I am trying some auctions on eBay. I decided that I might as well get started with the international editions and Nancy Drew blank endpapers books. An auction is the fairest way to do it, since more than one person might be interested.
eBay Auctions
Both my eBay and Etsy stores are open.
Jennifer's Series Books on eBay
Jennifer's Series Books on Etsy
I reopened my stores on Wednesday morning and have had not one sale. It's not that I care; it's that I hoped to resume a normal activity in order to improve my frame of mind. It won't work if nothing is going to sell. I just don't see the point. I feel like if nothing other than potentially the auctions has sold by next weekend that I will just shut down again. I'm not in a good place mentally and for reasons I did not state in my previous post.
I continue to wonder why series books aren't selling like they did not too long ago. This has been a problem since early this year. I have three theories as to why.
1. Inflation is bad. This is the most likely reason.
2. People just don't use eBay and Etsy like they once did. I think eBay is probably doing fine, but Etsy is floundering.
3. Series book fandom has passed the beginning of the end, and fewer people are interested in collecting the books.
Reason #3 is what I fear. We know that we will lose many collectors in the coming years due to downsizing, etc. As that happens, interest in series books will wane. I fear that we are already reaching that point, and I hope I'm wrong.
I am seeing some really scarce books priced low that are getting relisted on eBay and continue not to sell. I don't mention what I see on eBay since I feel that those who use eBay should get first pick. However, I'm frustrated about some of the extremely scarce books that are listed and aren't selling.
For example, the Girl Scouts Mystery series by Virginia Fairfax is a top series for me. It was brutally hard for me to find all six books years ago. Several of them are on eBay right now, and some books have more than one copy available. The books are priced cheap, and yet nobody is buying them. The books are not available online, so this makes no sense. And yes, I'm mentioning them here because I wish somebody would buy the books so that they can enjoy some great stories. It drives me crazy seeing these wonderful books being relisted and continuing not to sell.
There are scarce Judy Bolton books and Dana Girls books that I've seen relisted recently. I think I've seen Rick Brant and Kay Tracey as well. I'm talking about some of the scarcer stuff. I also have seen multiple cheap copies of Trixie Belden #36-39 listed in various bulk lots that have not sold during the first few hours they were listed. In the past, bulk Trixie Belden lots priced low that included the scarce books would typically sell in the first five minutes. Why the lower interest?
Why won't people buy the books? Are they no longer using eBay? Are collectors no longer interested in these books? Or is inflation just that bad?
Saturday, October 21, 2023
Auctions + Cheap Scarce Books Not Selling on eBay
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4 comments:
Speaking only for myself, my collection is large and it is hard to find books that I don’t have. You are an amazing collector and I have purchased many books from you over the years.
I think it's inflation. I don't have as much disposable cash as I did a year ago. I just bought a Dana Girls book on eBay the other day and I realized it was the first serious book I have purchased in months. I couldn't resist because it was a good price but my buying has really slowed down.
I think it is a combination of factors. I think that inflation plays a major role. People are scrambling to pay bills and spending less on hobbies.
I also think some of this is the pendulum effect that I have witnessed since I started collecting series books 30 years ago. At that time, book prices were high, with some of the scarcer Rick Brant, Ken Holt, Judy Bolton going for $500 and up. Then the dot com crash came, people stopped buying and prices crashed. They recovered some, but then crashed again during the Great Recession. Again, the prices recovered some, but each time they crash they return at a lower level.
When I began collecting, I was in my late 20s. I am now 60. Some of the books we collect were first published a century or more ago. G&D stopped publishing new ND and HB books 45 years ago. The people who read these books as kids are downsizing or dying. The market shrinks.
Prices are boosted when those who deal snap up all the copies of books. When the price reaches a certain point, prices collapse Each time the prices recover, they do so at a lower level.
Sixty year old me has most of what I want. I have collections of the Bobbseys, Rick Brant, ND, HB, Judy Bolton, etc in fine or better condition. How many 30 year olds want to buy books published 30! years before they were born? Some, but not many.
I know the selling is difficult on eBay as of late--. If it's any comfort sales are down in general all over. I sell a variety of books, magazines and paper ephemera and unusual things that I find along the way. Money and inflation is an issue. And prices are disappointing. What sells only sells at a good price for about a month and then the interest dies off. This being said there is a niche market out there for these books and it is the homeschooling crowd. Granted-- they don't have a ton of money but they are looking for clean, quality fiction for their children to read. Many homeschoolers limit television and screen time in general making reading a number 1 activity. Go to facebook and take a look at homeschool reading groups or do an internet search for homeschool reading lists. So-- the market is there for the books themselves. This makes the world of collecting look a little different. So perhaps we should take heart that there is interest in the books but perhaps not owning the whole set. This affects the value of the books in the long run. Any money spent on collections up until this point in time can only be justified by the amount of joy it brings us. From a seller's perspective our only hope is hang tight and hope we can break even. My two cents worth......
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