# Ebay gone mad



## ehanes7612 (Sep 21, 2016)

Nice plant but nowhere worth the price...and the starting bid and buy it now has doubled in the past 24 hours

http://www.ebay.com/itm/918-11-Paph...885484?hash=item41b396e72c:g:CQIAAOSw4shX4Aqt


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## Stone (Sep 21, 2016)

And for a hybrid! Insanity. Although a friend showed us some Paph hybrids for sale at the Tokyo Dome and the most expensive was around $26.000 and that for a silly single flowered complex. 10 or 12 thousand dollar tags were common!


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## emydura (Sep 21, 2016)

To be honest the petals are a little too droopy for my liking. There are better ones.


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## ehanes7612 (Sep 21, 2016)

yeah, I dont think it's FCC potential...the sepal is nice but the flowers are too far spaced from each other, not oriented well enough (tilted) and like you said, the petals are too droopy..would like to see more rounded shoulders..especially for an FCC and that price


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## troy (Sep 21, 2016)

Lol..


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## Happypaphy7 (Sep 21, 2016)

Well, everyone has a different view and taste. 

Whoever finds this nice enough for their taste and is willing to put down the money, why not? It is a free market after all.

You know, there are many many wealthy people out there, right?
That is nothing.


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## Happypaphy7 (Sep 21, 2016)

Talking about "mad" 
The listing description says "minor" damage. 
To me, this plant is non-saleable. 


http://www.ebay.com/itm/Paphiopedilum-Magic-Lantern-Blooming-Size-Orchid-Paph-Primary-Hybrid/232086388264?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D39218%26meid%3D27ca07b9563740c691b871019049d986%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D371742807063


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## paphioland (Sep 21, 2016)

Stone said:


> And for a hybrid! Insanity. Although a friend showed us some Paph hybrids for sale at the Tokyo Dome and the most expensive was around $26.000 and that for a silly single flowered complex. 10 or 12 thousand dollar tags were common!



Not justifying the price but makes lots more sense for complex. Although complex prices should be coming down as average quality has improved in good crosses. And demand I think is prob down. But if you can get the price then more power to you.


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## paphioland (Sep 21, 2016)

ehanes7612 said:


> yeah, I dont think it's FCC potential...the sepal is nice but the flowers are too far spaced from each other, not oriented well enough (tilted) and like you said, the petals are too droopy..would like to see more rounded shoulders..especially for an FCC and that price



The spike is not staked properly that is why it is droopy. I prefer flowers to be well spaced. It's hard to even tell flower spacing from the pic. Much of flower arrangement is environment. Like how they are facing. The negative for this flower are petal width and lack of synsepal. Although the picture isn't great so hard to see. The dimensions are certainly not mind blowing. Only three flowers in ideal climate with multiple growths. That's concerning. Also why photo the top flower usually the second flower is best. The picture really is just not good enough to accurately evaluate I think.


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## MorandiWine (Sep 21, 2016)

It is all about perceived value. Also could be a marketing ploy, list an "average" plant with an obnoxious price then follow that up with more realistic pricing. The buzz about the $4500 plant is advertising for the $200 plant that is certainly more obtainable. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## ehanes7612 (Sep 22, 2016)

MorandiWine said:


> It is all about perceived value. Also could be a marketing ploy, list an "average" plant with an obnoxious price then follow that up with more realistic pricing. The buzz about the $4500 plant is advertising for the $200 plant that is certainly more obtainable.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



that makes a lot of sense ..actually


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## ehanes7612 (Sep 22, 2016)

Happypaphy7 said:


> Well, everyone has a different view and taste.
> 
> Whoever finds this nice enough for their taste and is willing to put down the money, why not? It is a free market after all.
> 
> ...



there are many wealthy people out there...but I would imagine that if they are going to spend money on this they would want it to be a 'one of a kind' situation...this is not a one of a kind..so if they buy this that pretty much makes them a fool...a fool with a lot of money


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## Happypaphy7 (Sep 22, 2016)

I agree. This is good but certainly not one of a kind as I've seen quite a few of this quality and better. 

Just saying the difference in taste and view though. 
Some people don't care much about flatness, size, and such. 
They just look and like it enough, and can afford, they just go for it. No logic. Not a fool in his/her sense. Just owning something what they are happy with. What others think is meaningless.


