Dean's Cards Discounts

[JollyElm]

746. Sitcommerce
When apologists for notorious on-line price extortionists claim they have fine business models, and you can’t help but laugh and wonder, “If that’s the case, why don’t they buy up all of the same cards that others list on eBay for 1/4 of their price and sell them for a huge profit??”

[japhi]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

746. Sitcommerce
When apologists for notorious on-line price extortionists claim they have fine business models, and you can’t help but laugh and wonder, “If that’s the case, why don’t they buy up all of the same cards that others list on eBay for 1/4 of their price and sell them for a huge profit??”

Well, umm, because the model low volume, high margin. Of course they won’t buy all available inventory, the model needs spreads greater than retail purchases can offer. Pretty simple stuff, your zinger shows you don’t understand the model.

Now whether this model is a good one is beyond me, I don’t have access to Deans financials but we can see his sold history and he moves cards in decent volumes. So I assume it is working, and I can respect someone that likes to take price premium.

[jsfriedm]

Another discount, this one for $620: https://www.ebay.com/itm/40476031461...4615&recoPos=1

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by japhi

Well, umm, because the model low volume, high margin. Of course they won’t buy all available inventory, the model needs spreads greater than retail purchases can offer. Pretty simple stuff, your zinger shows you don’t understand the model.

Now whether this model is a good one is beyond me, I don’t have access to Deans financials but we can see his sold history and he moves cards in decent volumes. So I assume it is working, and I can respect someone that likes to take price premium.

So sorry for hurting your feelings, Mr. Apologist. Please feel free to forward to me all of your extensive writings on business matters, so when I create more puns/wordplay/pseudo-portmanteaus ('Collectorisms') about the collecting world, I will be sure that, all humorous intent aside, each and every reference to commerce will meet your strict posting guidelines.

[Luke]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

746. Sitcommerce
When apologists for notorious on-line price extortionists claim they have fine business models, and you can’t help but laugh and wonder, “If that’s the case, why don’t they buy up all of the same cards that others list on eBay for 1/4 of their price and sell them for a huge profit??”

They actually do. Dean has bought probably 50 ish cards from me over the years via Buy It Nows. It doesn't make a ton of sense but it must work for him or he wouldn't still be doing it after all these years.

[campyfan39]

Thanks for starting this thread.
I know their ebay prices are very high but I did not know about the website discount.

He had one on ebay I really liked, an ungraded 52 topps Reese which is my white whale. I was so tempted to buy it even at his inflated price. It has surface wear and corners etc but it was perfectly centered with great eye appeal. I found it on the website and got 20% off so it was $880 (second most I have ever paid for a card). I am super excited to get it and see it in person! Thanks again for the tips.
Chris

[jayshum]

Originally Posted by campyfan39

Thanks for starting this thread.
I know their ebay prices are very high but I did not know about the website discount.

He had one on ebay I really liked, an ungraded 52 topps Reese which is my white whale. I was so tempted to buy it even at his inflated price. It has surface wear and corners etc but it was perfectly centered with great eye appeal. I found it on the website and got 20% off so it was $880 (second most I have ever paid for a card). I am super excited to get it and see it in person! Thanks again for the tips.
Chris

From what I remember, the prices listed on Dean's website are actually higher than the prices on eBay, but they end up lower once the website discount is applied. While you will definitely save money buying directly from his website, it usually won't be as much as the website discount makes it sound like. Although, it can help if you buy multiple cards together from the website since higher discounts apply as you spend an increasing amount.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by jayshum

From what I remember, the prices listed on Dean's website are actually higher than the prices on eBay, but they end up lower once the website discount is applied. While you will definitely save money buying directly from his website, it usually won't be as much as the website discount makes it sound like. Although, it can help if you buy multiple cards together from the website since higher discounts apply as you spend an increasing amount.

As someone who has purchased items from the website I never noticed this.

[jayshum]

Originally Posted by bnorth

As someone who has purchased items from the website I never noticed this.

The card originally mentioned by the OP is now listed for $13,270 on eBay.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/27630338634...1&toolid=20001

On Dean's website, it's listed for $16,120 with a 20% discount that drops it to $12,896 so while you aren't getting 20% off the eBay price, you do usually save money buying directly from the website. Also, if you add lower priced cards to the same order, they will also be 20% off which is a larger discount than if you bought them separately (assuming they were listed below $1000 to start).

Even with the discounts, his prices are still usually higher than others have for the same card, but somehow it seems to work for him. I've bought a few cards over the years, and it is nice to have the clear front and back scans along with very detailed information about raw cards (their opinion for corner grades, centering, card measurements, etc) that I have not seen from any other online seller. I certainly could not have afforded to buy my entire collection from Deans, but there have been times when I've found something worthwhile that I couldn't find elsewhere.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by jayshum

The card originally mentioned by the OP is now listed for $13,270 on eBay.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/27630338634...1&toolid=20001

On Dean's website, it's listed for $16,120 with a 20% discount that drops it to $12,896 so while you aren't getting 20% off the eBay price, you do usually save money buying directly from the website. Also, if you add lower priced cards to the same order, they will also be 20% off which is a larger discount than if you bought them separately (assuming they were listed below $1000 to start).

