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 Replies: 54 / Views: 5,444 |
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Valued Member
Canada
316 Posts |
i hope that the deal goes down for you and that it's up to expectations
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2541 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
1721 Posts |
UPDATE. This breaking news..... Good News-Bad News: She met me at my shop (closed on weekends) and she brought her new squeeze. I'm guessing they are a new older couple. They broke everything out in front of me. There was a 100 ounce silver bar, a 10 ounce silver bar, a 5 ounce silver bar and a whole mix of assorted 1 ounce bars totaling 158 ounces of silver. I could see other coins but figured I'd focus on one thing at a time. I asked if they had a price in mind and she told me they searched the Net and got some information. My first offer was 29.50 per ounce (4661.00). The couple moved into a far away corner to discuss the deal. When they returned, Jack Albertson (pun intended) told me he would buy the silver from her for 4800. I assumed this was to get me to go higher. So I countered with 4800 and they still said no. I said if I offered more would you still say no? And they said yes. Not sure why they drove all that way to turn down my offer. The good news is there were 20 assorted Morgan & Peace dollars, a 5 gram swiss pure gold bar and a 1/10 ounce Krugerrand. The 'piece de resistance' with the silver dollars was a slabbed but not graded 1884CC Morgan that will probably go to PCGS. This is MS60+++. I'll post photos later for some opinions. Honorable mention goes to a 1904S Morgan but condition is weak. I paid 750 for everything. Needless to say I was a little miffed about the silver deal but all in all I got a great deal on the other fodder with the CC. Like we say in the antique business: "Better to get a percentage of something rather than 100 percent of nothing." Happy hunting to all. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3184 Posts |
I guess your a store and all, 29.50............geez.........they could get spot just selling it on craigslist.
Also I know of B&M stores that pay 1 below spot.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1721 Posts |
Sure, you can get anything you want on Craigslist. Sell a car on Craigslist and found dead the next day. It happened here. Robbed at gun point selling stuff off craigslist. It's happened here too. When I buy I try to get the customer to set a price. I started at 29.50. I ended up meeting their want price and they decided not to sell. Geez. Would you pay 1 dollar under spot? A better question is would you pay over 5200 dollars to make 150 dollars? What if silver takes a small dive on Monday? Maybe this is why I make money in my store and out of my store and you play arm chair buyer and make zero $$$$. It's very easy to say what you would do or what others should do. The stuff could be sold on ebay and would bring OVER spot but after fees you'd be back at just under spot. KITCO is at 1.007 per gram and that's for 5000+ ounces (31.32 per ounce). The most I would have paid for the silver would have been around 31 dollars per ounce. I let my money work for me and I still did very well with what I was able to buy. Just like with our government, it's so easy to spend other peoples money. |
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Valued Member
Canada
220 Posts |
I think you were fair enough, you're in business, not a charity. $30/oz would have been my max unless they were Johnson Matthey or Engelhard bars, then an extra $1/oz, MAYBE...
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Valued Member
United States
110 Posts |
We buy starting at -.60 cents and move up to spot depending on quantity and yes we would spend more than 5200 to make even less than 150...We have come to find out that, the more you pay the more new/ returning customers you have...
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3294 Posts |
Sorry,but if I got offered $5 under spot, I would walk out the door without another word. Just me, but I would not be remotely impressed with that offer.
