I need your pricing suggestions before I list on eBay.
December 9, 2015 5:12 PM Subscribe
Last year I foolishly bought a Canada Goose Trillium parka. An idiotic purchase, for a variety of reasons, but let's not dissect that. I wore it three times; perfectly clean.
I want to list it for sale on eBay, and have taken all the photos.Problem: I had glued a patch on the shoulder with my logo.
I have since ripped it off, but the glue residue remains. I swabbed it with alcohol, but it didn't budge.
I'm prepared to price it accordingly, of course! The coat cost $795 new (there's since been a price drop for new coats, I see.)
Here is a pic of the glue residue. What should I ask for the coat, taking it in consideration?
If it's relevant, it's a ladies size XL; color "graphite grey".
I have since ripped it off, but the glue residue remains. I swabbed it with alcohol, but it didn't budge.
I'm prepared to price it accordingly, of course! The coat cost $795 new (there's since been a price drop for new coats, I see.)
Here is a pic of the glue residue. What should I ask for the coat, taking it in consideration?
If it's relevant, it's a ladies size XL; color "graphite grey".
If this is on the left shoulder where the original logo is in the Nordstrom photos, maybe see if you can find a replacement log patch and have it sewn on professionally? Then you can price a little bit better.
posted by eatcake at 6:15 PM on December 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by eatcake at 6:15 PM on December 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
Regarding valuation (which I think was your question), does ebay not let you just set a low reserve price and then allow the auction participants to bid up to whatever they think the product is worth? Since you have a 'sunk cost' at this point, I'd just put it on ebay and take whatever you can get.
That said, I wouldn't hold out hopes of getting too high a price - ebay is raft with knock-offs, especially for things like Canada Goose parkas, and so bidders will likely take this into account along with the damaged shoulder.
posted by modernnomad at 6:26 PM on December 9, 2015 [2 favorites]
That said, I wouldn't hold out hopes of getting too high a price - ebay is raft with knock-offs, especially for things like Canada Goose parkas, and so bidders will likely take this into account along with the damaged shoulder.
posted by modernnomad at 6:26 PM on December 9, 2015 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Ebay should not be "rife" with knockoffs--they take that sort of thing fairly seriously. If you look up "Canada Goose Trillium Parka" on eBay there aren't a whole ton and they are very expensive.
It looks like these are going from $400-700 on eBay. I would strongly recommend finding some way to take care of the damage, either by cleaning it up or hiding it with a patch. Be careful that you don't damage it further.
Ebay reserve auctions are a pain. If you can get the damage taken care of in one way or another, list it for $500 as a Buy-It-Now and see what happens. If it doesn't sell, relist at $475, and keep dropping it bit by bit. You should be able to get at least $300-400 for it even with the damage. You can put up a Buy-It-Now with the "best offer" option, but I'd stick with just a solid price and drop it bit by bit. If you are unable to take care of the damage, start at $450 and go down from there. Be patient--you'll get the best price that way. If you get private messages with offers, ignore them.
Make sure you take a LOT of pictures, especially of the damage. If you end up being able to deal with the damage, though, don't mention it in the ad. Make it clear that you only wore it three times.
Good luck! I sell on eBay regularly, and I'm confident that you can get a lot of money for this regardless of the damage.
posted by Slinga at 6:41 PM on December 9, 2015 [3 favorites]
It looks like these are going from $400-700 on eBay. I would strongly recommend finding some way to take care of the damage, either by cleaning it up or hiding it with a patch. Be careful that you don't damage it further.
Ebay reserve auctions are a pain. If you can get the damage taken care of in one way or another, list it for $500 as a Buy-It-Now and see what happens. If it doesn't sell, relist at $475, and keep dropping it bit by bit. You should be able to get at least $300-400 for it even with the damage. You can put up a Buy-It-Now with the "best offer" option, but I'd stick with just a solid price and drop it bit by bit. If you are unable to take care of the damage, start at $450 and go down from there. Be patient--you'll get the best price that way. If you get private messages with offers, ignore them.
Make sure you take a LOT of pictures, especially of the damage. If you end up being able to deal with the damage, though, don't mention it in the ad. Make it clear that you only wore it three times.
Good luck! I sell on eBay regularly, and I'm confident that you can get a lot of money for this regardless of the damage.
posted by Slinga at 6:41 PM on December 9, 2015 [3 favorites]
I agree with modern nomad - set a low reserve and hope for the best.
