First of all im new here so i would like to say hello to everyone. Im new to coin collecting and this is my first post. Well i have a Tabora Pound coin that i decided to sell recently i found the german auction house Kunker and sent them an email stating that i would like to sell my tabora pound through them. They were very professional and friendly but i sent them the coin withbthe understanding that the auction would take place in 45 days when in reality it would take place in 3-4 months. I thought that was too long and they also wanted to place the coin on the floor auction because the coin is like new. However they wanted a 20% fee after the coin was sold. I thought well i'll just sell it myself and they sent me the coin back immediately. I felt bad but i hadn't signed a contract so all is well.They were a little upset which is understandeable... 600 euros is around their fee- after the coin was sold. Out of curiosity i sent an email to WAG online and asked them if there was an auction before march and if january would be a possibility. It took them over two days to respond and they asked if i had a picture of the coin. Ofcourse i sent them a picture and they replied days later saying that they can't tell if the coin is real so no they are not interested!!!!!! I replied saying that the procedure is always to have the coin sent, checked and stored. The replyni received was "we have never heard from you before and out of nowhere you come up with an expensive coin you want us to sell"....we have to be careful so we are not interested"!!!!!!!!! I feel insulted this is not professional and it is very strange and rude. I asked to talk with someone else incharge there but im just being ignored. I really dont know what to say about this..
Are you saying Kunker wanted a 20% SELLERS fee in addition to the BUYERS fee, or was it 20% total between the two? If Kunker was asking their normal buyers fee AND a 20% sellers fee that would be odd or perhaps there was some miscommunication going on. Auction houses do have buyer's fees that are somewhat substantial, and if you are a small/unknown consigner there can also be seller's fees. Large customers can negotiate away a portion of these, but a new person with a limited consignment would not have the leverage. Example--Heritage has a roughly 17.5% buyer's premium AND a seller's fee. The seller's fee can be waived but might be 5% or so depending on what you can negotiate. Some large dealers might get '104% of the hammer' which translates to no sellers fee and a portion of the buyer's fee. That will not be offered to the 'small fry'. Note: Heritage is the only big house I've ever used to sell, so that is the example I can use. It sounds like WAG was not interested after you informed them how to run their business practice in your second email to them. Depending on the tone of the email you sent, someone may have lost their temper with you a wee bit and were more straightforward than they normally would have been. A lot of business relies on personal relationships and if you don't have one, then your comments sounded a bit presumptuous. All this relies on no language barriers or communication barriers. What may have been intended as a polite inquiry or response may not have been communicated well. The way I read your description of the second email you sent them does sound inflammatory. Again, you may not have written it that way or intended it that way, but that is how it sounds in this reading. If you are serious about selling your coin in an auction, look to another house...read their terms first so you understand. Contact them and if you have a truly remarkable coin they may be open to negotiation. Understand their terms so there are no surprises, and understand their timelines. Consignments to the larger houses do seem rather slow from mailing the coins to receiving a check. Being in a rush, being (even unintentionally) high handed, and not following THEIR standard procedures would, I imagine, be red flags to them. I'm sure they have all been victims of fraud and have their procedures in place to maintain their business integrity. Their business, their rules. I'm sure you did not intend to insult WAG, but it sounds like you did.
Are you saying Kunker wanted a 20% SELLERS fee in addition to the BUYERS fee, or was it 20% total between the two? If Kunker was asking their normal buyers fee AND a 20% sellers fee that would be odd or perhaps there was some miscommunication going on. Auction houses do have buyer's fees that are somewhat substantial, and if you are a small/unknown consigner there can also be seller's fees. Large customers can negotiate away a portion of these, but a new person with a limited consignment would not have the leverage. Example--Heritage has a roughly 17.5% buyer's premium AND a seller's fee. The seller's fee can be waived but might be 5% or so depending on what you can negotiate. Some large dealers might get '104% of the hammer' which translates to no sellers fee and a portion of the buyer's fee. That will not be offered to the 'small fry'. Note: Heritage is the only big house I've ever used to sell, so that is the example I can use. It sounds like WAG was not interested after you informed them how to run their business practice in your second email to them. Depending on the tone of the email you sent, someone may have lost their temper with you a wee bit and were more straightforward than they normally would have been. A lot of business relies on personal relationships and if you don't have one, then your comments sounded a bit presumptuous. All this relies on no language barriers or communication barriers. What may have been intended as a polite inquiry or response may not have been communicated well. The way I read your description of the second email you sent them does sound inflammatory. Again, you may not have written it that way or intended it that way, but that is how it sounds in this reading. If you are serious about selling your coin in an auction, look to another house...read their terms first so you understand. Contact them and if you have a truly remarkable coin they may be open to negotiation. Understand their terms so there are no surprises, and understand their timelines. Consignments to the larger houses do seem rather slow from mailing the coins to receiving a check. Being in a rush, being (even unintentionally) high handed, and not following THEIR standard procedures would, I imagine, be red flags to them. I'm sure they have all been victims of fraud and have their procedures in place to maintain their business integrity. Their business, their rules. I'm sure you did not intend to insult WAG, but it sounds like you did.
Very good response, Stork. OP - Can you share the picture? I am not familiar with the issue. It sounds like quite a high end piece for a starting collector.
