Posts: 1193
From: Shepperton, United Kingdom
Registered: Mar 2012

posted 03-09-2012 05:38 PM               

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From what I have seen, there is only one place to auction off your space memorabilia these days: eBay. Their fees are quite high.

Do you think it would be beneficial to have an auction website dedicated to space memorabilia?

I ask because I am in the position to make this happen and I am seriously considering it. Thoughts?

Posts: 691
From: Salzburg, Austria
Registered: Jun 2003

posted 03-09-2012 05:54 PM               

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It's a great idea. Till lately we had a great site: Astro Auction

If you are going to install an auction site for space memorabilia you have to be very careful how to detect and ban faked items from the site.

Posts: 1168
From: Tucson, AZ
Registered: Jan 2009

Posts: 4437
From: Sierra Vista, Arizona
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 03-09-2012 07:34 PM               

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There would need to be value added features to incentivize participation. eBay has broad reach and the cS Buy, Sell, Trade forum is free.

I see also you are UK based. What ramification upon premiums would that have to dollar denominated transactions?

Posts: 1193
From: Shepperton, United Kingdom
Registered: Mar 2012

posted 03-10-2012 08:17 AM               

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Thanks for the reply guys. It would be a monitored registration system, so you can only register if you are referred by another collector, that way we know it is authentic products. It would be strict, but its the best way I think.

In terms of cost, its open to debate. I know eBay does a fee then something mad like 15% of the total amount, plus PayPal on top of that!

I was thinking something more user friendly like a small fee and a small percentage just enough to cover costs. Ideas are welcome on this side of things?

It will cost a bit of cash to set up but I'm confident that if everyone passes it around here and there, it can be a good thing for us all.

Posts: 3110
From: Paris, France
Registered: Aug 2003

posted 03-10-2012 10:38 AM               

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Astro-Auction was popular with sellers because it was totally free and popular with buyers because it was considered that all items listed were more-or-less guaranteed genuine.

The downside of having free listings was that it allowed some sellers to bulk-list their stock at prices as high as they liked and keep relisting endlessly. It became kind of a store front for some sellers to display high-end wares and spotting the individual sales of fresh items could be difficult.

eBay listing fees these days are now also very low and often free which can lead to some of the same kind of thing.

Sale fees on eBay are pretty hefty - generally around 9% (not 15%) - but are offset by the fact that your listings reach a worldwide audience of millions.

PayPal fees don't really come into the equation as most sellers would use PayPal whatever the format of the sale.

I believe that turnover on Astro-Auction was actually pretty low, despite having zero fees. Making money from a similar site with added fees might be challenging.

Posts: 3398
From: London, UK
Registered: Feb 2002

posted 03-10-2012 10:44 AM               

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Yes, good luck!

I'd suggest you do some market research before spending any money. And you need to guarantee that you're going to get some decent items listed on the site. Towards the later days of Astro-Auction (a great site by the way), it fell victim somewhat to an overflow of non-unique Coopers, Carpenters, Schirras etc.

The space collecting fraternity is a fairly small group and the increased accessibility of astronauts over the past five years or so has meant that the population of "unique" items has shrunk significantly. The last thing you want is a website full of Mitchells, Scotts and Gordons that people have already had their fill of.

Posts: 1193
From: Shepperton, United Kingdom
Registered: Mar 2012

posted 03-10-2012 03:44 PM               

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Valid points. I know eBay reaches millions, but I was thinking more along the lines of an auction house for the elite, if you will.

The idea is not to make money, that's not really a concern. As long as it covers costs that's fine. I just want to create a place where serious collectors can put their memorabilia up for sale and also buy merchandise that they know is genuine. I guess the question is, do we need a place like that or are people happy with what's out there right now?

Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 03-10-2012 04:05 PM               

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quote:

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Originally posted by rgarner:
The idea is not to make money, that's not really a concern.

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I realize it is not a concern for you, which is commendable, but money will be very much a concern for the sellers. And unless a new venue can offer as strong, if not better, results than the current auction and dealer services, then it won't attract the elite pieces and, in turn, elite buyers.

In addition to eBay, there are at least six auction houses with online bidding that are jockeying for the consignments from astronauts, former space program workers and collectors. There are also at least five full time space memorabilia dealers with online catalogs — considerably more if you include the specialty dealers within the larger space memorabilia umbrella.

Astro-Auction.com was built off the success and reputation of Novaspace Galleries, which already had an established customer base.

Any new site would need to offer something the others are not to draw an audience. I'm not sure that low fees alone are a strong enough motivator.

Posts: 1193
From: Shepperton, United Kingdom
Registered: Mar 2012