Grey market dealer for consignment?

[Laszlo]

I have been selling countless watches on eBay and it’s been fast and flawless. Over $7500 the fee is only $600 bucks and the Authenticity Guarantee works absolutely perfectly. You’d be a bit foolish to continue selling on Chrono24 or other channels IMHO. Used to take forever and private sales on TRF are near impossible. This also forces a lot of private sellers to just give up and take a huge bath trading it in. Selling on eBay puts ‘you’ in control and you can sell for the very same prices that second hand dealers sell for.

[BriansRolex]

Originally Posted by Laszlo

I have been selling countless watches on eBay and it’s been fast and flawless. Over $7500 the fee is only $600 bucks and the Authenticity Guarantee works absolutely perfectly. You’d be a bit foolish to continue selling on Chrono24 or other channels IMHO. Used to take forever and private sales on TRF are near impossible. This also forces a lot of private sellers to just give up and take a huge bath trading it in. Selling on eBay puts ‘you’ in control and you can sell for the very same prices that second hand dealers sell for.

Thanks I have it listed on eBay it's the cheapest one there and it's priced below what any grey dealers are charging. One of the potential buyers came from there the other came from FB marketplace. Both fell apart when it came time to figuring out the payment.

[BriansRolex]

Had a new buyer contact me today. He's local to me. He wants to make sure the watch is authentic since I'm a private seller which I totally understand. I would want to do the same thing if I was buying from a total stranger. How do we make this happen? I don't want any random jeweler or dealer opening my watch so I would only allow it if it was done by a Rolex AD. Do they even offer this as a service? Another hurdle...

[Laszlo]

Originally Posted by BriansRolex

Thanks I have it listed on eBay it's the cheapest one there and it's priced below what any grey dealers are charging. One of the potential buyers came from there the other came from FB marketplace. Both fell apart when it came time to figuring out the payment.

That stinks :(

Maybe just a little more patience. It’ll sell I’m sure, it’s also tax season so maybe that’s a temporary influence.

[BillA]

Originally Posted by travisb

stick to a private sale done by wire. If a buyer isn't willing to wait one day for the watch, they don't really want it.

+1

[BillA]

Originally Posted by BriansRolex

Had a new buyer contact me today. He's local to me. He wants to make sure the watch is authentic since I'm a private seller which I totally understand. I would want to do the same thing if I was buying from a total stranger. How do we make this happen? I don't want any random jeweler or dealer opening my watch so I would only allow it if it was done by a Rolex AD. Do they even offer this as a service? Another hurdle...

Private seller or Dealer, who cares, both could sell a fake or authentic. Tell buyer if he buys watch, can take to AD to certify and if fake, he gets all his money back. Or go with him to AD. You could go to AD looking for appraisal. So it will cost one of you about $100

[KatGirl]

You could do BIN on EBay , but they take a whopping 17%. Better than 30%, though. It would go through their authentication process, but that shouldn’t be a problem, and you can open it up to the whole world. I’ve been selling off my very large collection, and since I’ve owned a lot of my watches for years, but they are mostly mint, I’ve been doing well. I don’t mind the 17%, as I have so many to sell. I only use BIN, and do not offer free shipping. Tomorrow EBay will be dumping another couple grand into my bank account.

Kat


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[kane818]

i've typically sold to trusted dealers. yes i have to give up some money but i find it's worth it for the convenience

my last couple of rolexes i sold through a service called council watches. they find a dealer to buy your watch for you. it works the same as selling to a dealer but on my last watch they were able to get me $600 more than the offers i got on my own.

again, probably still not quite you would get from ebay but i prefer it so i can get a quick and safe sale

good luck

[KatGirl]

Originally Posted by BriansRolex

Had a new buyer contact me today. He's local to me. He wants to make sure the watch is authentic since I'm a private seller which I totally understand. I would want to do the same thing if I was buying from a total stranger. How do we make this happen? I don't want any random jeweler or dealer opening my watch so I would only allow it if it was done by a Rolex AD. Do they even offer this as a service? Another hurdle...

Be careful doing a face to face. There are some crazy stories we’ve read. Be safe!

Kat


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[Kevin of Larchmont]

Originally Posted by BriansRolex

Had a new buyer contact me today. He's local to me. He wants to make sure the watch is authentic since I'm a private seller which I totally understand. I would want to do the same thing if I was buying from a total stranger. How do we make this happen? I don't want any random jeweler or dealer opening my watch so I would only allow it if it was done by a Rolex AD. Do they even offer this as a service? Another hurdle...

Hey listen I’m no baller, just a working stiff with a taste for nice watches. It takes a long time for me to strategize a watch purchase. But having said that I don’t need liquidity or a new watch bad enough to meet some rando knucklehead face to face especially if he is making noise about wanting to look inside my watch. There are too many other safe and secure scenarios to sell or trade a watch. Having to squeeze the last nickel out of every transaction defeats the whole concept of a watch as a luxury.