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Quote:
We have come to find out that, the more you pay the more new/ returning customers you have... Which is a very good point. Sometimes the offer isn't just for that item but for return business as well. If you arent worried about that or dont think theyll ever come back thats not as much of a worry, but a bad first experience will lose you the customer forever which in the end will lose you a lot more money. Theres a local shop near me I wont even set foot in anymore because of that |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1721 Posts |
Unfortunately, in my shop the volume is way to small to work off of 1.8 percent. On average I buy less than 7 ounces of silver and less than 3 ounces of gold per week. At these levels I would go broke trying to earn less than what a bank would pay me on my money. There are gold buyers on every corner and people tell me I pay more than anybody in the area. If my customers are happy who am I to argue. Most of my money comes from pawns not sales. Gold sales are a close second. It is very rare for me to see a customer with more than 5 ounces of silver bullion. In no way will I buy a one ounce silver round for .60 cents under spot. If it's slabbed and graded, yes. If I had no rent, insurance, license fees including business and precious metal license, scale certification, telephone, Internet, pawn program fee, alarm, electric, income tax (state & federal), property tax, LLC tax, surety bond, telephone books (2), advertising fees, accountant fees, shop upkeep with maintanence and to make things worse, business is at an all time low. If I made less than 2 percent on every transaction I'd make more money going to yard sales and selling my junk at the flea market on Sunday. I should know, I did that for 10 years.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1721 Posts |
And one more thing. I constantly get customers who come into my shop with great ideas of how I can make more money. These are the same people who borrow 20 dollars on a wedding band to get gas and cigarettes and drive off in a car with expired tags. I'll stick with what works for me. It's a free country, if you don't like my offer you can go anywhere else you want. It's funny how most people come back and take my original offer.
I bought the shop just over 6 years ago. Prior to me it was a pawn shop for about 32 years with about 6 different owners. I probably make more money than any other previous owner. Everybody can pass judgement on what THEY would do. Then come monday, open a shop and see how easy it is. I'll wait for your first year tax return. Just so you know, my first year in business (from August/15/06 - December/31/06) was less than 5 months and I turned a profit opperating well into the black every year since.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3184 Posts |
Lol op gets angry fast. I guess he gets so upset when someone tells him that theyve seen others pay more than he does.
5 below is a joke. I would turn people away from your place in a heartbeat.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1080 Posts |
I think you did fine. I know several of the local shops in my city, and you offered more than most of them would have, and less than 1 (maybe 2) would have. The stores that offer more have big volume and move stuff in and out multiple times daily. The way you describe your shop, your business model works, and I don't think you're ripping anybody off.
Glad you got some neat stuff. Hope you can flip it quickly.
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
2624 Posts |
I used to work for a pawnbrokers, in England you don't need certificated scales (though obviously we use the very best) and the loan term is usually 6 months @ 6.5% per month. Generally lending 2/3 of the trade value of the items and hoping for renewal or redemption as you will get repeat business rather than if its left you end up scrapping and lose a customer.
However, a bricks and mortar shop is expenive in rent/rates/staff/bills/tax and insurance... if a customer wants to sell an item generally the rule is buy it as cheap as you can buy it. With the gold and silver price so high there is room to earn well and still make a purchase and you have to take the oppertunities that come your way.
Sure a smart customer will know what to expect per gram and when you ask them how much money they were looking for if they are being too ambitious you just say the item isn't for you. If however there is room to make a profit then you buy as cheap as you can. This might sound harsh but it is the nature of the business...if I was buying something for myself I would try to be reasonable and fair but buying items with someone elses money I know what they are expecting from me, and that is to turn easy profits risk free.
I never held a gun to someones head and told them they must sell something, ultimately it is their choice and some people will sell and others walk away. As a matter of policy we don't enter into dutch auctions for stuff because we get enough secondhand goods to stock the window just as unredeemed pledges. Also given how cheaply new items can be purchased within the trade why would we pay almost as much for secondhand items?
Unfortunately in business it is a dog eat dog world and where money is involved never expect anyone to do you any favours. I am not debating the morality of it but just explaining that this approach is why the jeweller/pawnbroker has survived where it is for over 100 years.
I don't make the original poster wrong for trying to get a good deal, and if I buy or sell personally I try to get a good deal for myself but a fair one as it sounds like he did. You have to understand though when someone walks into your shop needing money you have the whip hand, you usually understand the value better than they do and you can justify a low price just because of the expense involved in being there.
You don't get what you deserve in this life, you get what you bargain for.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3294 Posts |
Chill out mds308, I am not criticizing, it is just that I know where to get a better price, so I would go there that's all I am saying.
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Replies: 54 / Views: 5,444 |
First Page
Posted 09/22/2012 10:21 am
