Limited Editions

[Blade Runner]

I think of it as an investment in sheer pleasure rather than the possibility of fiscal gain.

[goodguy]

This subject comes up regularly as some new people dont know the facts about FP's.

FP's are good for 2 things.....

 

1.Use them

2.Collect them

 

LE models might tend to be more of a collector item then a user but in many cases I find most people will use their LE pens to some extend.

LE pens as an investment ?

Forget about it, most will go down in value and no one really knows which will go up in value.

In general Montblancs LE pens keep better value in avarage then other LE pens from different companies but that doesnt mean MB LE pens go up in value.

 

So bottom line you want to invest money then go to the bank. If you see a nice LE pen you like and can afford then go for it but dont expect to make money of it.

[Glenn-SC]

LEs are produced with a single object in mind, to rake in your dough.

I would point out that the Regular Editions are produced with the same intent.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I have not got as far as LE's, how ever there are some I would like to own, for their beauty and function.

Of course I'd ink the thing...as soon as it gets back from a nibmeister.

 

There are a great number of attractive pens, even those not LE's.

What ever is attractive to you, you should put on your list.

 

A Pen as an investment is as good as buying Stamps or coins as an investment. With stamps or coins one is lucky to beat inflation. Savings bonds will do that. Pens not.

 

When times are good, one don't think of selling, when times are bad, no one will pay; some one else will sell it for less, needing the money more than you.

Edited August 29, 2010 by Bo Bo Olson

[nxn96]

Much like artwork, you buy because you like it and enjoy it. If, down the road, someone wants to give you more for it than what you pay for it; then it's an investment.

 

My general feeling is that pens sold as "limited editions" are no different than any other item sold as such: the seller, by promising that only xx number will be sold, implies that this HAS TO BE worth much more down the road than it is today. However, by offering it as a LE, the seller usually prices it as a collectable, taking a lot of the upside in the original sale. Further, most every purchaser of that "LE" will likely treat it as an investment such that the universe of those available will stay relatively constant over time; such that if only 5,000 were made, 4,994 still are out there many years later.

[bushido]

i buy them because i like them, not to sell.

[Have Fun]

I don't put any personal value on an LE which is blinged for the sake of marketing. I am not a fan of glitz at all.

 

Some LE's have better nibs, sometimes nicer colours, but generally these qualities are let down by the extra bling & the inflated price.

 

I have bought an LE .. the Citroenpers M200 because it was cheaper than a standard M200, I liked the colour, & it had no extra razamatazz. I think it may be worth more than I paid for it now ... if only I could find where my wife put it:)

[82Greg]

All Collectible Limited Editions (pottery, coins, pens, etc) are created to increase the typical product's margin. If the profit is 20% for a typical product, then a limited edition will be 30% (or even more). Hence, it is unlikely for one to get a positive financial return on a collectible pen (LE). Typically, for many products labeled collectible, because they are sold to market saturation, their value is next to nil. Limited editions are an attempt to overcome that by limiting the run--albeit in some cases limiting production to 8000 pens.

 

Bottom line, if the only thing you are interested in is financial return, there are better places to spend your hard earned money than on pens. Now that is fully covered, did I happen to mention I have some great real estate opportunities...

 

Edited for clarity.

Edited August 29, 2010 by 82Greg

[Pentech42]

Any pen is worth what enjoyment you get out of it.

 

Unfortunately there isn't a correlation between enjoyment and resale value.

[garnet]

Aren't all pen production runs limited? Parker made 51's as a mass production and look how collectable they are? Collectable and limited do not necessarily mean the same thing. A pen will ‘become’ a collectable through time and its heritage. Limited editions are produced for the sole purpose of ‘collecting’. Someone who buys pens to use is not a ‘collector’ per se, no matter how many pens he, or she, owns, but they do possess a ‘collection’. I collect Wyvern pens, I don’t use them. I also buy pens I like in order to use them. Would you say I had two collections? I would! Although I only ‘collect’ Wyverns. :hmm1:

Edited August 29, 2010 by garnet