That Joke - promo white label test pressing - why so much?

[Dave2006]

Am I missing something with this auction?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230572997848&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

White label / test pressings aren't my thing, so I don't claim to be an expert...

But why is this at £157 with an hour to go, when Record Collector only valued it at £35 in 2005?

From Passions:

UK 7" promo [Rough Trade RT186]
Although the main means of promotion for this single was 'white label' 12"s, two different promos on 7" format have been reported. These presumably served more limited promotional purposes. Both are of the 'white label' type, but neither has strictly white labels.

* Mayking label promo
This version was pressed by MPO in France and therefore has Mayking labels. A sticker with release information is stuck to the a-side's upper half. The bottom is stamped with the letter 'A' and the date '3 MAY 1985' and has 'RT 186' in handwriting. It is usually found slipped inside a plain card sleeve with an 'Appearing' promo bill glued to its front.
Listed in Record Collector magazine's top Smiths collectibles in 1988, value £25.
Ranked #46 in the 1992 Record Collector Top 100 Smiths collectibles, value £20.
Ranked #79 in the 2005 Record Collector Top 100 Smiths collectibles, value £35.

* light beige label promo
The other variation was pressed in England and allegedly pre-dates the Mayking version (it was probably pressed on 23 April just like the test pressings described below). It has light beige labels with handwritten release information on them. The sides are stamped 'A' and 'B' in circles. The record is slipped inside a black die-cut sleeve with a gold Scott Piering contact sticker on it. This version may also have come with a Scott Piering press release.
Listed in Record Collector magazine's top Smiths collectibles in 1988, value £25.​

Dave

 

[mikael]

I'll say it'll go for about £500 to win, RC is a guide but often a joke.

 

[Dave2006]

Wow - that must be the one they got most wrong.

£500 - are you bidding?

Dave

 

[mikael]

I'm saying £500 to win, no I'm not bidding but don't expect to see another copy any time soon.

 

[Dave2006]

Well £355 - it's ten times what RC said

I hope someone is very happy with it. Maybe it will appear in collectors corner in the next few days...

Dave

 

[mikael]

Again, RC is a joke.

 

[Inox]

Same promo white label test pressing was sold for 92 GBP a few days before X-mas.

http://cgi.ebay.nl/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290513606219&ssPageName=STRK:MEDWX:IT

No, I was not the lucky winner....

Take care, Marcel

 

[mikael]

Jesus christ! How come you didn't win it Marcel? You find everything!

 

[Dave2006]

I wonder if the buyer of the £92 one is the flipper of the £355 one... jammy get.

Dave

 

[Inox]

I wonder if the buyer of the £92 one is the flipper of the £355 one... jammy get.

A little detective work on eBay and.... Yes, it is the same buyer and seller. He just chanced the description from "white label promo" to "promo white label test pressing" and earned £263 within one month. That's how eBay works!

Take care, Marcel

 

[Dave2006]

A little detective work on eBay and.... Yes, it is the same buyer and seller. He just chanced the description from "white label promo" to "promo white label test pressing" and earned £263 within one month. That's how eBay works!

Take care, Marcel

Full credit to the guy - he found it and he has the right to sell it.

I like the fact that he auctions items (the proper ebay way) rather than having a 'buy it now' which is over priced and is used by too many traders.

Dave

 

[Inox]

I like the fact that he auctions items (the proper eBay way) rather than having a 'buy it now' which is over priced and is used by too many traders.

Dave, I totally agree with you! He is one of those sellers that knows how eBay should work....no over priced "buy it now" option but just a very low starting price.

Take care, Marcel

 

[Sidwell4]

Full credit to the guy - he found it and he has the right to sell it.

I like the fact that he auctions items (the proper ebay way) rather than having a 'buy it now' which is over priced and is used by too many traders.

Dave

AFAIK, you should be registered as a business seller if you buy things to (later) sell on.

Furthermore, the seller took £92 for a Panic (lyrics) promo poster which would probably have been listed for LESS by most sellers (if they were using the BIN option).

That just goes to show how little you know...

 

[Dave2006]

AFAIK, you should be registered as a business seller if you buy things to (later) sell on.

Furthermore, the seller took £92 for a Panic (lyrics) promo poster which would probably have been listed for LESS by most sellers (if they were using the BIN option).

That just goes to show how little you know...

I'm not going to get into a war of words with you Sidwell...

There's nothing illegal about buying stuff cheaply on ebay (either because the seller didn't know the true value of what they had or because they simply described it poorly) and then re-selling it (giving a better description, more photos etc) and hoping to turn a profit. Most of us call it 'flipping', eBay actually call it 'Arbitrage' and they have 'how to' guides on their sites.

For all we know, Barbersfloor may very well be registered with HMRC and be paying all of the relevant taxes. However, any profits maybe offset by expenditure on other items - call it 'stock' rather than your 'record collection' - it's not hard for any small business / sole trader to show that they make zero profit each year.

In terms of the Panic poster. I was watching that, I watch most of the promo posters, I have most, but a few elude me and I'm always interested to know what my collection might be worth if I need to cash it in... I doubt that if Barbersfloor had listed it as a 'buy it now' for £90 that anyone would have bought it. It rarely goes for more than £40 - 50 take a look at some of these historic sales With an auction there is always a chance that, for whatever reason, two bidders are desperate for the item and will bid silly money on it, it only takes two for the price to shoot up.

Take a look at the bids for the poster last night 9 people placed the bids, but only two people bid £90 or above, for whatever reason both wanted it so much they bid very high hoping to out bid all others... and Barbersfloor got a great price for their poster - which they may have owned for twenty years, or twenty days.


Dave

 

[roky]

AFAIK, you should be registered as a business seller if you buy things to (later) sell on.

Furthermore, the seller took £92 for a Panic (lyrics) promo poster which would probably have been listed for LESS by most sellers (if they were using the BIN option).

That just goes to show how little you know...

It shows how little I know. What the hell is AFAIK?

Don't hassle Dave, I might have to send someone out for ya..

 

[roky]

He sure did have ALOT of SCOTT PIERING's promos

But this is bizarre...

 

[Flax]

AFAIK, you should be registered as a business seller if you buy things to (later) sell on.

Furthermore, the seller took £92 for a Panic (lyrics) promo poster which would probably have been listed for LESS by most sellers (if they were using the BIN option).

That just goes to show how little you know...

Oh shut up. You add nothing to the conversation and I'm pretty sure nobody here is interested in your meaningless rants. Go away.