Has eBay lost is 'sparkle'?

[MCChris]

My priority is getting stuff for as cheap as possible, which generally means buying used (although when I was looking for something very specific and unavailable used, I did order a new Hamer from Elduave). Maybe I should feel ashamed about that, but I don't. And as far as I know, there's nothing stopping a mom & pop store from listing their inventory (particularly used) on eBay if they feel it would make financial sense to do so.

-Austin

I said that I turn to ebay due to limited retail options where I live. I can buy all the Peavey and Squire stuff I need right downtown.

Has there ever been a time when businesses didn't have to adapt to changes in lifestyle and technology? It seems there are ways for the brick-and-mortar businesses to leverage their expertise with the new technologies. How about a service that receives instruments purchased on ebay, inspects them, cleans them, and sets them up for customers? A network of independent dealers that can rotate and exchange stock and cross-order? An instrument exchange network?

Interesting that youse two are taking this so personally. Must be a northeastern thing.

[jwhitcomb3]

Interesting that youse two are taking this so personally. Must be a northeastern thing.

I suppose any time someone responds to a post with a story they must be taking it personally.

Business conditions have always changed. Those that can adapt survive.

-Jonathan

[MCChris]

Business conditions have always changed. Those that can adapt survive.

And those that can't do or have never done often make statements such as these.

[jwhitcomb3]

Business conditions have always changed. Those that can adapt survive.

And those that can't do or have never done often make statements such as these.

That's right. I didn't just adapt my career in the face of changing business conditions!

[Nathan of Brainfertilizer Fame]

Business conditions have always changed. Those that can adapt survive.

And those that can't do or have never done often make statements such as these.

Businesses must provide value with their products and/or services. It makes no difference how valuable the business thinks their product or service is, it only matters what the customer thinks.

"Guilt" doesn't really add much value to the goods/services.

But it is up to the business to find a new business model. It is NOT the responsibility of the customer to alter their demands to keep businesses afloat. "Buy American" sloganeering doesn't keep very many Americans buying American cars (See: GM). Making better American cars does (see: Ford).

Sure, I've never had to adapt a business to survive. But I'm speaking as a customer who won't send money chasing after sentiment.

...and as a potential future entrepeneur who is developing one business model to open a successful music store by targeting a lucrative market, and still considering other business models to try to target the Rock Band/Guitar Hero markets. The latter needs more thought. The former is looking really good based on some recent real-life local evidence, but I just don't have the freedom to pursue that market niche yet.

[atquinn]

...Interesting that youse two are taking this so personally. Must be a northeastern thing.

So Angus and McTavish are sitting around in the pub. Angus takes a long pull at his drink, looks out the door and says "Angus, you see that bridge out there."

"Aye Angus, I do"

"S'a goood Bridge. Built it with me bare hands I did. But do they call me angus the bridge builder?"

"No angus they don't" he says sympathetically.

"And ya see that roof on the school. S' a good rooooof, took me a month, with me bare hands." He takes a pull again. "But do they call em Angus the Roof Maker?"

"No angus they don't"

Angus takes another deeeeep pull at his beer, his face going red.

"But you fuck ONE Sheep . . .!!!!"

Which is to say, that as someone who was born in Michigan and lived in the midwest for my first 28 years of life, I'm rather offended that I'm being referred to as a northeasterner! I should probably get over that though.

Otherwise, I not sure why you'd call us out and not Greg? Perhaps you're taking things a bit personally?

-Austin

[veatch]

Nobody so far has stated that they prefer to buy from Mom and Pop stores like mine and Dave's.

I prefer to buy from Mom and Pop stores like yours and Dave's.

How'zat?

Seriously, buying musical gear on feeBay has been hit or miss with me.

As far as guitars, aside from Hamers (which are pretty easy to guestimate how they will be guitar unplayed) i don't have any guitars that are "keepers" that were bought from eBay. None.

Maybe i'm just picky.

FWIW - I've had better luck with recording gear.

Edit to add - now that i think about it, even the Hamers i bought off feeBay or other Internet sources, i've sold. All my current Hamers i have purchased from Mr. Greg.

[bubs_42]

I support my Local Pop Store. But if I'm looking for a specific pedal or pickup that I just want to try Ebay it is. I can find a used one and thats what i'm looking for. If its new I go to Flores Music Peoria, IL. 50 Year Anniversary Last Year.

[MCChris]

That's right. I didn't just adapt my career in the face of changing business conditions!

