Jeff- you made a very good point and it is something I have been thinking about. There was a time in the hobby when retail sales and auctions were both pretty prevalent. Back then the auctions were informal and not necessarily the main method of selling memorabilia.
When the economy and card market got hot the auction became the way to go. One could achieve incredible prices simply by letting collectors fight it out.
In this bad economy the bidding war is not what it used to be. So I predict over the next few years we will see the resurgence of the fixed price sale. Auctions are just too risky in this climate.
|