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EBay Valet

ebay.com

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Re: EBay Valet

#71

Post by atwebb »

dubcanada wrote: post #67
briancpotter wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I notice you don't offer support for watches. Are there any plans to expand to that? I operate a similar website ( http://www.haberdashboard.com ) where I just implemented a watch search, and it is ASTONISHING how difficult paring out the fakes is. I'm impressed by how much engagement you've built over such a small number of items. Is there a reason you don't seem to have implemented typical search filters like size,…

The problem with watches is typically the only way to tell if it is real or not is to take it apart.

Are there not slight differences in weights from the real to the fakes? The eBay service mentions like-new items so I'm kind of assuming specs would be available.

Re: EBay Valet

#72

Post by jonnathanson »

Cthulhu_ wrote: post #43
ekianjo wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems like the Appstore 30% fee model is becoming standard everywhere now. That's not a very positive thing...

Depends. For lazy people it's an easy way to get rid of their stuff without the hassle of packaging, getting scammed, etc.

True, but you could just as easily replace "lazy" with "busy." Are you a single mom with two kids and a full time job? Are you an office worker with an 8-7 job, lots of weekend work, and barely any time to run errands? Are you frequently on the road for work?

Whatever the case, there is a large category of people for whom selling on consignment has always made a lot of sense, even if their margins are terrible. Their economic substitute to selling on consignment is throwing things away. Better to make a few bucks per item than none.

Secondary consignment markets have been really big on eBay for many years now. Makes sense that eBay would recognize the pattern, and attempt to own a piece of it. Meanwhile, big-time and category-specialized consignment sellers are still going to do just fine.

Re: EBay Valet

#73

Post by briancpotter »

dubcanada wrote: post #67
briancpotter wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I notice you don't offer support for watches. Are there any plans to expand to that? I operate a similar website ( http://www.haberdashboard.com ) where I just implemented a watch search, and it is ASTONISHING how difficult paring out the fakes is. I'm impressed by how much engagement you've built over such a small number of items. Is there a reason you don't seem to have implemented typical search filters like size,…

The problem with watches is typically the only way to tell if it is real or not is to take it apart.

Even this isn't especially helpful with watches. For example, take this one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-BULOVA-MILITARY-WATCH-A-11-with-...

This seems to be a good example of a vintage A-11 military watch (it's listed as such). It looks correct. It's got pictures of the movement, which seems to be correct. The seller has almost perfect feedback. So no problem right?

It is 100% fake (or at least, a frankenwatch made from old and new parts). And this is for a watch worth, perhaps, $200.

The real problem with watches is that fakes are so difficult to recognize that buyer feedback means much less, since a buyer is unlikely to recognize the fake. And often a seller is unaware he's selling a fake, so deception can't be detected in the description or the title. For the watch above, I think the seller knows what he has, and has very carefully described it to imply that it is an original, while not technically lying (he only claims the CASE is original).

It's a very, very difficult problem to solve.

Re: EBay Valet

#74

Post by sjtrny »

hellweaver666 wrote: post #58
sjtrny wrote: post #30

40 year old virgin did it first https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEHD6jHXt58

well... the "we sell your stuff on eBay" type shops have been around for ages. I don't think that movie invented them.

Oh really? I thought it was a unique idea. Thanks to you I would never have know others had also thought about and created such a business. You have thoroughly changed my perspective on the world.

Re: EBay Valet

#75

Post by Waevian »

Like some people mentioned already, I mostly worried about the pricing of items. Looks like to me like they will poorly judge value of items.

Overall, this is not the worst idea eBay had so far, I would love to see how this plays out.

