Does This Ebay Auction Look Suspect?

sportscardshoppe

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=170292974643&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=007

1. 24 Hours (Who does this for a set!)
2. Bad Scans
3. Seller says he got it from the factory (I thought they did not have factory sets in 71)
4. There is a private bidder (Possbile Shill)

Thoughts?

WinPitcher

I think you answered all the questions.

Yes it appears very suspect.


Url you provided NG (at least to me anyway)


Steve

sportscardshoppe

Text ??

What does this mean?

WinPitcher

Text was the word I chose to link for you. It went no where.

I then went to ebay and typed in the actual auction number.

The seller has a few sets for sale, I dunno if he is suspect or not.

Just because a private feedback bidder bids does not mean it is a shill.

To answer the original question I dunno.


Steve

lsutigers1973

Typical scammer. Built feedback with $2-5 items. Now he/she has multiple higher dollar sets available including 2 NRMT/MT 1975 Topps baseball sets and a 1962 Topps football set.

Linky

WinPitcher

Bill you really don't know that, you sound like Stantheman.

Everyone has to start somewhere, with that said, I won't be buying from this guy.


Steve

MBMiller25

I almost dont feel sorry for anyone willing to purchase this. What a joke.

lsutigers1973

<< <i>Bill you really don't know that, you sound like Stantheman >>



Not 100% positive, but 90% positive and I have common sense to cover the other 10%.

sportscardshoppe

Looks like a scam to me also, my question is this, if i bid and win arent I fully protected anyway?

PoppaJ

How can anybody resist buying from a seller named Happy White Guy?

sportscardshoppe

This guy just told me his pictures were stocked and his actual sets are sealed in the box. Did Topps even do factory sets that far back?

lsutigers1973

<< <i>Did Topps even do factory sets that far back >>



No, I believe 1973 or 74 was the first year.

PoppaJ

<< <i>This guy just told me his pictures were stocked and his actual sets are sealed in the box. Did Topps even do factory sets that far back? >>



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I'm pretty sure that the 1st Topps Factory set was produced in 1974.

PoppaJ

sportscardshoppe

What an idiot

vtbub

Yep, 74 was the first one series set released as a factory set.

sportscardshoppe

I hate when people like this try to ruin the hobby

bman90278

I just sent the seller a note that he needs to fix his listing as Topps did not offer a factory set for that year and that it is misleading.

Brian

sportscardshoppe

Thanks Bryan,

I hate for someone to get scammed.

While we are on the subject I am still looking to buy sets

"SHAMELESS PLUG"

bman90278

I was just noticing the auction ends in 5 hours and is probably too late for the seller to do anything. That's too bad.

Brian

bman90278

I just got back a message from the seller,

Dear brian,
no i understand that as I have answered many questions concerning this. But I have clarified that what I meant is that these were purchase sealed from a retailer (service Merchandise) so regardless if Topps sold retail sets or not it is still a sealed set. a few of my sets were bought from Service Merchandise many years ago. I apologize for not being more clear. I tried to make a note of this information on the auction ad itself but I was not allowed as it has "less than 12 hours left and has bids". I hope that this proves insightful for you at least.

sportscardshoppe

What do you think Bryan?

Whats my risk here?

If I win I think I am fully protected anyway with Paypal

bman90278

I wouldn't bid on it. It's one thing if the seller has lots of large scans showing the key cards, but you don't have anything to base it other than his poor description. If you are unhappy with the purchase the seller would state that you got a complete set and that grades are subjective. I would buy a set in person or off our buy and sell board from one of our fine members.

