HiFi Dealer 'Predators'

[RobbieGong]

Having to raise funds quickly to bag something you've seen is no excuse to accept any old price on something your selling towards that.

You either take whats offered or you dont.

As already said dealers are in this to make money and thats obvious and usually fair enough, it's business.

I've been in the same situation before having to move fast and raise funds quickly to bag something I really want.

There are other ways to raise the funds quickly. Rather than sell what I have for small change I'll use my credit card (thats what it's there for, emergencies and times like these when funds are required quickly)

Afterwards, I then sell what I have my way, in my own time asking what I would like and feel is fair for it and then pay off the credit card amount with that - always worked for me, no issues and I owe no one anything.

I dont see the point in complaining afterwards when you see it up for a lot more than you received, no arms were twisted behind the back, no gun to head.

In life we have to live with the decisions we make and move on

[Mike Reed]

because I am more than a little fed up WITH these small traders (especially on ebay) selling things at vastly overinflated prices.

Its just way overpriced and it does annoy me. I dont know how they are making any money because they dont seem to be flexible or realistic on pricing.

Why? How do you know they ARE selling these things? The market will determine whether the trader makes a living, and the odd thing is that eventually the item may well sell because a punter who's after one decides that it's actually good value for him, even if not for you. These are probably BINs, but sometimes there are an offer facilities; these, i.m.o., allow flexibility, although they probably cost more.

[Stratmangler]

Hi there sorry for the rant but it needs saying!

Sometimes, times are hard, then you get vultures who prey on the desperate selling the nice gear worth a hole lot more than these Vultures offer you. You get given the soft story I have to make profit !!!! Please check what you sold these ripoff artist's gear to, and then what they sell the said hifi gear for !!!
we have all been there !!! something comes up you have always wanted so you decide to sell your gear to put funds towards the kit you want to buy and with dead lines etc you need to sell fast thats where the dealer come in and take total advantage of us all !! I am sick and tired of these con artist ripping us all off !!!!! just to see your old hi fi gear twice the price you sold it to them for !!!!! angry aint the word ! but it needs saying!

Thanks and just a word of warning !!

So you're berating someone that takes your gear off your hands at a price that enables them to sell it on at a worthwhile profit?
What's the problem?

It sounds like sour grapes to me!
They didn't force you to accept their offer.
If you're offended by the offer just turn it down.
They won't be offended by you turning it down, and you can work your bollocks off trying to flog it off through the classifieds/forums/auction sites etc.

Your expectation that they should give you top dollar for your highly desirable (so desirable that you're looking to offload it immediately) kit is, quite frankly, ridiculous, and on top of that, the risk is all theirs, not yours.

Welcome to the real world.
Times are hard for everyone.

[Minstrel SE]

Some people would rather buy used from a dealer than from a private seller, even if that means paying a 50 percent premiuim. They like the implied peace of mind. Same sort of people to whom it is very easy to sell insurance to. There are quite a lot of them about.

What do they really add though especially for people like me who know I may be inside it anyway with a soldering iron. These are used products with the main example being around 20 years old.

What guarantee do thay actually give and I dont want to pay double the price for that guarantee anyway. Ive enough faith in the product and my ability to ask questions. I trust private sellers more in most cases because they dont have the agenda to justify a large price hike.

IHP brushes over the fact that I will study the market for a while building up a knowledge of what they have been selling for. I know the value of money today and the market was finding its own value before the dealers stepped in. All these dealers really do is inflate the market while adding little or nothing of value. They can do that in the new market as well but at least they may be offering a demo in a shop

Its like the used car dealers wiping an oily rag over the engine and charging a huge mark up.

Really we dont need dealers getting their grubby hands on the nostalgia/used hi fi market

[hifinutt]

agreed with above , its extremely hard to sell kit these days . just witness how many threads go on and on.......till you are sick of them

having a good dealer means a] you get to demo fab stuff b] you sometimes can get interest free credit as i did with my last purchase which was extremely good value c] there is back up when it goes wrong and d] you can part ex your stuff

win win situation

i have some fab gear here on demo at the moment and its great fun

[killie99]

Quite an enlightening thread to see different people's expectations, I suspect the complainers have never ran a small business.

It was quite shocking to read dealers are selling items for a profit, who'd have thought that would happen?

Nobody is forcing someone to sell, that's the free choice of the seller.
Nobody is forcing someone to buy, that's the free choice of the buyer.

An item is only worth what someone else is willing to pay. It's not sellers who are pushing prices up, it's the buyers.

I'd love to have had the foresight to have bought a stack of 301's, 401's, 3009's, 3012's and Tannoy Red's 20 years ago for buttons and sold them now for a small fortune. Because I'm not a dealer would I be classed as a savvy buyer but if I was a dealer I'd be classed as a scumbag?

Think some people need a reality check.

[Marco]

Excellent post, Stuart. I concur completely.

I'd also add that dabbling in the use of hi-fi equipment should only be for those who can *comfortably* afford to do so. It's a luxury item, after all, that no-one NEEDS to have, unless they can afford it. Therefore, no-one should be 'desperate' to sell stuff for a profit, in the sense of keeping the bailiffs away from the door, or such like.

If that's the position you're in, then find another (less expensive) hobby!

Marco.

[speedracer]

I am a bit late to this thread, but in the words of Talking Heads, it's the "same as it ever was". No-one forces you to sell to a dealer, and if you don't like the price they offer don't take it. Remember, to us it is a hobby, to dealers it is a living, same goes for almost anything that has a second hand value, be it cars, watches, even records. It has been said above that despite being on two fora you sold to a dealer, so did you advertise said kit before you approached a dealer? Just because they advertise for a certain price is no guarantee they will achieve that price, one in particular comes to mind, who has some lovely stuff in at eye watering prices, but I have found if you tell them what to pay you can usually agree somewhere in the middle, to their advantage of course. It is just commerce, a "desperate" seller, to use your word, has a much weakened hand when it comes to doing a deal I am afraid.

[struth]

Excellent post, Stuart. I concur completely.

I'd also add that dabbling in the use of hi-fi equipment should only be for those who can *comfortably* afford to do so. It's a luxury item, after all, that no-one NEEDS to have, unless they can afford it. Therefore, no-one should be 'desperate' to sell stuff, in the sense of keeping the bailiffs away from the door, or such like.

If that's the position you're in, then find another hobby!

Marco.

up to a point i agree, and folk shouldnt get themselves in debt etc for sake of a stereo. cars, if needed for work etc, and houses come first, but sometimes peoples' situations can change dramatically and quickly. it doesnt take a lot to push the majority of the population into difficult positions. that is just a fact of life in a society where you have most of the money in a few folks hands. illness, job loss or a host of others can really put a crimp on your life, pretty quick

[Marco]

I know where you're coming from, and that's fine. However, there is also a tendency for some folks lives to revolve around hi-fi, almost as if life can't continue without it, which quite simply is unhealthy, and also a little sad. I'd never get so worked up about bits of kit!

Other than friends and family/kids, your life shouldn't 'revolve around', or be dominated by anything. In that respect, hi-fi isn't, nor ever will be, the be all and end all, so some folks, for their own sakes, really do need to get a grip.

Marco.