advertising antique auction auto autos automobilia automotive autos brochure
brochures car cars carhobby car hobby catalog catalogs danbury dealer demo
factory franklin kit kits
memorabilia mint mobilia model
models owner's manual owner's handbook poster posters promo promos promotional promotionals replica replicas
salesman's sample scale toy toys vintage
Clarence
Young Autohobby
Automotive
Musings
***
So You Really Want to Trade
Me Something?
Everyone knows that when you trade your old car for a new one at a new-car
dealership, that the trade-in allowance that they give you is always much less than the
value of the car. This used to aggravate me greatly, but in time I began to understand it.
I deal with it by retailing my car at my own expense and it does takes some expense of
both my money and my time to do that. And to some extent that is why the new car dealer
discounts your car.
Often, my customers want to trade a promo "even" for a promo
that I have. Please let me explain why there is no such thing as an "even" trade
for me. Let's suppose that I make the mythical "even" trade.
Step One...Car is put on "hold" at website...10 minutes.
Step Two...Car is removed from inventory...10 minutes.
Step Three..Car is packaged for shipment...15 minutes.
Step Four...Car is taken to post office or UPS...40 minutes.
Step Five...The trade-in car is received and is cleaned up and
detailed...30 minutes minimum.
Step Six...The car traded away has its picture deleted from website...10
minutes.
Step Seven...The trade-in car is entered into inventory...15 minutes.
Step Eight...A picture is taken of the trade-in car...10 minutes.
Step Nine...The picture is transferred to my computer...5 minutes.
Step Ten...A description and appropriate links are done at website...20
minutes.
Total time...Two hours and forty-five minutes. (Even I was shocked when I
totaled this!)
Whew! And now I am supposed to ask exactly the same price for the
trade-in as I did the car that I just traded away. Think about
it. My position becomes exactly the same as the new car dealer.
Since this website is my way of making a living, I must make a profit. All
trade-ins will be traded in at 50% of anticipated retail value.
Value: Part I
A question often received from novice collectors is, "Why do your promos cost so
much?" It’s a question that seems a bit funny to a seasoned collector and yet it
is a fair question.
When discussing collectibles, there are two kinds of value to be considered. There is
utility value and there is emotional value. The only reason to discuss utility
value is to have a reference point for understanding collectible value.
Utilitarian value is the only kind of "real" value that anything has. For
example, a washing machine is worth $500 because it pays for itself with the work that it
does. It is useful.
Collectible value is much more complex because it is comes from a deeper
place in our psyche. Promo model cars, when new, actually had useful value first
to the auto dealer who gave it to the kid in hopes the dad would soften up and
buy that new Buick Century Estate wagon. Then it had useful value to the mom and dad who enjoyed some
peace and quiet on a rainy day as the kid contentedly played with his toy Buick sedan.
That kid grew up, reared a family and actually managed to have a bit of disposable
income. He developed a warm place inside himself for his parents and the simple, good
times of his childhood. And, always he liked cars-especially cars of the era when he was a
child.
Now that the "kid" is a collector he finds that it is not easy to find just
exactly what he is looking for in just the right color and just the right quality. There
are quite a few collectors out there collecting the same things. Supply and demand rears
its ugly head. The collector realizes that he will have to step up to the plate and pay a little more
than he had hoped. All of this is for something that has no "real" value,
something that won’t wash clothes or provide a place to sit or do anything.
And yet, there is value to owning these silly little cars. That spot in the heart is
warmed; the eye is pleased; there is comfort.
Back to the washing machine. People will pay $500 for the washing machine basically
because they need to do so, but they will not pay a penny more. It has a certain value. On
the other hand, a collectible is something that people want. They will pay a penny more
than the other guy for it, but the other guy ups it another penny. At some point the
emotion or the money to support the emotion stops and the value for the collectible is
determined, at least for a moment.
Assuming the funds to do so, people will always pay more for what they want than what
they need. We are lucky to be in such a position.
The Pleasure of Collecting
Most
people fall into the categories of being either very interested in collecting or
not at all interested. If I were given $500 mad money, I would buy something
neat for my collection. Other folks would go to the beach. Among
collectors there are all kinds of themes and philosophies of collecting.
Honestly, most collections in and of themselves are boring to most outsiders.
Collections come alive when the owner starts telling you about his collection. As often as not, the experience of
acquiring individual items is more interesting than the item itself.
For me collecting is more about discovery than
anything else. Several years ago someone sent me a reprint of a flyer sent to Kaiser
dealers promoting the Henry J Banthrico plastic bank. In twenty years of serious
collecting, I had never come across this piece and I decided that it did not exist. Never say
"never." Recently a friend prodded me into going to a pre-dawn tailgate flea market. He
didn’t find anything, but I did. Yep, I found a Henry J bank as described in the
flyer. It made my day. It made my month. It made my year!
