the lead in the bidding with (1) limited feedback and (2) more than 1 retraction in the last 6 months, I'm out. Someone's yanking the chain a little too hard.

FYI, there are also legitimate bidders who try to mimic shilling to try to scare away other bidders and win cards for a lower price. So you never know...

[pokerplyr80]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

. . . but still amazes me when I see a high end card on PWCC that someone just bought at an auction house 10 weeks ago. Guy buys a $20,000 card in May at an AH and then immediately flips to PWCC? PWCC takes 8% of a card over $5,000, so this dude assumes the card has gone up so fast that he'll clear some coin on this? Is this really a viable business model I'm missing out on?

Im not sure which card you are referring to, but as fast as the market has been changing on a few cards I could see this paying off. Especially if it's a psa 9 Reggie Jackson, Frank Robinson, Gibson RC, or something similar.