Anyone ever fall for the "buyback" or "trade up?"

topstuf

I knew (and didn't respect) a guy who made sale after sale with the pitch:

"Hey, if you don't like it I'll buy it back ANY TIME for .........." (Usually 25-100 less than purchase price)

And they BOUGHT it. Didn''t matter what it was, they would bite.

He stressed how it then only cost them what the DIFFERENCE was (or so the spiel went)

He moved more CRAP than anyone I ever saw.

I just noticed in the current issue of Blade magazine (I collect knives too) that one company is going the old jewelry store route and "protecting your value" by guaranteeing to apply the cost to anything MORE expensive. Any coin shops doing that?

ziggy29

Basically it sounds like a way to make $25-$100 on every transaction. Or even more, if they decide to keep the crappy coin.

Works well as long as you can keep finding "fresh meat" to sell to, since it's not like you're going to get repeat customers with that business model.

topstuf

<< <i>Works well as long as you can keep finding "fresh meat" to sell to, since it's not like you're going to get repeat customers with that business model. >>



Man, he sure did. Kept his foreign citizenship and got his wife naturalized. That way either of them could skip back to Europe at any time to avoid any prosecution on any deal.

And the customers ATE UP his accent. "Vell, I kins letz yu haff dis coin fur only a liddle profitt und tu proof vott Ich say iss true, I vill buy itt bakk fur yoost twenny fife buxx less dan Ich sells itt to yu fur." I watched it time and again......and even found it hard to compete with. I always told my folks that I would buy stuff back at current "market"....whatever it was. Higher, lower, or in between. That does NOT sit well with ....MOST.... folks. They want GWARANTEES! My other competitor (who left with Interpol on his tail) DID offer a written guarantee of 20% APR or CDN.....WHICHEVER WAS HIGHER!

Being located BETWEEN those 2 hineyocks was a real education.

(Guy #2 also offered ....FREE.... storage of bullion. Wow! Guess how many of his customers called me for "what do do?" when their doors weren't open one day?)

And these were the same folks who read me out for NOT offering guarantees.

291fifth

About 5 years ago I bought a rather expensive slabbed Buffalo Nickel from a local dealer. He needed to raise cash fast and sold me the coin with the EXPRESS guarantee that he would take the coin back at the full selling price if I ever wanted to sell it. About six months later I spotted some Indian cents in his stock and we agreed on a price, which was the same as the Buffalo nickel. I pulled the Buffalo out of my pocket and used it to pay for the coins. It was very obvious that he was NOT pleased to see the Buffalo come back. From that point on he would never buy anything I offered him. Needless to say, I quit visiting his shop and took my business elsewhere.