A career working for someone else isn't the same thing as owning and running your own business. Yes, you've reinvented yourself, but it's still someone else's dime that's fortifying your paychecks.

...and as a potential future entrepeneur who is developing one business model to open a successful music store by targeting a lucrative market, and still considering other business models to try to target the Rock Band/Guitar Hero markets. The latter needs more thought. The former is looking really good based on some recent real-life local evidence, but I just don't have the freedom to pursue that market niche yet.

Get back to us when you've become a current entrepreneur, or better yet, an entrepreneur five years into it. You may or may not have changed your tune by then.

[BCR Greg]

...and as a potential future entrepeneur who is developing one business model to open a successful music store by targeting a lucrative market, and still considering other business models to try to target the Rock Band/Guitar Hero markets. The latter needs more thought. The former is looking really good based on some recent real-life local evidence, but I just don't have the freedom to pursue that market niche yet.

IF you think that starting a music store is a good idea, kill yourself.

[BubbaVO]

Less and less. I'd rather try before I buy. If I can find someone with a generous return policy so much the better - I'm not looking to rip anyone off but some times gear just doesn't work like you thought it would.

[jwhitcomb3]

A career working for someone else isn't the same thing as owning and running your own business. Yes, you've reinvented yourself, but it's still someone else's dime that's fortifying your paychecks.

Irrelevant. It's all about understanding your assets, your risks, and your opportunities. And then doing something about it. A little luck helps too. Sometimes standing pat in the face of change works. Sometimes not.

Internet commerce isn't going away. Businesses can choose to leverage it or try to compete with it. I wouldn't put my money on trying to compete with it.

[RobB]

Nobody so far has stated that they prefer to buy from Mom and Pop stores like mine and Dave's.

When we are gone, you guys will rail about how unfair it is that we went down.

A network of independent dealers that can rotate and exchange stock and cross-order?

Exactly what The Norcal Music Coalition has done. Joined forces against the bigbox stores to compete and thrive. Zone Music (Cotati) and Gelb Music (Redwood City) have pulled out after 15 years but have been replaced by others. A great idea for strapped, independent stores.

[zenmindbeginner]

American's incomes have been falling steadily for the past 40+ years. My generation will NOT be as successful as our father's generation.

The baby boomers experienced the best that this country ever had to offer and they enjoyed it to the fullest. They had good jobs and earned the requisite money to maintain middle class lifestyles.

Now fast forward to the present day where the middle class doesn't have a pot to piss in, are losing their homes in record foreclosures while our jobs have all been sent overseas.

We can't afford to have a goddamn thing anymore and must resort to eBay and Craigslist to do most of our purchases. We can't pay the prices that contain the extra money it takes to maintain a store, inventory and employees. The middle class can't really afford to buy goods anymore. Many of us are pinching pennies on an unprecedented level.

If I want a Blackface Princeton Reverb, I can't afford to pay the $1800 price tag at the Mom and Pop store. But I can afford $1000 to an eBay seller.

I can afford a $400 Centaura but if it was in a store, it would have a $600 price tag and that extra $200 is a BIG f**kin' deal to me.

This country is toast and it has nothing to do with how middle class people don't support the mom and Pop stores anymore... that argument was valid in the 90's but it just has no bearing in the actual situation today.

We have no money and can't afford to buy anything anymore. What little discretionary income we have left over must be strategically spent with laser precision so as to not drive us deeper into debt than we really are.

If the middle class was able to stand on their two legs and earn a respectable living we would be easily able to support the Mom and Pop stores. If the banks would get their goddamn feet off of our necks we would be able to breathe, but instead, they are continuing their torture while we are simultaneously experiencing unemployment on a mass scale. The 11% figure thrown around is complete bullshit, it's more like 15-20%.

Blame the outsourcing and punitive interest rates, but don't blame us poor as middle classers who don't have a pot to piss in. The rich folks are waiting for the middle class to start starving and the lower classes to start dying in their homes before they step forward with a "New, New Deal". They are contemptuous of the working classes and will stop at nothing until we are powerless. We bailed them out, yet they can't lower interest rates or loan us any money. We got punked in the worst way. If anyone has ever met someone who works on Wall Street, they know how they look down on the working classes as being too stupid to be successful. They are rich because they are special and we are poor because we aren't. Therefore, they deserve everything and we can just suck it right?

If we had good and steady jobs, we would be in the Mom and Pop stores happily buying everything that we could, but us working class folk are all losing our asses.

Most of the better players on this board are all struggling financially.

[jisham]

American's incomes have been falling steadily for the past 40+ years. My generation will NOT be as successful as our father's generation.

