DungeonDelver wrote:My wife and I were talking about this as we drove back to Chicago from Lake Geneva this past June; I mentioned that when I got back I'd need to pay for a couple eBay items, got started talking about collecting, yadda yadda.Anyway I told her about my true 1st DMG and true 1st MM I picked up from a local used bookstore for $2.50 each - the one I talked about here back some months ago. The lady who owns the store is generally a pretty nice old woman, and I told the wife that if I was ever poking through the RPG stuff she has and came across something truly amazing - a woody, a copy of Tsojconth, or Toamachan - you know, something super rare with another $5.00 tag on it I wasn't entirely sure what I'd do. I mean, there I am in a bookstore I've gone to for months, and the lady who owns it has (whether she realized it or not) helped me out by buying bulk books from me, plus asking for the occasional help with her computer(s) and so on. She's no dummy; I've seen her handling RARE books (real books, not RPG collectibles) and pricing accordingly but I can't help but wonder that if she let something like that slip exactly how I'd handle it.I mean, on the one hand, if I took it home and kept it with no intent of selling it (and to be quite frank I'm not entirely sure I'd ever want to let something like one of the rare, multi-thousand-dollar-price commanding items go, ever), then in the end it works out the same. On the other hand, if I turned right around and sold it...myself I think I'd take at least 20%-25% back to her (assuming that some serious financial disaster hadn't beset us) and say "Hey, that book I bought the other day turns out to have been worth a bundle, so you take this cut."...or at least I'd like to think I would.Of course the third option...taking it to the front counter and saying "Hey...uh, Donna? This is worth five grand. No, really. Go to this website here and check." Would I do that...? Would you?
Badmike wrote:If she is in business at a bookstore and that is her job, she should know the worth of her items. Ebay is just a fingerclick away. If she has a price on it, then that is what she wants for it, if you pay the price it's yours. If she can't be bothered to check it out on Ebay first, tough luck.Mike B.
red_bus wrote:Hmmm, I disagree with Mike and Al.In your case, you have gotten to know and be friendly (if not actual friends) with the store owner, who has helped you out. She is by your accounts no dummy, and so if you see a Woodgrain for $10 then she has clearly made a mistake. I think taking maximum advantage of this person's mistake is not ethical. I would buy it, take it home, value it correctly, then return, tell her that she made a mistake and offer her a %age (maybe 20-25%). There are different ways of looking at a problem like this. One is to judge according to your own set of morals and adjust according to circumstances (in the case above, I would act differently if the person was rude to me, or it was a big chain store rather than a small shop). Another way is to try and fomulate a set of rules which applies across most circumstances (e.g. "never give a sucker an even break"). I prefer the former.
killjoy32 wrote:biz is biz at the end of the day, but between friends, thats a different matter.Al
red_bus wrote:Fair 'nuff Al. However, what is good about that question is that it isn't clear. If it was (a) a mate has this item... or (b) WalMart has this item... then there would be no debate. But this is an in-between case and I think that is where the interest lies.
red_bus wrote:killjoy32 wrote:biz is biz at the end of the day, but between friends, thats a different matter.Fair 'nuff Al. However, what is good about that question is that it isn't clear. If it was (a) a mate has this item... or (b) WalMart has this item... then there would be no debate. But this is an in-between case and I think that is where the interest lies.
killjoy32 wrote:biz is biz at the end of the day, but between friends, thats a different matter.
JohnGaunt wrote:If the store is a small store, then I would share the profits. If the store is part of a chain (like Half-Price Books), then hell no.
AdderMcOne wrote:My only problem with the scenarios concerning the woodgrain on the shelf for $10 would be that I'd be a dead give-away.It would look very suss with a bloke, smiling from ear to ear, madly grabbing his wallet to rip the $10 out, with his hands trembling. The cash hitting the counter the same time as the bell above the door announces my exit from the store. Friends and Biz are definitely different stories though. Too bad Mr Walmart/Half Price books, you get what you ask for.
That's why you hum and haw and haggle him down to $7. It looks less suspicious.