Sure seems mad to me. I thought that the insane prices paid by Japanese collectors were due to their isolation from sources of stuff, and expected that as eBay opened up greater availability, they would become less willing to pay outrageous prices, as they would come to realize that a similar item would be offered on eBay in a few weeks if they didn't get the one offered today. This does't seem to have happened. Instead, the Japanese collectors are now bidding up Campy stuff as well as the French stuff they have traditionally favored. It does seem, though, that all of these excessive bids are coming from a very small group of Japanese collectors, almost certainly fewer than a dozen, and usually only about a half dozen, who bid on all the same eBay items. It almost seems this small group are competing to impress one another by paying excessive prices, just as select groups of millionaire art collectors delight in outbidding one another for some category of expensive artwork.
Hard to predict how long this will continue before "the bubble bursts". Perhaps one of the group will encounter financial problems and be forced to sell off his collection at much less than he paid, which might restore reason to the whole group. Or perhaps changes in Japanese society will "empower" Japanese wives to object to some of these expenditures in the way American wives would (you can bet my better half would have plenty to say if I spent $1,775 on a rear derailleur). Meantime, there seem to be two entirely different markets for classic bike stuff - one is the price most of us will buy or sell at, the other is a price that could be ten times higher if the item happens to be one which strikes the fancy of the Japanese collectors. Yet there seems to be no reliable way to predict which items they will show an interest in, as they have now departed from their Francophile pattern. Personally, I'd rather see the hobby stay affordable for everyone than try to get rich selling to kauzo and his colleagues on eBay. Don't think I'll be listing my stiff on eBay anytime soon.
Regards,
Jerry Moos
-----Original Message----- From: Huemax@aol.com [mailto:Huemax@aol.com] Sent: Friday, June 01, 2001 5:27 PM To: hayesbikes@nls.net; classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Subject: Re: [CR]Another Ebay auction of interest
In a message dated 6/1/01 4:58:46 PM, hayesbikes@mail.nls.net writes:
It is simply MADNESS, I checked BID History, all bidders excpt "record543", all others; famous Kauzo, taki59, fwig, and evergreenhs2, are Japanese bidders.
We have to put together older collectable parts together and open "PARTS SHOP" IN JAPAN, somehow. It will be a succesful business??
Warmest Regards,
KEN TODA, my US dollars is getting weak?, due to lower prime. Now the time to sell, from Groomy wet North Carolina.