The baby boomers experienced the best that this country ever had to offer and they enjoyed it to the fullest. They had good jobs and earned the requisite money to maintain middle class lifestyles.

Now fast forward to the present day where the middle class doesn't have a pot to piss in, are losing their homes in record foreclosures while our jobs have all been sent overseas.

We can't afford to have a goddamn thing anymore and must resort to eBay and Craigslist to do most of our purchases. We can't pay the prices that contain the extra money it takes to maintain a store, inventory and employees. The middle class can't really afford to buy goods anymore. Many of us are pinching pennies on an unprecedented level.

If I want a Blackface Princeton Reverb, I can't afford to pay the $1800 price tag at the Mom and Pop store. But I can afford $1000 to an eBay seller.

I can afford a $400 Centaura but if it was in a store, it would have a $600 price tag and that extra $200 is a BIG f**kin' deal to me.

This country is toast and it has nothing to do with how middle class people don't support the mom and Pop stores anymore... that argument was valid in the 90's but it just has no bearing in the actual situation today.

We have no money and can't afford to buy anything anymore. What little discretionary income we have left over must be strategically spent with laser precision so as to not drive us deeper into debt than we really are.

If the middle class was able to stand on their two legs and earn a respectable living we would be easily able to support the Mom and Pop stores. If the banks would get their goddamn feet off of our necks we would be able to breathe, but instead, they are continuing their torture while we are simultaneously experiencing unemployment on a mass scale. The 11% figure thrown around is complete bullshit, it's more like 15-20%.

Blame the outsourcing and punitive interest rates, but don't blame us poor as middle classers who don't have a pot to piss in. The rich folks are waiting for the middle class to start starving and the lower classes to start dying in their homes before they step forward with a "New, New Deal". They are contemptuous of the working classes and will stop at nothing until we are powerless. We bailed them out, yet they can't lower interest rates or loan us any money. We got punked in the worst way. If anyone has ever met someone who works on Wall Street, they know how they look down on the working classes as being too stupid to be successful. They are rich because they are special and we are poor because we aren't. Therefore, they deserve everything and we can just suck it right?

If we had good and steady jobs, we would be in the Mom and Pop stores happily buying everything that we could, but us working class folk are all losing our asses.

Most of the better players on this board are all struggling financially.

Wow. I hate to see people CHOOSE to wallow in negativity but have at it....

[backinit]

The ART MIDI foot controller that I couldn't give away is on ebay right now and it's at $80 with a day to go. Hopefully, I'll get paid for it.

[gorch]

I don't know if it applies to the US. But in our country, Ebay is loaded with lots of small mom and pop shops that maintain an online shop within ebay.

First, it cost nothing to run a shop in ebay.

Second, you widely extend your market presence.

[MCChris]

Irrelevant.

LOL! No it's not. Again, big talk from someone who's never done it.

Internet commerce isn't going away. Businesses can choose to leverage it or try to compete with it. I wouldn't put my money on trying to compete with it.

Show me where I said a business shouldn't have an online presence. Of course it should. The comment I made that got you and Austin all cheesed had to do with just one of the multitude of challenges a small business owner is faced with on a constant basis, that being the "rock bottom price for everything, no matter what" mentality that has become pervasive among modern consumers. This and all the other challenges that have so far gone unmentioned make it unbelievably difficult, if not impossible, to survive as a small business owner.

Only a minute percentage of the population have what it takes to be a truly successful entrepreneur. Popping off on an internet message board about risks and real-life local evidence doesn't qualify.

[Frank]

When have consumers not been concerned with getting the beal deal for their dollars?

[jwhitcomb3]

Popping off on an internet message board about risks and real-life local evidence doesn't qualify.

I love it when somebody on an internet message board pops off complaining that somebody else is popping off on an internet message board. This is the forum. Perhaps you feel better qualified to opine here than others?

My hat goes off to the small retailers, who certainly have their share of challenges. All businesses do. Despite your contentions, the realities of adapting to survive changing business situations are universal.

Businesses who are surprised that consumers seek the lowest prices will have a tough row to hoe. Those that can add value services will have a fighting chance. The retailers represented on this board appear to be working hard to do just that.

-Jonathan

[Steve Haynie]

eBay has been the way to try out a lot of pedals that are not for sale locally. Buy it, try it, flip it, and then know what the pedal in the magazine or on the message board is all about. Sometimes you make money, sometimes you lose. Usually its a loss because of shipping costs.

