Opinions on people who sell used items for profit

[jupzones]

Hi everybody,

recently i sold a certain pedal to a certain user on soft who shall remain unnamed.

i let it go to him for $100, after reserving it for him for more than 1 week.

turns out a couple of days later, i see him selling it for $120.

what really bothers me is, why did he bother asking me to reserve for him if this was his intention all along?

I had to turn down offers from other potential buyers who may have used the pedal to improve their playing and have fun with it, rather than sell it for profit.


However even if doesn't like the pedal, he did not state in the WTS post it was secondhand and he increased the price i sold it to him by $20.

Call me jealous that he's earning more than me, but personally I don't like this.

Your thoughts?

 

[M.I.A]

lax man money only

it will go to someone who wants to improve himself still

 

[MilkTea]

To me i think that it's ok with what he had done. its his pedal now , he can do what even he want with it. everyone wants to earn a profit. haha however yea.. u are right.. maybe the pedal should be sold to some1 who really need it .. haha no offence dude

 

[hifi_killer]

as i much as i hate it too, i've got to admit theres absolutely nothing wrong with it.
but well it just shows that your price is too low. Do some research before you decide on the pricing.

There have been worse cases when u give somebody something for free and he sell it.

 

[THOA]

I seriously don't see a problem with that.

I think you are seeing this more as an ethical standpoint rather than an issue about fairness, cos from the fairness perspective, it is actually fair. The deal between you and him was already made and met. You chose to turn down other buyers who may or may not offer you at a higher price. You chose to reserve for him, despite the fact that you can turn that request down cos you have the right to turn it down.

In short, you earned what you asked for.

When the deal is done, the ownership of the item becomes his, so he has the right to do what he may with the pedal eg selling at a higher price than what he got it for.

It's all part of business.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[shinobi]

maybe he just didn't like the pedal lah. in a legal sense, there is nothing wrong. but price is something that doesnt remain constant, if it was the case where you were the only seller of that pedal in the 2nd hand market, and having bought the only pedal of that kind, he can still increase the price and nobody can do a thing until someone else offers the same pedal at a lower price. that is the principle behind 'spoiling market', which i feel is the bigger concern here

 

[KissMyAxe]

To me its ok. Like MilkTea said, it now belongs to him and he can do whatever he wants.

 

[sleepykitty]

Yea what THAO said..

 

[jupzones]

yupp it's his pedal and i'm sure he can do whatever he wants with it.

but like THOA said, it's an ethical standpoint.

$20 gain to deprive someone else who may have needed it more?

and it doesnt come down to me pricing my item too low, as i have seen my item go for around that price.

oh well, just needed to get it out of my system.

thanks guys

 

[bongman]

this is what we call 'Buy low, sell high' !

there are a number of music gear broker here
especially for synth market.

I know a few who do this for a living,
one is a M'sian, one buys here and sells in Batam !?

 

[blank]

There's nothing wrong with that.
You're just pissed off that you didn't sell it higher.

I mean, I can understand where you're coming from, but the fact is, you sold it to him, and now he can do whatever he wants to with it. Whether he is a prick or not is a different thing.

However, on the point on him not mentioning it was second-hand. You should've ruined his post by mentioning you had sold it to him and that it's second-hand.

 

[THOA]

However, on the point on him not mentioning it was second-hand. You should've ruined his post by mentioning you had sold it to him and that it's second-hand.

That would mean being unethical yourself. Which puts you in just as bad a position.

My thought would be to just let things be.

Since you mentioned that you are selling the pedal to him at the average price of what people are selling it for, it's gonna be tough for him to gain any profit from selling it off. I guess he was more trying to minimise his loss rather than gaining any profit, knowing that he would probably have to lower his prices further.

 

[bongman]

this is business !

 

[edder]

its ok but if... and IF the fella lowballs you and says that he's buying this pedal to donate to some charity or if someone had died and he's got no money or something like that.... then its downright ethically WRONG.

as i've learnt a lot from recent events here.... Business is amoral.

 

[deathism]

well..i dunno wad exactly is goin on..but..

lets say..i buy a pedal..$100..

den i tried it and i didnt like it and i most certainly did not want to make any losses.

it wont be wrong to put $130 (neg)..

cos perhaps i wud want to sell it off at $100 and the $30 was juz a "buffer" zone??

 

[blank]

Unethical?
You are not being unethical by letting buyers know that the seller is a liar.

If you ruined his post by say... posting another ad on his post selling the same item for less, then yes, that would be unethical.

The guy did not mention it was second-hand, I don't see how it is unethical to let people know that it IS second-hand.

I don't know about you la, but if someone is trying to scam people, I would let everyone know and I wouldn't just keep it to myself and let some guy get ripped off.

 

[hayabusa]

uh oh.. i was just toying with the idea of buying used instruments to open a second-hand shop. anyway my 3 cents is that buyer should have been honest and tell you that he's going to make a living out of your sold item. it really makes the difference.

and, ethically speaking, what goes around comes around. so, he shouldn't have sold it around your circle.

 

[neverconscious]

I'd only take exception with the seller if he specifically lied about certain details that would influence people to buy the item. Stuff like

"I'm the first owner of the item. Bought two months ago from E-nex." when he's actually the second or third owner.

"I'm already taking a big loss on this, guys! Grab it fast!" when there is actually no monetary loss - other than time spent buying the item, trying it out and then realising it wasn't for him.

IMO, pricing of an item should be based on its condition and its market value. The price at which it was bought should not matter, just that potential buyers should be careful.