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## PaphMadMan (Sep 22, 2016)

You'd think at that price they could at least throw in free shipping.


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## troy (Sep 22, 2016)

I would think people that have enough money to throw down 4 gs on a mediocre plant would have enough sense to google it and find one that is truly worth the extra money, compare that one to ramon de los santos plant


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## MorandiWine (Sep 22, 2016)

Another point is that if you have that much money to throw down on a plant and you likely won't be going to eBay to do it. 


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## Justin (Sep 22, 2016)

i would not call this a mediocre plant. I think Ken pretty much nailed it with his commentary. 

I would call this a very high AM, possibly a 90 point FCC. I saw an FCC JB get awarded here with 90 points once and it was very similar except it was not as dark (normal adductum parent). 

So it is a very nice plant. 4k is too high for it in my opinion but it is whatever the market will bear in the end.


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## Happypaphy7 (Sep 22, 2016)

MorandiWine said:


> Another point is that if you have that much money to throw down on a plant and you likely won't be going to eBay to do it.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



Why not??

Plus, there are things like cars and arts sold on eBay. 
It's just another place to shop.


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## theorchidzone (Sep 22, 2016)

Yes, EBAY is a good platform for selling expensive plants... and cheap ones too. The doubters would be surprised.



Happypaphy7 said:


> Why not??
> 
> Plus, there are things like cars and arts sold on eBay.
> It's just another place to shop.


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## Ozpaph (Sep 22, 2016)

Id love to own it, but not for that price. Sometimes people just 'try it on'. You never know who might want it badly enough.


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## Stone (Sep 22, 2016)

MorandiWine said:


> It is all about perceived value.
> 
> Yes. I sell on ebay and some of the prices I get for certain things is extraordinary. Sometimes I feel embarrassed with the bids. But then I think, if they want it that much they must value it a lot more than I do so go for it!
> It is a form of madness that all collectors have in one way or another.


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## Ozpaph (Sep 22, 2016)

exactly


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## Mike4Paph (Sep 22, 2016)

Ebay is a funny place. There are stuff I thought would worth more and sold for less, and there are times when I thought "no way" for that price and the plant was sold for even more. I was watching a nice Sukhakulii alba listing last night, and boom it was gone this morning, apparently sold for the asking "buy me now" price. Same thing with a Phalaenopsis hieroglyphica item over last weekend. I was watching it and then noticed there was an aggressive bidder whom would bid higher and higher. That item was listed at 50 but sold for 700 with 79 bids total. It was insanity in full display. Some Cattleyas on Ebay are known to get bid aggressively due to the value of rarity or so tightly held that practically just a couple of people on the planet has a division of those historic plants. The JB in the current listing here is nice, but IMO, the price is way off, maybe 4-10X off. I saw it was initially listed at half the current low price then got bump shortly afterwards. I would purchase a top class JB with awards or high potential of such at a modest fraction of listed here, but then again, I maybe the cheapskate in the orchid world when it comes to expensive plants.


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## Happypaphy7 (Sep 23, 2016)

theorchidzone said:


> Yes, EBAY is a good platform for selling expensive plants... and cheap ones too. The doubters would be surprised.



Oh, yes!


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## Gilda (Sep 23, 2016)

We bought a lot of Breckenridge Orchids stock that went out of business years ago and resold several on Ebay. 

Mark Rose had a lot of desirable awarded orchids paphs , phrags and phals and as we were astonished to find out watching the first auction end ,and a paph ( I'd have to go look at records to see what it was) brought $350 !!! We were shocked and made trip after trip to NC to buy more to Ebay ! I kept a few for myself ,too !


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## jacqi (Sep 25, 2016)

*Shipping cost gone mad?*

I have been looking at phrags on e-bay lately and have noticed one vendor charging $25 dollars to ship one plant. Now I understand if its a large plant,
but has shipping plants really gotten that expensive?


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## troy (Sep 25, 2016)

No it doesn't cost that much, unless it's over 10 pounds or a huge box


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## gonewild (Sep 25, 2016)

jacqi said:


> I have been looking at phrags on e-bay lately and have noticed one vendor charging $25 dollars to ship one plant. Now I understand if its a large plant,
> but has shipping plants really gotten that expensive?



The seller probably considers the actual cost of shipping to include the packing materials and labor to prepare and package the plant. If the seller has a real business that depends on profit and has an employee then $25 is close to his cost. Postage is only a part of the actual shipping cost for a real business.