Re: EBay Valet

#76

Post by dmohs »

001sky wrote: post #56
beambot wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW... this is exactly why we launched Lollipuff (YC W13): https://www.lollipuff.com/ eBay is notoriously plagued with fakes. For some designer brands, fakes can account for 75% (or more) of the items sold [1,2]. The key for Lollipuff: We have brand experts authenticate each and every item -- ie. real, human experts augmented with sophisticated software to make things scalable. We like to think of it as "eBay withou…

Conceptually, how do you guys triage the fakes? The spectrum of quality seems so broad, in that they are convincing enough to be worn on the red carpet (and presumably picked by stylists) etc. Or are all those shots authentic pieces that were then used in fake listings?

It takes some legwork up-front, but after that even the best fakes are pretty easy to spot if you have the right training and tools.

Re: EBay Valet

#77

Post by rickyc091 »

001sky wrote: post #56
beambot wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW... this is exactly why we launched Lollipuff (YC W13): https://www.lollipuff.com/ eBay is notoriously plagued with fakes. For some designer brands, fakes can account for 75% (or more) of the items sold [1,2]. The key for Lollipuff: We have brand experts authenticate each and every item -- ie. real, human experts augmented with sophisticated software to make things scalable. We like to think of it as "eBay withou…

Conceptually, how do you guys triage the fakes? The spectrum of quality seems so broad, in that they are convincing enough to be worn on the red carpet (and presumably picked by stylists) etc. Or are all those shots authentic pieces that were then used in fake listings?

I can spot fakes for sneakers, but I assume it's the same process. Material, spotting the stitchings, logos, etc. Certain things line up, there's a certain distance between stitches and logos, etc. With purses, some are easy to spot by looking at the pattern, loose threading, discoloration, etc. Once you have an eye for it, it's pretty easy to spot cause it stands out like a sore thumb.

Re: EBay Valet

#78

Post by CaptainZapp »

briancpotter wrote: post #73
dubcanada wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem with watches is typically the only way to tell if it is real or not is to take it apart.

Even this isn't especially helpful with watches. For example, take this one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-BULOVA-MILITARY-WATCH-A-11-with-... This seems to be a good example of a vintage A-11 military watch (it's listed as such). It looks correct. It's got pictures of the movement, which seems to be correct. The seller has almost perfect feedback. So no problem right? It is 100% fake (or at least, a frankenwatch made…

True story:

A friend of mine bought a cheap "Rolex" in Thailand.

It was only after he brought it home, he recognized that the calendar has 40 days, instead of 31.

Re: EBay Valet

#79

Post by lifeformed »

beambot wrote: post #50
mootothemax wrote: post #32

New or like-new designer shoes and handbags: Brands like Hugo Boss, Gucci, Nine West, Ralph Lauren I wonder if eBay are potentially setting themselves up for a massive headache with this. There is a quite staggering number of people who falsely believe that their counterfeit designer items are genuine.

FWIW... this is exactly why we launched Lollipuff (YC W13): https://www.lollipuff.com/ eBay is notoriously plagued with fakes. For some designer brands, fakes can account for 75% (or more) of the items sold [1,2]. The key for Lollipuff: We have brand experts authenticate each and every item -- ie. real, human experts augmented with sophisticated software to make things scalable. We like to think of it as "eBay withou…

Is there still a market for fake-but-good items? If you had a designer purse that was 99.99% indistinguishable from a real one, could you still sell it to people at a big discount, informing them that it's a fake? I wonder if there are people who would gladly knowingly buy a good-quality counterfeit one. You'd still get the social benefit of designer goods, since no one else will know.

Re: EBay Valet

#80

Post by Istof »

briancpotter wrote: post #73
dubcanada wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem with watches is typically the only way to tell if it is real or not is to take it apart.

Even this isn't especially helpful with watches. For example, take this one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-BULOVA-MILITARY-WATCH-A-11-with-... This seems to be a good example of a vintage A-11 military watch (it's listed as such). It looks correct. It's got pictures of the movement, which seems to be correct. The seller has almost perfect feedback. So no problem right? It is 100% fake (or at least, a frankenwatch made…

Could the watch manufacturer print a UUID on each of its parts that you consider irreplaceable if it had to be fixed? The watch could then be verified using the serial number and some online database?
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