Even with the discounts, his prices are still usually higher than others have for the same card, but somehow it seems to work for him. I've bought a few cards over the years, and it is nice to have the clear front and back scans along with very detailed information about raw cards (their opinion for corner grades, centering, card measurements, etc) that I have not seen from any other online seller. I certainly could not have afforded to buy my entire collection from Deans, but there have been times when I've found something worthwhile that I couldn't find elsewhere.

Like some others I just buy rare and oddball stuff from Dean's. Mainly T210s as just finding a specific card can take some time. They usually have a decent variety to choose from. They had the same price on eBay and their site on the ones I purchased. With their website discount they where cheaper than I could find similar cards from other sellers.

I agree for the most part they are extremely overpriced. They also offer great front/back scans and some reasonably priced cards. The other big to me bonus is the only bad thing they get accused of is high prices.

[campyfan39]

It was listed for the identical price on ebay and his website so I got a true 20% off.

Originally Posted by jayshum

From what I remember, the prices listed on Dean's website are actually higher than the prices on eBay, but they end up lower once the website discount is applied. While you will definitely save money buying directly from his website, it usually won't be as much as the website discount makes it sound like. Although, it can help if you buy multiple cards together from the website since higher discounts apply as you spend an increasing amount.

[jayshum]

Originally Posted by campyfan39

It was listed for the identical price on ebay and his website so I got a true 20% off.

Lucky you. That hasn't been the case for cards I've bought. They've been cheaper than eBay after the discount but were never listed for the same price.

[vintagerookies51]

Anybody a regular buyer of his cards? Only customers I see would be people looking for some rare item that Dean has or people for which money is not a factor. That can't be sustainable by itself, yet he's still doing it after all these years so I must be missing something.

[Fred]

Originally Posted by Luke

They actually do. Dean has bought probably 50 ish cards from me over the years via Buy It Nows. It doesn't make a ton of sense but it must work for him or he wouldn't still be doing it after all these years.

After selling the cards to Dean's, have you ever completed a search for the card on ebay to see how much more they were charging for the card you sold them? Did you ever see one of your cards sold for significantly more than the price you sold it to Dean's?

[jsfriedm]

Originally Posted by Luke

They actually do. Dean has bought probably 50 ish cards from me over the years via Buy It Nows. It doesn't make a ton of sense but it must work for him or he wouldn't still be doing it after all these years.

They've bought a bunch from me too, just clicked BIN. That hasn't happened recently though and, even though I don't really sell many cards, my pricing of the ones I do is basically the same. I wonder if there's a shift in buying strategy to go along with the new discounts, and I wonder if it reflects a greater pessimism about card prices going forward on Dean's part.

[Fred]

Originally Posted by Luke

They actually do. Dean has bought probably 50 ish cards from me over the years via Buy It Nows. It doesn't make a ton of sense but it must work for him or he wouldn't still be doing it after all these years.

After selling the cards to Dean's, have you ever completed a search for the card on ebay to see how much more they were charging for the card you sold them? Did you ever see one of your cards sold for significantly more than the price you sold it to Dean's?

Originally Posted by jsfriedm

They've bought a bunch from me too, just clicked BIN. That hasn't happened recently though and, even though I don't really sell many cards, my pricing of the ones I do is basically the same. I wonder if there's a shift in buying strategy to go along with the new discounts, and I wonder if it reflects a greater pessimism about card prices going forward on Dean's part.

Jeremy - did I read the correctly? Dean's doesn't mark up the price very much (or at all) after they purchase the cards from your BIN? Or did I read that incorrectly?

[jsfriedm]

Originally Posted by Fred

After selling the cards to Dean's, have you ever completed a search for the card on ebay to see how much more they were charging for the card you sold them? Did you ever see one of your cards sold for significantly more than the price you sold it to Dean's?




Jeremy - did I read the correctly? Dean's doesn't mark up the price very much (or at all) after they purchase the cards from your BIN? Or did I read that incorrectly?

No, I meant that how I price my cards hasn't changed. In the past, when Dean's has bought one of mine, he typically relisted them for about 3x the price.

[Fred]

Originally Posted by jsfriedm

No, I meant that how I price my cards hasn't changed. In the past, when Dean's has bought one of mine, he typically relisted them for about 3x the price.

[Luke]

Originally Posted by Fred

After selling the cards to Dean's, have you ever completed a search for the card on ebay to see how much more they were charging for the card you sold them? Did you ever see one of your cards sold for significantly more than the price you sold it to Dean's?

I haven't noticed most of the time but the times I did notice it would be like 2.5x or 3x what I sold it for. I've never noticed if they have sold any of them. I just looked up on I remember well. I had a t207 works psa 4 for like $400 or so and they bought it and listed for $1150 I think. You'd think that would still be on ebay, but it's not. So maybe they sold it.