Brian

sportscardshoppe

Thanks for the advice, the members here seem great and very reputable

I am always looking to buy

Thanks

vtbub

<< <i>I just got back a message from the seller,

Dear brian,
no i understand that as I have answered many questions concerning this. But I have clarified that what I meant is that these were purchase sealed from a retailer (service Merchandise) so regardless if Topps sold retail sets or not it is still a sealed set. a few of my sets were bought from Service Merchandise many years ago. I apologize for not being more clear. I tried to make a note of this information on the auction ad itself but I was not allowed as it has "less than 12 hours left and has bids". I hope that this proves insightful for you at least. >>



A google search came up empty for Service Merchandise sets. Considering that this was in the multi-series era and I've never read anyone else mention this before, I'm extremely skeptical of this.

footlong

in 1974 topps baseball was for the first time issued in complete 660 cards at one time.this was early printings later printings added the 44 card traded series.complete sets were sold thru sears.the only place iknow of.also washington national league cards were issued in the first printing.later printings had them as san diego. foot

storm888

In the 1970s, SMC had BIG walk-in showrooms.

They were very competitive in toys and hobbies. Lionel Playworld
was their main competition.

They both sold card sets.

At SMC you would write down on a form what you wanted, and the
counter-help would go in the back and get you one. (Like some of
the office supply places do now.)


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full story from WIKI


Service Merchandise is a defunct chain of catalog showroom stores carrying fine jewelry, toys, sporting goods, and electronics that existed from 1934 to 2002. The company's former chairman, Raymond Zimmerman, resurrected Service Merchandise as an Internet-only retailer in 2004 after buying the name and logo at auction, and later forwarded the website to another online store in 2007. The site returned in 2008.

Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Beginnings
1.2 Downfall
1.3 Bankruptcy and liquidation
1.4 Return of the name
2 Showroom ordering process
3 Muscular Dystrophy Association
4 References
5 See also
6 External links



[edit] History

[edit] Beginnings
Service Merchandise was founded by Harry and Mary Zimmerman as a "five and dime" in 1934 in Pulaski, Tennessee, near the Alabama border. The first catalog showroom opened in 1960 on Broadway in downtown Nashville, Tennessee.

During the 1970s, Service Merchandise was the nation's top catalog-showroom retailer. At its peak, the company achieved more than $4 billion in annual sales. As the company expanded, it began to open showrooms nationwide, mostly in the vicinity of major shopping malls, which were coming into vogue in the mid-1970s. In the early 1980s, the Service Merchandise headquarters were moved from Nashville to nearby Brentwood, Tennessee, becoming one of the first businesses to plant itself in the area that is now known as Cool Springs. On May 9th 1985 the H.J. Wilson Co was acquired by Service Merchandise for approximately $200M. Raymond Zimmerman was attracted to Wilson's stores to gain a firmer foothold in the Sunbelt states. Several of these Wilson's locations included an off-priced apparel department of about 15,000 square feet. Service Merchandise also had wholly-owned subsidiaries featuring retail stores such as Zim's Jewelers, HomeOwners Warehouse (later called Mr. HOW Warehouse), The Lingerie Store, and a children's clothing superstore.


[edit] Downfall

Final logo before store closure used from 1999-2002. (The 1985-1999 logo was revived on the website.)The company thrived in the 1980s, but gradually lost business in the housewares and electronics sectors to giant discounters such as Wal-Mart, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Best Buy in the 1990s. Service Merchandise was also late to embrace the Internet in the mid-1990s as a method of doing business, on both the internal and retail levels. Until its closure, however, Service Merchandise enjoyed a strong jewelry department, continuing as the largest watch retailer in the United States.

The company responded to its plight with a series of restructuring plans that included the discontinuation of unprofitable product lines such as electronics, toys and sporting goods, and focusing on fine jewelry, gifts, and home decor products. Many showrooms closed, and many that remained open were downsized significantly. The company succeeded in dividing many of its company-owned buildings into two or three parcels and then renting the newly-created space to other national chain retailers. In many of its leased locations, Service Merchandise reduced its costs by shrinking the showrooms.


