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Minus this public service announcement, this is a politics free zone...

I do have to say that I hate to see this, especially if authorities do actually have to dump the bottles of whiskey in this report out of Tennessee. The story is from the Shelbyville (TN) Times-Gazette, but has been national news for a while.

Seems this man was indicted and faces possible prison time for possesing a whole bunch of Jack Daniels. He says that he's a bottle collector. Seems reasonable enough to me, given that one of the bottles in the collection mentioned in the link above is worth $10,000 and dates to 1914.

I'm no fan of Jack Daniels, but if bet it tastes pretty good if it's been aged the right way...

Had an interesting conversation with Bob Clements, one of the principal founders of UK auction site www.specialistauctions.com.

This is a site that started in direct response to the eBay model. Bob and his company place expert moderators to oversee paticular subsets of collecting, making an effort to make sure that their auctions are "vetted" and discussed if questions arise. They've done well for themselves in the European market, with significant gains in this country, as well. SpecialistAuctions is especially well known for its strong vintage fashion component, which can generate a huge amount of hits for its auctions.

The long and the short of it in the U.K. is this: Just like Americans, the British are made about these changes, but even more so. Everything applies the sameas far as the changes, except that in Britain eBay isn't eliminating the gallery fee - which users pay for posting pics of items for sale - which costs them about .30 cents. Ouch.

"People are very upset," Clements said. "Here in the UK they don’t even have the benefit of the removal of the cost for gallery images."

The "Final Value Fee" hike is also a big deal. Clements was able to bottom line the increase, one that equals more than a 50% hike.

"(EBay is) reducing the cost of actually creating the listing," he said, "and then they’re moving the final value fee amount from an average 5.5 percent to an average 8.7 percent."

Ouch again.

The real kicker is that those things aren't even what Clements sees as what's got people riled up.

"What's really got to people is the fact that sellers will no longer be able to give buyers neutral or negative feedback," he said. "But buyers will be able to give sellers neutral or negative feedback."

Besides be a keen gage on the sentiment across the pond, SpecialistAuctions is also hosting it own VBOE sale, or Vintage Blow Off Sale, with a huge amount of dealers and a more hospitable atmosphere.

Check them out above if you wish, if only to see an alternative that many are considering in the wake of these changes.

... and boy are they ticked off.




Since the Antique Trader e-newsletter went out last Friday, Feb. 1, with the question about whether eBay, with its changes to sellers and final fees, as well as tweaking its feedback to disallow negative feedback on buyers, I have been overwhelmed with the responses. My inbox has been literally overflowing since early Friday and just slowed down last night. I have not counted the responses, but it is well more than 100 - I usually get 20 on a good week - and illustrates the passion that readers and eBay regulars are feeling in realtion to these moves by the auction giant. That, and the question is just now hitting newstands and subscribers.

As many of these as I can fit will be printed in the 2-20 issue of Antique Trader, and I will make sure the rest get onto the AT Web site and into the e-newsletter of 2-8. Some I can't post in any instance due to the anger and language expressed... Let's keep it clean, folks... I don't want my dear old Ma and Pa to read this and get offended...

Here's what I understand from the overwhelming majority of the responses:

eBay seems to be shooting itself in the foot, or as the old adage goes: "Don't spit on my leg and tell me it's raining," which one reader wrote with a different metaphor for spit.

The companie's loss of revenue and perceived competition, along with Meg Whitman's resignations, have led to some abrupt changes in terms of those things listed in the question an d it seems that eBay is deliberately trying to squeeze out what it perceives as "small" buyers and sellers, or "mid-level" buyers and sellers. To me, this means anyone that buys and/or sells between $800 and $5,000 a year, give or take a few hundred or thousand.

There must be, literally, a million or two million sellers at this level and more buyers. These are the folks that are most at risk to be hurt and, cumulatively, I would imagine represent a great big chunck of cash for the eBay. Yet here they are, alienated and angry by abrupt changes made without explanation or ceremony. Trust me, the anger is palpable, and will drive people away from eBay - if they haven't already bailed - and towards other already extant auction sites, or antique malls like Ruby Lane, where thet can deal in a setting that respects who they are, what they buy and - most importantly - what they spend.

Take note, eBay - if you read this - people are unhappy.

Perhaps this is part of the plan, to lost some business in order to gain liquidity an shift the business model elsewhere. Just as antiquers can't forget what eBay has done for the business in the last 10 years, eBay should not overlook what antiquers have done for its business in the last 10 years.

All empires fall because they fail to change with the times.

Eric Bradley, the Show Manager of Atlantique City - which is owned by Trader's parent company, F+W Publications - was in Miami Beach over the weekend at the big show there - lucky man to be away from Midwest cold and snow. Evidently there was a scammer passing bad checks on the floor, and thanks to the actions of some dealers, the guy was picked up and a most-  if not all - of the merch found.

Here's what Eric wrote from the floor:

Miami police arrested a man on Sunday suspected of passing bogus checks proportedly worth at least $10,000 at the  Miami Beach Antiques Show. The man is suspected to have been working with an accomplice.

