[RichardSimon]

Originally Posted by sbfinley

I'll preface this by saying I own nothing from Steiner. I have made one purchase from them before - a Christmas gift for a friend 2-3 years back. So...

1. Why are they overpriced? The market dictates price and if there wasn't a market for what they have to offer then they likely would not still be in business nor thriving which it seems they are. $500 for a single signed ball might seem absurd to many people here, but it's all relative. Cardboard pictures of long dead ball players change hands for up to five figures just on this site. There is a vast majority (basically everyone that isn't us) of the world population that would find that absurd. If someone wants it, they will pay for it. They are not the be all - end all. Steiner has had a long relationship with Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter. From what I understand Rivera was a fair chance TTM and a great IP signer. Jeter was usually RTS TTM, but with patience you could get him IP. Just recently someone posted a half dozen Jeter signed RC's in the BST for less than a $100 each. You can get what they offer elsewhere often for cheaper, but people still go to them. More power to them.


2. Why is it their responsibility to police the hobby? If I were to purchase something from Steiner, because of their reputation, I would not have second thoughts about the validity of the product. There was the recent GU flap with Giants gear, but Steiner was operating in good faith with a pro sports franchise. If B&L Auctions dealt in and were offered memorabilia from a pro sports franchise to auction off would I be safe to assume they would be accepted in good faith? I have been a member of this forum for almost seven years and honestly this side of the board can turn into a train wreck. There are a handful of people who want to police and protect the hobby, and I do not doubt for a second their intentions. Yet you call auctions out, you call items out, you call each other out, and you threaten each other with lawsuits. Some of you make fighting a sport. It's tiring. Why would Steiner want to deal with that. If PSA had to personally deal with every cracked slab, fake flip, or fake cert out there your 45 day submissions would take eight months - not four. You want good faith when purchasing a product? Go directly to the source. (That might be grounds for issue 1)

My answers to Steve's points.
1 - they are dealing with people who are hooked on this stuff and they know that in selling to them they can get away with the prices that they do. Then the real market takes over and look at what happens to the prices then. Do you know any really educated collectors who actually pay them what they are asking?
2 - Maybe it is not a "responsibility" but I would think it would be a very good business practice to try and make some effort to help keep the business that they are in cleaner than it is. That benefits everyone in it, the ones they sell to, the real collectors and all others who enjoy it and make a living from it..