Collection patterns established
Seasoned antiques and collectibles dealers may find the concept “old hat,” but the truth is that the more popular and desirable a thing is, the more likely it is to sell quickly. However, that truth is not always apparent to those who are new to this rather specialized sales field. Therefore, the “True Collectible” guideline is an attempt to convey the principle.
The field of online sales can also seem infinite in scope, with millions of potential customers around the world. But, success in selling collectibles on the Web is achieved in the same way as in the physical world, by knowing the needs of buyers and meeting them. Success can largely depend on whether you are offering collectible properties capable of meeting at least one of these three key business elements:
1. It cannot be easily obtained locally.
2. Wide appeal due to the current rise in popularity or because an article may “cross” the boundaries of the compilation.
3. Competitive prices.
Consider the market sentiment on the item
Say that whenever she can, your neighbor’s Great-Aunt Mable cuts out articles about David Hasslehoff from current periodicals. Collect them by pasting them into a scrapbook. Are crowds of other people likely to share your desire to do this? If you were to try to sell such a scrapbook full of modern scrapbooks online, would many buyers react favorably and compete to buy it? While your scrapbook can be described as a “rare” or “one of a kind” item, who else but Mable could care about owning it? How can such an item be assigned a secure status as a “true collector’s item” with an established and recognizable monetary value?
Because collectors often view their collections as having investment potential, collectability always has monetary implications. Manufacturers therefore often exaggerate the ‘limited’ nature of the new items they have to sell, or they may place a public statement on the item itself, to imply certain and certain future value.
But neither limiting production, nor printing the words ‘Fine Collectible’ on an item or the box it comes in, can guarantee that future collectors want items more than others today, or are willing to pay more to own them. Great-Aunt Mable’s scrapbook illustrates that simply knowing someone, somewhere, collects a particular thing cannot automatically give that thing the status of a “ true ” collectible. Maybe 50 or 100 years in the future, Mabel’s scrapbook will be all the rage. Today, and probably in the near future, others will judge it as a scrapbook full of ordinary scraps.
Only the general market can decide which things are highly desirable or more valuable than other objects. The individual collector or manufacturer has little real ability to influence secondary market choices regarding preferred items.
So what is a ‘true collectible?’
Basically, a true collectible is an item for which a reasonably well-numbered audience of avid shoppers can be expected to exist and for which a recognizable pattern of trade has been established in the secondary market.
If that statement does not clarify the notion sufficiently, it may be helpful to mentally replace the word “true” with the word “legitimate.” A 20-year-old sock that was previously owned by a musician would not be a “legitimate” collectible. But a sock the same age, and the faultless provenance of having been on Elvis Presley’s right foot while he performed ‘Jail House Rock’ on Ed Sullivan’s show, would be legitimate, as the Elvis memorabilia trade is a collection. well established. niche.
‘Collecting’ means hoarding as a hobby or to study. A ‘collection’ is a group of objects or works that can be viewed or kept together. But a ‘collectible’ is a group or class of objects sought after by collectors. Note that the definition is expressed in the plural, ‘by collectors’.
When something can stand the ‘test of time’ and although an item that is older (or perhaps because it is older) is sought after by people, then it can logically be expected that offering it to collectors on the open market at an attractive price will result in its sale. . If something very new still cannot be found in a printed price guide, printed for collectors, the sale is likely slow or non-existent, or the price at which it must be sold to remove it from inventory will not. create an appreciable profit.
Confirming whether a piece has been mentioned in a printed price guide as required by the site’s listing requirements can help ensure that it meets the ‘true collectible’ designation, as defined above. If determinations like this are always made before listing the newest items, buyers are likely to begin to find a wider variety of the types of things they are actively looking for. And a gradual increase in sales may well be the positive result.