The cops nabbed him after our good friend Howard Roberts spotted a guy who fit the description of a man who passed a phony $4,400 check to one of his friends the day before. The man - who claimed to be from Philadelphia but spoke with a Russian accent -  was identified while he was browsing some jewelry in the booth of dealer Michael Weinstein (who also does Atlantique City). After interrogating the man, police sought search warrants for three Miami-area hotel rooms. Not sure if any were in Miami Beach proper.  

Police were able to recover items stolen with the bad checks on Sunday. It's not clear if they were unable to secure some, or all, of the merch purchased on Saturday.

The Miami police should have a report shortly. It will be in the local press soon!

Eric

Trader will keep an eye on this in the next few days, but thanks Eric!
       

I'm getting a tremendous amount of email from readers on our question of the week - see below - and I clearly should have put lower listing fees in quotation marks.

I apologize for the oversite, but love the passion that people are bringing to this argument, whether in support of the changes (a few) or against (most)... Alot of these responses will be in the 2-20 issue of Trader, with the rest online.

Meanwhile, keep responding, and keep on keeping me on the straight and narrow...

January 21, 2008
Marietta Civitan Club
PO Box 68
Marietta, OH 45750

Dear Glass Show Exhibitor:

We regret to inform you that the Marietta Civitan Club has decided not to hold the Glass Show this year. The combination of the organizational effort and increasing cost makes it impossible for us to continue this effort.

The club owes a deep debt of gratitude to Alice Hall, who along with her late husband Don founded the show, with the idea of using the profits to supporting Civitan. They put many years of hard work into the show.

We appreciate your support over the years and will miss the spirit of camaraderie that we have enjoyed with you. If no one else steps in to hold a similar event, our community will also miss the economic value that you and your customers brought to Marietta and the surrounding area.

To find out whether there will be another show during the conventions that may be helpful to you, we suggest contacting the following organizations:

Marietta/Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau
121 Putnam St.
Marietta, OH 45750
(740) 373-5178
www.mariettaohio.org

Fenton Art Glass Collectors of America
702 W. Fifth Street
Williamstown, WV 26187
(304) 375-6196
http://users.wirefire.com/fagcainc/

National Fenton Glass Society
156 Front Street
Marietta, OH 45750
(740) 374-3345
www.fentonglasssociety.org

Thank you again for your support over the last twenty-five years and best wishes for your continued success in your business.

Very truly yours,

Marietta Civitan Club


And here’s what Gary wrote about the news:

Subject: Annual Marietta Glass Show/Sale Closing

Sad news…

The very large Glass Show and Sale held annually at the Fairgrounds in Marietta during the Fenton Conventions will not (after 25 years) be held in 2008 unless and until someone can take over from the Civitan Club!

What a blow that is to the hundreds of vendors who, like me, counted upon the Fairground's Show/Sale to peddle their glass. What a blow also to the buyers who count on going to the event to find a treasure or a needed item to add to their collections.

The Civitan notice declares rising costs to be a reason for closing, but did not comment on the fact that they could have passed those costs on to the vendors. I, for one, would have expected an increase in the space rent to be normal under the circumstances. No. They are just not going to make the effort to promote or hold the show for the foreseeable future.

While I sure hope that someone or some organization can step up to the plate and keep the show going, I will be looking for other possible venues to set up and sell glass.

Options include: A.) Setting up in the motel holding the convention; in the rooms of the motel; B) Persuading the City of Williamstown to organize once again, the use of the City Park for vendors, or; C) Trying to squeeze more vendors into the Williamstown School Auditorium.

It looks bleak as it stands. I hope some enterprising person or group can and will step up and keep the show going and doing it during the Fenton Glass Society’s conventions, as before, the end of July. Heck, the NFGS, FAGGC and the Stretch Glass Society are ALL planning their conventions at that time. I know that all members of those groups will surely miss buying glass from the vendors who would have set up on the Marietta Fairgrounds.

If anyone hears more, please post the info or write a note to me.

Wait! There’s a little more bad news, adding insult to injury… The Old Knight’s Inn, where a popular room-to-room show was set-up during the glass conventions is being razed, maybe to not come back…

Here’s what Gary writes on this:

One long time favorite of glass vendors for the Fenton convention scene is going into history, too.

Sellers would annually occupy a sprawling one level motel that was arranged in perhaps six rows of rooms with about 20 rooms in each row. The vendors packed each room in the place and sold glass out of their rooms. If the door was not locked, it signified seller was 'in' and for buyers to open the door and come in to see what glass was for sale. Sales there went on for five or six days during the conventions.

Here's the info about the Old Knight's Inn; Best Value Inn/Old Knights Inn is being torn down and replaced with a Microtel.

That means another glass selling venue in Marietta is gone and perhaps not coming back as a place to sell glass during future conventions!

I’m curious to know what any of our readers who are in on the glass scene think about this, and what it says about the health of the market.