[edit] Bankruptcy and liquidation
While in the process of changing its retail format, a group of creditors forced an involuntary petition for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 on March 15, 1999, seeking court supervision of the company's restructuring. The company later filed a voluntary Chapter 11 petition to improve its relations with its vendors and creditors, and to stabilize its business.

Raymond Zimmerman, son of the company founders, resigned as chairman of the board in November 2000. The company had attempted to pull itself out of bankruptcy once again in the summer of 2001, but the economic downturn following the September 11, 2001 attacks proved to be a hurdle the company could not clear [1]. With only 200 catalog showrooms left, stock valued at less than one cent per share, and no profitability in sight, Service Merchandise ceased operations and shuttered all of its stores by early 2002, owing over US$500 million to creditors.


[edit] Return of the name
Service Merchandise resurfaced on the World Wide Web in 2004, selling a similar line of merchandise. Raymond Zimmerman bought the former company's name and logo at auction, and he continues to be the owner of the newly formed company, which is still in operation.


[edit] Showroom ordering process
Service Merchandise was well-known for its unusual ordering process which emphasized the catalog, even within the showrooms. It is not unique; stores using this process are known as catalog showrooms. Other also-defunct chains that used this model were Brendle's and Best Products.

For non-jewelry orders, customers would enter the showroom and be given a tablet which included an order form to record the catalog numbers of desired items. Items were displayed in working order in the showroom, allowing customers to test products as they shopped. Current Service Merchandise catalogs were placed in strategic locations throughout the store to allow customers to shop for items that were not on display. When ready to place their orders, customers would take the tablet to a clerk who would act as a cashier and submit the order to the store's stockroom (this process was altered in the late 1980s to allow customers to place their own orders with a self-service computer terminal named "Silent Sam", which later was renamed "Service Express"). The customer would then move to the "Merchandise Pickup Area", where the order would emerge from the stockroom on a conveyor belt.

In addition to jewelry and catalog showroom display items, Service Merchandise also had several self-service items, which were located on shelves, and taken to the checkout to be paid for as in a traditional retail store. These items included many of those in the toy department as well as smaller, low priced items (such as batteries, film, and video cassettes).

The jewelry department, which was featured prominently in the center of every showroom, operated on a first-come, first-served system, in which each customer would be individually served by a jewelry clerk.

Also in the mid-1980s, Service Merchandise experimented with the installation of Drive-Thru windows at two showrooms (near Chicago and Nashville), allowing customers with phone-in orders to pick up their orders without leaving their automobiles. The concept was not expanded beyond its test stores, but remained in place at those locations.[1]

In the mid 1990s, the tablets were replaced with barcoded pull tags placed on/near each item in the showroom. These were taken to the cashier instead of the tablet in order to purchase the item, which would still be retrieved from the stockroom. By the late-1990s, many of the showrooms had been converted to allow a more traditional approach to shopping in addition to the catalog ordering process. By 2000, all of the remaining showrooms had been downsized and the catalog-style shopping approach was officially abandoned.


[edit] Muscular Dystrophy Association

Older logo mainly used in the 1970s-1985.Service Merchandise was known as one of the largest corporate donors to the Muscular Dystrophy Association during its time as an established company. Chairman/CEO Raymond Zimmerman would appear multiple times on the yearly Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon to present donations on behalf of the company and its customers. Around each showroom were several collection boxes for MDA, and each store also sold MDA fundraising shamrocks at St. Patrick's Day. Even during its bankruptcy and liquidation, Service Merchandise continued to be a large supporter of MDA.

EarlsWorld

Where did everyone go, to bid on this set?

Dboneesq

In the early 70s there was a Service Merchandise in the town next to me when I was a kid. Just like it was stated above, I remember going in there, filling out a form, and the guy going into the back and getting your purchase. I do NOT remember if they sold cards.

I have no idea when Factory Sets were first produced, but I belive their were "Presentation Sets" as early as the 50s. They were sets that were given to the salesmen so they could show the store owners what the cards looked like.