Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion RedHotRelics an open letter to the OG community

Welcome Anthony!

Great to see other young members joining! I just recently turned 19 and I'm already addicted to the buying/selling aspect of antique advertising

ALL Businesses get complaints, Very few air them.
A lot of what you stated is the cost of doing business. All businesses have overhead whether stated to their customers or not, WE all know that, but complaining to your customers won't justify why your placing higher values on items your selling. CONDITION IS VALUE, more so than Rarity. Rough Rarity, say a cond. 5 is not worth 1/10 of Rarity in 9+ cond.. Whether you own/rent a truck or building, you still have expenses, no greater or less. Having employees is Your Choice to increase volume to flip, package & ship, which in turn adds even more $$ to your company value.

Ebay is the cheapest ADVERTISING you can buy, World Wide selling potential, 24/7 coverage + the Free Wanted to buy emails you receive because of something seen in background that hasn't been listed yet on ebay [not listed so no fees paid to ebay if you sell it, PP gets a small fee].

99%+ on here are collectors, the 1% that are flippers are using Oldgas as a Free Selling Venue w/o Fees. [Some do make Donations or auction off items w/ Free Shipping for the benefit of operating cost of keeping Oldgas a Free Site]

As a buyer when I decide to attend a show or swap meet, I have expenses & I accept them Hoping I will add some thing I want to my small collection. Should I [we] complain to the seller that it cost me XXXX $ for fuel etc. to attend to maybe buy their over priced item[s]? NO.

Are you really that Thin Skinned that being a Newbie to the Flipping World, the Truth Hurts or feel that because you are a New Member you should be treated as a small child? You've already stated it's a Business. Run it as such & quit looking for Sympathy.

Price your items according to CONDITION & a Fair markup & flip it. Pricing it thru the roof Hoping to snag a sucker that hasn't done their homework won't fly here or on ebay. By not selling quickly, you'll incur more storage time w/ possibility of damage just from moving it around.

[OH, & my last name is spelled w/ 2 T's]
[1st is Richard, but everyone calls me DICK]

Well said DB

You sure went out of your way to tell us a lot of things that no one cares about, you spent a lot of time writing "the letter" before you put it on to enlighten us. Guess what? Your rating among us just took a dive...again. I could go on for pages more but DICK pretty well put it in the proper prospective. I second it DB and nominate you head collector/gasser. Hiding behind my keykboard, Terry Flannery

Noone in the hobby is going to warm up to a flipper that outwardly admits they purposefully overprice everything - Not to mention that complaining about the shipping and fees you pay (you chose to pay) has absolutely nothing to do with any of us.

This site isn't established as a venue for sales as far as i can see, and doesn't cater to that. It is; however, where many of the hobbies collectors congregate (Attention: that is your target demographic)so I would personally tone it down if you have any hopes of reaching them.

I DECLINE any SPECIAL TREATMENT & have Received NONE
[I've had more post/replies REMOVED/DELETED than Most have made. Some have Claimed I was picking on them. IF the same comment had been made by anyone else it wouldn't have been Notify-ed/Deleted!].

Respect is EARNED, NOT guaranteed because your NEW, YOUNG, IN-EXPERIENCED, UNDEREDUCATED, COLLEGE DECREED, etc.

Your trying to stuff a large marshmallow into Your Piggy-bank, GOOD LUCK.

This is better than a good book. ; )))

Welcome to oldgas,grasshopper!

It isn't unusual for new businesses to operate at a loss the first few years. Plus in 5 years over %50 of small businesses fail. That's why the list has made recommendations for you to have another job, so this new business can be a side thing until it looks like it can support you.

In the meantime cultivate collectors, mentors and let the folks in your town, city, state, region know what you are looking for so you don't pay retail prices.

Remember, you are talking to many here who earn money in this way, and know about all overhead--including me, who is in a different but equally difficult field to earn a living in.

You have a choice to hold on to the stuff you paid too much for and hope the market will be better for selling in the future, or dump it with only a small markup, to clear the way for you to get stuff you purchase that you can sell for a profit. As I understand it, it's a volume business. Bring decently priced decent stuff to the list or ebay or trade shows or whatever, and you'll gain the reputation that takes a few years to build.

Discouragement comes to every business person and the ones that make it, are the ones that learn and do better. You've gotten good advice in this thread, so take it in as constructive criticism

Best of luck to you.

yada yada yada.BOTTOM LINE.you make a deal with a person you pay up.No reply,no call.Its BS.Nuff said!

Hello,

I read your post and think you have made a big mistake in writing what you wrote. As others have said the majority of people on this site are collectors who enjoy sharing information and have a love for old petro stuff. It is ok if you want to make a business out of what you saw on TV but be smart and do not complain about normal business expensives or try to justify your pricing to anyone here. There are many people out in all areas trying to copy cat pickers etc., and thus prices are becoming unrealistic for most.

By the way I have friends in Kansas and have spent time there and prices are just as high. They have cable TV also. LOL

No offense just my opinion.
Rob

Remember American Pickers had to go on TV to make money at this hobby. Besides they sell T-shirts to make up the differences. Good Luck. Mitch

Just Remember YOU said you joined Oldgas to learn.
In less than 3 weeks you have Turned Most of the active membership against yourself.

Click on my User Name, then click Profile, find IGNORE THIS USER & click it. I did on yours.

[After you have spent time in Selective Service, then you can call me a Dick.]

Welcome to Oldgas

all well said