Selling/Trading Equipment to Stores

Hi All & Happy New Year!!

I was wondering if anyone here has ever sold or traded their equipment in to any of the various online stores, Adorama, B&H, Abes or even received quotes from them. If so, which did you find give the best prices on used gear?

I have been trying to sell a few items lately and have really gotten some insane offers on FM. Some as low as 50% of what I paid just a few months ago! I would rather keep the items than sell for that low of a price when I still need to deduct shipping and insurance from that low offer. Plus, I am sure many people are near broke after the holidays which makes it tough to sell right now.

I am debating whether to just pull the ads for a few months or if it would be better to sell to a store. If I would get more out of it value wise if I sell them say an $800 item and purchase something smaller and get partial cash rather than all cash in return.

Thoughts?

Denise

Thanks and happy new year to you too!

Generally the offers from stores suck compared to selling to individuals on a forum/eBay in my opinion. I have asked for a quote only once. It was to upgrade from a 70-200mm f/4L IS to the f/2.8 II version and got a lousy deal. It was like 60-65% of the value of a new lens. I ended up selling the lens for about 85% of the value of a new one (with a filter as a bonus and warranty was still valid for 3 months). My experience is limited though and the only store here in Finland that offers trading in gear (or has an official quote asking form on the web at least) is very expensive anyways, they even ask more for some used L lenses than some online shops for new ones. The low trade-in prices are probably because a store has to pay taxes on the used lens etc. My advice would be to just try to hang on and sell the lens to an individual when someone offers a fair price. I also tend to list shipping expenses when I sell something and ask that the buyer pays them or at least half.

Denise

Discount stores on line are going to have to pay discount prices to make any money off used. They have massive buying power, that is true of what they buy from manufactures and that is why they are cheap. They have massive buying power of used equipment as well, because of the large number of customers and followers they have. It all translates to cheap offers and cheap prices.

I just sold my backup 5D II and my 24-70mm. I thought about it a while about how to sell it. There was no way I was going to take 50 cents on the dollar, and I didn't need the money so if it sold it sold, if not I would keep it. I had offered it once to the local store that I bought it from, they gave some ridiculously low offer. The salesman has many connections and he told me he could try and sell it, this was a while back and nothing came of it.

The first day I listed them, I get a call from another camera shop in town. I never thought about checking other camera shops. They offered me $150 less than what I was asking. I got more than you could buy a discounted refurbished 5D II. I got 80% of the new price for the 24-70mm. $150 wasn't a big drop in price for two big items like this. Getting secure cash in hand from a store was better than meeting people on craigslist or taking the chance of selling online.

I asked if they did consignment sells, and they do. I have already decided when I upgrade my supertelephoto's I will take the old ones there first.

I wouldn't rule out the local shops, it might be worth a call to see if they do consignments or would buy your item.

Good Luck
Rick

I have had poor experiences with trying to sell equipment to the larger retailers, Adorama and BH, specifically. As mentioned earlier they need to buy low so they can sell high and turn a profit. My best experiences have been with Craig's List or local "friend of a friend" sales. I have told some buddies to let me know if them or any friends are interested in gear when I a easy to sell it.

Did not try the local camera shops here in PA, but they are all shuttering up with the increased online price wars, big box stores and faltering economy. Too bad, because the personal touch and expertise is lost, as well.

Same experience as the rest have had. If you hang on to it for a couple more months, the price increase will have taken place so yours might look like a better deal. Plus everyone gets their tax money back..except me.

Denise - I have sold all my lenses (well, those that I needed to sell) on the Amazon marketplace and have had great results. They take an 8% commission, which isnt that bad; and unlike eBay, listing an item is very quick - just a matter of a few minutes.

I just sold (quite reluctantly) my Zeiss 35 f2 for a list price of $1050 when it sells for $1117 new.