[bay_area_kid]

Originally Posted by KatGirl

You could do BIN on EBay , but they take a whopping 17%

It's not 17%. eBay fees for luxury watches are structured in brackets:

• 15% for the first $1,000
• 6.5% for $1,001 - $7,500
• 3% for >=$7,501

source

Let's take an example: you just sold a $10,000 watch. With tax, let's say it comes out to $10,900. So your eBay fees will be: ($1,000 * 0.15) + ($6,500 * 0.065) + ($3,400 * 0.03) = $150 + $422.50 + $102 = $674.50.

$674.50 is about 6.7% of your total selling price, not 17%.

[bay_area_kid]

Originally Posted by BriansRolex

Had a new buyer contact me today. He's local to me. He wants to make sure the watch is authentic since I'm a private seller which I totally understand. I would want to do the same thing if I was buying from a total stranger. How do we make this happen? I don't want any random jeweler or dealer opening my watch so I would only allow it if it was done by a Rolex AD. Do they even offer this as a service? Another hurdle...

This is why selling luxury watches via private party is such a hassle, especially with strangers.

I always recommend to buy/sell only with people you know. Never, ever, ever, ever deal with strangers unless one of the people you wholeheartedly trust also vouch for that person. And by "vouch", I mean they back the deal with their own funds as well.

Or go with a trusted third-party or middleman to oversee the entire transaction. You pay for their services but they also provide authentication and some variations of escrow. Some good ones that I've personally used:

• eBay Authenticity Guarantee
• loupethis.com
• getbezel.com
• Moda (I use this the most but has a high learning curve)

Or if you need cash quickly, then sell to a trusted dealer. Their offers may seem to be "lowballs" but those are actually the fair market price for wholesale. This is because they incur all the risks of stocking the watch ("stocking" means insuring the watch, marketing the watch, servicing the watch, guaranteeing the watch for a period of time after the sale, etc) and dealing with the public.

A general rule of thumb is to take the lowest price you see in Chrono24, eBay, WatchCharts, and WatchRecon, then subtract 10% - 30% depending on the model's and brand's "liquidity". Using your 126618LB as an example, the lowest I see right now is $36,000 for a complete set in excellent condition. Given the current slow market, a dealer may be willing to stock it for market price minus 15%. Non-Rolex brands may be closer to market price minus 30%. So expect their offer to be $36,000 * 0.85 = $30,600. And expect other dealers to offer you somewhere around that price as well.

[KatGirl]

Originally Posted by bay_area_kid

It's not 17%. eBay fees for luxury watches are structured in brackets:

• 15% for the first $1,000
• 6.5% for $1,001 - $7,500
• 3% for >=$7,501

source

Let's take an example: you just sold a $10,000 watch. With tax, let's say it comes out to $10,900. So your eBay fees will be: ($1,000 * 0.15) + ($6,500 * 0.065) + ($3,400 * 0.03) = $150 + $422.50 + $102 = $674.50.

$674.50 is about 6.7% of your total selling price, not 17%.

I have no idea where you got those numbers. I sell watches on eBay and the avg amt. they take is 17% from each sale. They take a percent of tax and shipping, as well. In the end it amts. to 17%. Having said that, I’ve sold several for over $1,000, but the rest were in the 3-500.00 range.

Kat


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[77T]

I think he got that eBay fee structure from the eBay link he posted. It seems to comport with what your average 17% experience has been.



That's what I found when I clicked the link he posted that you quoted.


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[bay_area_kid]

Originally Posted by KatGirl

I have no idea where you got those numbers. I sell watches on eBay and the avg amt. they take is 17% from each sale. They take a percent of tax and shipping, as well. In the end it amts. to 17%. Having said that, I’ve sold several for over $1,000, but the rest were in the 3-500.00 range.

Kat


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I got them straight from the eBay website. And I’ve verified it thorough dozens of transactions worth $10,000+ each. Please read the link I provided. If you still have doubts, contact eBay support and they will be able to explain the fees structure for luxury watches.

If most of the watches you’ve sold were below $1,000, then 17% is close to the first bracket (15%) and your experience makes sense. You might only be calculating the fees based on the actual sold price rather than the total sale price (including taxes and shipping fees if applicable) so that can explain the 2% “discrepancy”.

But if you start selling watches beyond the first bracket, then you’ll see it’s not always 15%.

[bay_area_kid]

Originally Posted by 77T

I think he got that eBay fee structure from the eBay link he posted. It seems to comport with what your average 17% experience has been.



That's what I found when I clicked the link he posted that you quoted.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Thanks, 77T. That’s exactly what I was referring to.

I was just trying to debunk the myth that eBay charges high fees. In actuality, their fees are reasonable and in line with other selling platforms out there such as Chrono24.

But the main advantage with eBay is their authenticity guarantee for watches >$2,000. Any watch >$2,000 goes through Stoll & Co., eBay’s authenticator.

[Gearjockey]

Originally Posted by bay_area_kid

This is why selling luxury watches via private party is such a hassle, especially with strangers.

• eBay Authenticity Guarantee
• loupethis.com
• getbezel.com
• Moda (I use this the most but has a high learning curve)

ell.