If it were me I'd glue some sort of patch on there, and let the pictures do most of the talking. Better an unusual patch than glue residue.
Take a lot of good pictures, describe it and list it accurately and well, limit the length of the auction and emphasize that you can ship in time for Christmas and maybe you'll get lucky.
posted by dirtdirt at 6:49 PM on December 9, 2015
If it were me I'd glue some sort of patch on there, and let the pictures do most of the talking. Better an unusual patch than glue residue.
Take a lot of good pictures, describe it and list it accurately and well, limit the length of the auction and emphasize that you can ship in time for Christmas and maybe you'll get lucky.
posted by dirtdirt at 6:49 PM on December 9, 2015
...eBay is, or was, indeed rife with knockoffs. I deliberately bought one on there a few years ago; I wanted a thick, sturdy, plain parka, and bought a counterfeit and took the patches off. Worked out great; I was surprised at the quality. It takes a little digging to find fakes on eBay but there're loads of them. Where do you think the people with multiple new parkas, on sale, re getting them? Canada-Goose.com says "You will never see current Canada Goose products discounted by any authorized retailer." There's a box to check authorized retailers; eBay comes up as THIS IS NOT AN AUTHORIZED ONLINE RETAILER. This looks exactly like the one I bought (for just a bit over $100); this points out problems with the patch. (Mine had all the right tags, even hang tags.) The fur on the real thing is quite different.
Here is a store display "Kensington" with a wee hole in the sleeve which sold for US$139. Plenty of Canada Goose doesn't sell for big bucks.
I think If you end up being able to deal with the damage, though, don't mention it in the ad is dubious advice. If ANY trace remains, you really need to disclose it. If the fabric suffers any degradation in quality from anything used to remove it, you...need to disclose. You don't want "looked great, circular area on shoulder fell apart at my dry cleaners WTF" negative feedback or other fuss. One never goes wrong with under-promising and over-delivering.
I'd start it at 99c to attract lots of interest. In-demand items don't suffer much for being listed at 99c; they usually get market price if not better thanks to bidding wars.
posted by kmennie at 7:53 PM on December 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
Here is a store display "Kensington" with a wee hole in the sleeve which sold for US$139. Plenty of Canada Goose doesn't sell for big bucks.
I think If you end up being able to deal with the damage, though, don't mention it in the ad is dubious advice. If ANY trace remains, you really need to disclose it. If the fabric suffers any degradation in quality from anything used to remove it, you...need to disclose. You don't want "looked great, circular area on shoulder fell apart at my dry cleaners WTF" negative feedback or other fuss. One never goes wrong with under-promising and over-delivering.
I'd start it at 99c to attract lots of interest. In-demand items don't suffer much for being listed at 99c; they usually get market price if not better thanks to bidding wars.
posted by kmennie at 7:53 PM on December 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
I wanted to comment on auction-style listings: I'm with those who recommend a Buy It Now price rather than setting a reserve. I learnt the hard way that expensive high-end products should not go to auction with a low starting price. You may have to wait for a while but when the right buyer comes it'll sell. Perhaps make the sale more attractive by offering free shipping and even returns.
posted by Dragonness at 8:24 PM on December 9, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Dragonness at 8:24 PM on December 9, 2015 [2 favorites]
If it's not already obvious, you should do a search of completed auctions for similar items. You'll see what they sold for, and which ones didn't sell. I think it gives you the best idea of what to expect. As far as the psychological strategies (list at 99c, list at full price/buy it now), I have no particular advice to offer.
posted by mr vino at 8:26 PM on December 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by mr vino at 8:26 PM on December 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
If you are asking about the impact of the glue, I would guess that it has a significant impact on the value. Canada Goose looks like a brand with significant value in its fashion aspects, it is not just a practical brand. And the glue patch is going to hit its fashion value fairly hard. If it were a pair of work/hiking boots that was known for its performance, it would be different. But the Canada Goose stuff seems to be sold significantly based on its looks. My guess is that you are going to have to halve the price of similar unblemished items on ebay.
posted by rtimmel at 8:56 AM on December 10, 2015
posted by rtimmel at 8:56 AM on December 10, 2015
This may be a dumb question, but have you asked a dry cleaner how you might remove the adhesive? Cleaning down-filled clothing can be tricky because you don't want to damage the down fill. Plenty of dry cleaners here in Toronto make a point of cleaning high-end down-filled garments.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 9:30 AM on December 10, 2015
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 9:30 AM on December 10, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by valkane at 5:41 PM on December 9, 2015