Getting 80% from individuals has been really difficult for me even with gear less than 6 months old. I usually end up selling for alot less than that with much regret. It is true, I would probably have much better luck if I wait a few couple months for when people are getting there refunds then to try now. I used to sell small stuff on craigslist but I am really nervous about trying to sell higher end items on there due to many horror stories of late. I don't want them coming to my house anymore and even meeting them somewhere is risky. Even if nothing were to happen at a public place, they could always follow you home. I know that sounds like I am overly paranoid but heck you never know these days! Off subject alittle but my next door neighbor moved out & rented the house right next to me to some people straight from the hood and I am afraid for them & their ghetto friends to even see me outside with my gear!

Back on subject ...I only have one local camera shop in town & I don't think they buy used gear. I wonder if it is better to sell on ebay with a minimum starting point than on FM, even though ebay takes a percent. It's been so long that I have sold on ebay, I don't even know what that percent is now. Also, many people were posting for awhile there about Uncle Sam starting to track sales using paypal.

Anyway, I suppose my best bet is to wait it out a few months. Thanks for the input everyone!

Denise

Quote:

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Originally Posted by thekingb

Denise - I have sold all my lenses (well, those that I needed to sell) on the Amazon marketplace and have had great results. They take an 8% commission, which isnt that bad; and unlike eBay, listing an item is very quick - just a matter of a few minutes.

I just sold (quite reluctantly) my Zeiss 35 f2 for a list price of $1050 when it sells for $1117 new.

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Now THAT is awesome!! I always lose hundreds and hundreds of $! Lucky you! Do you then pay shipping?

Denise

Amazon gives a shipping credit that is usually insufficient, but it's just a few dollars and not a big deal. The total cost is usually 8% plus a few extra shipping dollars. So for the zeiss, I cleared around $960, or about 85% of retail. It's easy to set up a seller account. The only issue is, like eBay, it's easier to sell once you have earned some positive feedback.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ddt0725

I have been trying to sell a few items lately and have really gotten some insane offers on FM. Some as low as 50% of what I paid just a few months ago!

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Well there's your first problem right there. I see this issue pop up all the time when people try to sell something. What you paid for something should never factor into it at all.


Imagine if I bought a lens a few months ago, right after the prices jumped from $900 to $1000 because of the earthquake and tsunami. Then the price dropped back to $900 and Canon added a $150 rebate, dropping the brand-new price $750. If I tried to sell it for 80% of what I paid for it ($800), I would get laughed out of the marketplace because that's $50 more than the just buying it brand new. On the other hand, if I sold it now for 70% of the current new price, that would be 50% of what I paid just a few months ago.


Personally, I only pay a maximum of 70% of the new value, because anything less than a 30% discount is not worth the hassle and risk of buying used. But with a little patience you can usually find buyers who will pay 80% (or more) of the new value.


You have to learn to forget entirely about what you paid for something and think only about what its value is right now.


Now, of course you're always going to have low-ball offers, even if you try to warn them off in the posting. They're hoping that you're desperate enough to sell quickly. They could even turn right around and resell your lens at the normal going price (by waiting long enough). So just ignore them.


Another issue that tends to trip up sellers is over-valuing the accessories. To me, as a buyer, protection filters are completely worthless. Same with warranties, tripod collars, etc. If you don't want to include them for free, sell them separately (probably for a steeper used discount than the lens, because they usually do not hold their value as well).


Here's what I suggest: find the last 5 completed sales of your lens, excluding the outliers (broken, scratched, moldy, etc.) and average the price. What you wont see is what it *really* sold for -- some of the sellers may have accepted a lower offer than their listing price.

Thanks, Daniel! I do look at what I paid and what it is selling for currently on numerous sites, what people on FM are selling for and sort of do a Denise formula of averaging! I due tend to price alittle higher when theirs is a number of years old and mine is a few months old though. A majority of the time price hasn't really changed much anyway from what I paid to what it's going for now.

I don't buy/sell photo gear much, but I do negotiate real estate daily for my job. One simple rule is never "bid against yourself". If you have an item on Craigslist or wherever, you will see emails asking "are you willing to come down on that"? Don't do it. Just email back asking them flat-out if they want to make a counteroffer or not. If not, then you have nothing more to say to them.