Western Union was the alternative to PayPal that a Mexican buyer used. He paid them to mail me a money order. A local Western Union location can cash their money orders, but I just deposited it.

As for the original question about whether or not eBay has lost its sparkle, it certainly has this year. My auctions used to always start at a penny, but this year they have been getting reserve prices. There have been too many "good deals" for buyers this year.

[cynic]

Popping off on an internet message board about risks and real-life local evidence doesn't qualify.

Thank goodness we have someone here that's qualified to judge what each of us are qualified to speak to so we can avoid any foolish assumptions.

[MCChris]

When have consumers not been concerned with getting the beal deal for their dollars?

"Best deal" doesn't always equate to "lowest price," especially if you value things like service after the sale.

Perhaps you feel better qualified to opine here than others?

No, but don't expect your unsubstantiated bluster about how to succeed in the business world to go unchallenged. And again, nowhere have I contended that adapting to changing business environments is not universal. I really hope you're better at twisting words in a courtroom or at a deposition than you are on the forum.

Thank goodness we have someone here that's qualified to judge what each of us are qualified to speak to so we can avoid any foolish assumptions.

If not from me, the judgment will come from the banker evaluating a business plan.

[jwhitcomb3]

Perhaps you feel better qualified to opine here than others?

No, but don't expect your unsubstantiated bluster about how to succeed in the business world to go unchallenged. And again, nowhere have I contended that adapting to changing business environments is not universal. I really hope you're better at twisting words in a courtroom or at a deposition than you are on the forum.

So, let me get this straight. Even though I changed my career in the face of changing business environments, and you agree adapting to changing business environments is universal, somehow my comments on a business adapting to changing business environments is "unsubstantiated bluster?"

Got it.

Other than getting excited that I'm the one who commented, you haven't actually disagreed with any of my comments. Perhaps you're taking this too personally?

-Jonathan

[zenmindbeginner]

American's incomes have been falling steadily for the past 40+ years. My generation will NOT be as successful as our father's generation.

The baby boomers experienced the best that this country ever had to offer and they enjoyed it to the fullest. They had good jobs and earned the requisite money to maintain middle class lifestyles.

Now fast forward to the present day where the middle class doesn't have a pot to piss in, are losing their homes in record foreclosures while our jobs have all been sent overseas.

We can't afford to have a goddamn thing anymore and must resort to eBay and Craigslist to do most of our purchases. We can't pay the prices that contain the extra money it takes to maintain a store, inventory and employees. The middle class can't really afford to buy goods anymore. Many of us are pinching pennies on an unprecedented level.

If I want a Blackface Princeton Reverb, I can't afford to pay the $1800 price tag at the Mom and Pop store. But I can afford $1000 to an eBay seller.

I can afford a $400 Centaura but if it was in a store, it would have a $600 price tag and that extra $200 is a BIG f**kin' deal to me.

This country is toast and it has nothing to do with how middle class people don't support the mom and Pop stores anymore... that argument was valid in the 90's but it just has no bearing in the actual situation today.

We have no money and can't afford to buy anything anymore. What little discretionary income we have left over must be strategically spent with laser precision so as to not drive us deeper into debt than we really are.

If the middle class was able to stand on their two legs and earn a respectable living we would be easily able to support the Mom and Pop stores. If the banks would get their goddamn feet off of our necks we would be able to breathe, but instead, they are continuing their torture while we are simultaneously experiencing unemployment on a mass scale. The 11% figure thrown around is complete bullshit, it's more like 15-20%.

Blame the outsourcing and punitive interest rates, but don't blame us poor as middle classers who don't have a pot to piss in. The rich folks are waiting for the middle class to start starving and the lower classes to start dying in their homes before they step forward with a "New, New Deal". They are contemptuous of the working classes and will stop at nothing until we are powerless. We bailed them out, yet they can't lower interest rates or loan us any money. We got punked in the worst way. If anyone has ever met someone who works on Wall Street, they know how they look down on the working classes as being too stupid to be successful. They are rich because they are special and we are poor because we aren't. Therefore, they deserve everything and we can just suck it right?

If we had good and steady jobs, we would be in the Mom and Pop stores happily buying everything that we could, but us working class folk are all losing our asses.

Most of the better players on this board are all struggling financially.

Wow. I hate to see people CHOOSE to wallow in negativity but have at it....

You're right, it's just my opinion that the economy is in the tank. I'm just choosing to see the declining wealth of the middle class. I guess from your point of view, you are rolling in the dough and getting wealthier everyday right?