C24 is off the list I see.
Would you mind explaining why MODA is high learning curve, please?

[KatGirl]

Originally Posted by bay_area_kid

I got them straight from the eBay website. And I’ve verified it thorough dozens of transactions worth $10,000+ each. Please read the link I provided. If you still have doubts, contact eBay support and they will be able to explain the fees structure for luxury watches.

If most of the watches you’ve sold were below $1,000, then 17% is close to the first bracket (15%) and your experience makes sense. You might only be calculating the fees based on the actual sold price rather than the total sale price (including taxes and shipping fees if applicable) so that can explain the 2% “discrepancy”.

But if you start selling watches beyond the first bracket, then you’ll see it’s not always 15%.

It averages 17% for me, plus a very small fee, monthly, for my eBay watch store. I mostly sell 3-500.00 watches, a lot of Seikos, Seiko bracelets and straps, etc. EBay even says it’s 17%. They are very transparent and I’m not complaining, having sold almost 30 watches in the last 6 weeks.

Kat


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[bay_area_kid]

Originally Posted by KatGirl

It averages 17% for me, plus a very small fee, monthly, for my eBay watch store. I mostly sell 3-500.00 watches, a lot of Seikos, Seiko bracelets and straps, etc. EBay even says it’s 17%. They are very transparent and I’m not complaining, having sold almost 30 watches in the last 6 weeks.

Kat


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Yes, like I said it averages around 17% for you because most of your watches are in the first bracket. You rarely hit the higher brackets per watch so you don't see the lower fees.

For me, I only sell a few watches per month but each watch is around $10,000 - $15,000. So that explains why my eBay fees are lower than yours.

[bay_area_kid]

Originally Posted by Gearjockey

C24 is off the list I see.

Yeah, I left off Chrono24 because of horror stories I've heard of buyers falsely claiming to have received a different watch.

As a seller in Chrono24, you ship the watch directly to the buyer so you are at the mercy of what the buyer says. If the buyer starts to make false claims, it's your word against the buyer's. Unfortunately, Chrono24 sides with the buyer for most cases and all the funds in escrow goes back to the buyer. So the buyer keeps their money and your watch.

With eBay's Authenticity Guarantee, you don't ship anything to the buyer. Instead, you ship the watch to eBay's authenticator. So if the buyer starts claiming a fake or different watch was shipped, it's their word against eBay. As a seller, your only responsibility is shipping the exact watch to eBay's authenticator. Once they confirm to have received your watch, it's their responsibility to authenticate, insure, and ship your watch to the buyer.

Basically, you have the protection of a middleman with eBay but not Chrono24.

Originally Posted by Gearjockey

Would you mind explaining why MODA is high learning curve, please?

Their have their own system which newbies need to learn. Newbies need to learn the vouching system and reference system (they are separate), the Mazal system, who is RWB/MDA and who is not, the difference between the two and how to handle each separately. Properly communicating with Moda mods, learning how to use Nazar's services and knowing when to use it and when not to use it.

It's basically a huge BST network and similar to the system that watch dealers use in the Diamond District.

There are no tutorials in Moda, just a few guidelines and you have to learn the rest by experience and/or from long-time members.

[Gearjockey]

Originally Posted by bay_area_kid

Yeah, I left off Chrono24 because of horror stories I've heard of buyers falsely claiming to have received a different watch.

As a seller in Chrono24, you ship the watch directly to the buyer so you are at the mercy of what the buyer says. If the buyer starts to make false claims, it's your word against the buyer's. Unfortunately, Chrono24 sides with the buyer for most cases and all the funds in escrow goes back to the buyer. So the buyer keeps their money and your watch.

With eBay's Authenticity Guarantee, you don't ship anything to the buyer. Instead, you ship the watch to eBay's authenticator. So if the buyer starts claiming a fake or different watch was shipped, it's their word against eBay. As a seller, your only responsibility is shipping the exact watch to eBay's authenticator. Once they confirm to have received your watch, it's their responsibility to authenticate, insure, and ship your watch to the buyer.

Basically, you have the protection of a middleman with eBay but not Chrono24.



Their have their own system which newbies need to learn. Newbies need to learn the vouching system and reference system (they are separate), the Mazal system, who is RWB/MDA and who is not, the difference between the two and how to handle each separately. Properly communicating with Moda mods, learning how to use Nazar's services and knowing when to use it and when not to use it.

It's basically a huge BST network and similar to the system that watch dealers use in the Diamond District.

There are no tutorials in Moda, just a few guidelines and you have to learn the rest by experience and/or from long-time members.

Thank you for the explanation.

[alphadweller]

I find consignment too risky. If the dealer goes bust, you lose the watch and the money. If they manage to sell it, how much do you trust them to not use the cash to run their business, before they wire it to you? If they get burgled, what's your protection? How many phone calls and sleepless nights before you get paid? If you don't want to sell and be hit with the dealer's 40% gross margin, find a dealer allowing you to swap the piece for other watches you're interested in.