Depreciation?

[Blade Runner]

 

You can't expect to say, "Hey, this Montblanc pen just fell off a truck, but I can let you have it for the boutique price."

 

OMG ! Can I get one of those ? :roflmho:

 

Seriously though, a lot of excellent points in this thread. My favourite analogy is luxury cars, it's the drive that counts - not what you paid or what you will sell it for, 10 year down.

 

Most definitely.

I mean, although I am only 16 and haven't had much experience like the rest here,

I have gotten useful insights into the nature of sales, and the proper strategy

if one wants to make the right choices when making a purchase.

 

Funny how a little detail changes everything. Sixteen. I have T-shirts older than you.

At sixteen, you're supposed to challenge everything, and a little rant here and there, well, that's just par for the course.

You have conducted yourself well, taken the hits and responded politely, with a maturity that I would not have expected.

If you're selling on eBay, take beautiful photographs of the pens and make your descriptions as accurate and thorough as you can.

Best of Luck with the pen sales. I think you will do just fine.

I agree, the OP's maturity is beyond his years.

[nicholasyeo]

Well, isn't this a great thing, by exciting the passions of the FPNers,

I get to learn how I can sell a pen effectively, efficiently, and

following the proper practices in the market.

[MidnightBlue]

I'm offended by the underlying MB bashing here. I suspect a ............................TROLL

Thanks

[talkinghead]

I'm offended by the underlying MB bashing here. I suspect a ............................TROLL

Thanks

 

Wow...thread 2 days old and on page three now..what took you so long!

 

Thanks

 

Rick

[MidnightBlue]

Busy and it takes a lot of bashing to make me cry. PS bought a new Edison and a Montegrappa Miya. (suffer little children)

Thanks

[Siv]

I'm offended by the underlying MB bashing here. I suspect a ............................TROLL

Thanks

Er... we have a 16 year old who is trying to sell some pens for his Aunt and is surprised that they are worth nowhere near as much as the MSRP.

 

Unlikely to be a troll because they haven't asked for a Lamy forum... yet

[koa]

I bought a pen kit from my local woodworking/hobby store. Cost like $12. Turned some rare and exotic wood and encased it in some precious, um, resin. Now this pen is worth at least $3000, so much I can't carry it with me in my pocket, or even tell any one that I possess it, let alone ask for its true value on Ebay. So you see the solution? Don't fall for marketing, invent your own! I know that this pen has gone up in value. Astronomically. I am so rich. This is what happens when you believe the hype, but it is so much better when the hype is yours, because then you don't have to worry about being a sap, or a sucker, or a consumer: You are just insane. Come on in, the water's fine!

[koa]

I'm offended by the underlying MB bashing here. I suspect a ............................TROLL

Thanks

Er... we have a 16 year old who is trying to sell some pens for his Aunt and is surprised that they are worth nowhere near as much as the MSRP.

 

Unlikely to be a troll because they haven't asked for a Lamy forum... yet

 

That's the ticket! Lamy forum! My Lamy is worth just as much today as it was when I bought it. Maybe more! Of course, that is what is going on here. Amortization of MB's is almost certain to bring up the Lamy forum by the rule of the association of opposites. But maybe I am being too sensitive.

[mandarintje]

I think the point you make about the actual materials used is quite valid. Western jewellery is another example of that: people pay hundreds of *insert currency* for a 9, 14 carat or even 18 carat gold piece of jewellery, which is only 37.5%, 51.8?% and 75% gold respectively, and therefore take that percentage of the market value which is for PURE unadulterated gold. The retail price is WAY higher than the objects are worth, and most are mass machine-produced items unless you go to an independent goldsmith. Note that you pay for the item, and the weight of the gold used isnt taken into account in Western jewellery.

 

Alternatively, you can walk into an Asian (lets say Indian) jeweller, and buy a 22 or 23 or 24 carat piece of jewellery by the gram for little more than the market value, and the resale value will usually be MORE than the purchase value, even just a couple of years later. I've done this recently and made quite a bit of profit! The downside is that there's little work-time spent on these pieces and you're paying for material rather than craftmanship.

 

So...I think a Montblanc should be bought as a personal indulgence, rather than an investment...unless it's a specifically collectable example, and then you have to really know your stuff. I knew full well that I was buying a plasticy pen costing hundreds of euros, but I did so because it's an exquisite piece of inimitable craftmanship. Oh god, no spell check. Anyway, that's just my viewpoint =)

Edited April 12, 2010 by mandarintje

[parkerstylo]

I think that if you consider how much pleasure you can have from these things over many years, then a few hundred dollars for a pen and a few tens of dollars for inks is negligible in comparison to what you would spend on other hobbies.

 

You could easily spend the same amount in a few nights in a nightclub and all you'd have to show would be headaches and self-loathing.

 

Your point about the authenticity component of price is good. To buy a new product you've grown passionate about and to have no doubts that it is for real and covered by warranty, adds to the pleasure of the purchase and that comes at a price. After a month or two though, that feeling would be a distant memory.

[johnptc]

i have no recollection of my hobbies turning a profit

[Dutchpen]

WHAT ARE WE TRULY PAYING FOR? I guess it is the branding and marketing...

 

 

 

isn't every pen a piece of branding and marketing?

if you look at the true value of a pen, i can't imagine much pens with a true high value, maybe a pen loaded with a high amount of diamonds, but why is a diamond so expensive? beacause it's rare? it is all relative.

buy a parker duofold centennial fp, it costs €475 here in Holland, why? it's also just a plastic (acrylic is what they call it at parker) pen with some metal components on it and the 18k gold nib? it weights less than 1 gram........

so where does the other 470 euros goes?

 

some stamp are even more expensive, they are the highest priced and smallest pieces of paper i have ever seen but i never hear stamp collectors complain about it.

 

just enjoy the use of pens,