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## PaphMadMan (Sep 25, 2016)

jacqi said:


> I have been looking at phrags on e-bay lately and have noticed one vendor charging $25 dollars to ship one plant. Now I understand if its a large plant,
> but has shipping plants really gotten that expensive?



I've seen cases where vendors pair high shipping costs with low plant prices, quite obviously hoping that low plant prices attract attention but they still make a profit. It could make a difference in the fees that eBay collects too, but I know eBay policies have changed on that over time.


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## jacqi (Sep 25, 2016)

PaphMadMan said:


> I've seen cases where vendors pair high shipping costs with low plant prices, quite obviously hoping that low plant prices attract attention but they still make a profit. It could make a difference in the fees that eBay collects too, but I know eBay policies have changed on that over time.



Possible, but the Vendor I was looking at is well respected and running a bunch
of auctions on his plants and the price of shipping went up from one week to the next. His plants regularly bring good prices because they are good plants.


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## silence882 (Sep 25, 2016)

It may depend on which service is being used for shipping. OZ charges more for shipping than is typical, but they use Fedex 2-day rather than USPS like most eBay vendors. Fedex and UPS are going to be substantially more, but they're a lot more reliable.



jacqi said:


> I have been looking at phrags on e-bay lately and have noticed one vendor charging $25 dollars to ship one plant. Now I understand if its a large plant,
> but has shipping plants really gotten that expensive?


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## JAB (Sep 25, 2016)

Well let me say this... UPS is a complete joke and is not only unreliable, they could give a rats ass about your goods. Why anyone uses them is beyond me. 
Fedex is pricey, but they are also the most professional and reliable. 
USPS... what can I say!? Have you seen the people that work there?? And on the flip side of that coin... have you seen what they pay postal carriers? USPS 2nd day I have had zero issues with when it comes to orchids. It does seem to me that you have to pay at least 2nd day to get good service. 

In the end I think the lesson is you get what you pay for! Oh... and UPS is garbage. 

JAB


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## PaphMadMan (Sep 25, 2016)

silence882 said:


> It may depend on which service is being used for shipping. OZ charges more for shipping than is typical, but they use Fedex 2-day rather than USPS like most eBay vendors. Fedex and UPS are going to be substantially more, but they're a lot more reliable.



Exactly the opposite of my experience. Rarely a problem of any kind with USPS beyond an occasional 1 day delay. If UPS or Fed-Ex manage to get an undamaged box to me those are the ones they abandon at the door in a high foot traffic area in hot sun or below freezing temps. Requiring a signature or not is random relative to the service specified, and if a package is not delivered and goes back on the truck it may be days before they can locate it again.


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## jacqi (Sep 25, 2016)

silence882 said:


> It may depend on which service is being used for shipping. OZ charges more for shipping than is typical, but they use Fedex 2-day rather than USPS like most eBay vendors. Fedex and UPS are going to be substantially more, but they're a lot more reliable.



The plants that OZ (I assume abbreviation for the Orchid Zone) has on E-Bay
are USPS shipped 2 day delivery and they are charging $25 for them.


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## jacqi (Sep 25, 2016)

*Recent USPS deliver*

I recently bought a nice orchid from pupsi-dog off e-bay and it was shipped USPS 2day express and it got here in 2 days with the box perfectly intact.

By the way the packaging job by pupsi-dog was first rate.


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## NYEric (Sep 25, 2016)

I buy off eBay a lot. Bid what I think I can afford. That's all you can do.


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## troy (Sep 25, 2016)

I also got a paph from pupsi dog and I'm happy with it!!


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## Mike4Paph (Sep 26, 2016)

The way I see eBay is it being a platform to fit multiple segments of interest in the marketplace. There are plenty of common varieties with decent prices for the common buyers. Then there are occasional "rare" finds with significant price tags. I still marvel at rare finds such as the Sukhakulii alba, which was practically gone with hours of the listing even at a "buy me now" price of 500. I was watching a rare dark form of Malipoense x Fanaticum, which I considered interesting yesterday, it too went out with multiple bids at pretty high price points. To me, it indicates there are serious interests of "special" plants out there for significant price tags. The key is to bid what you think is the fair price that you can afford. I have experience no bad packaging or bad postal service so far from my purchases over eBay. Count myself lucky so far.


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## trdyl (Sep 27, 2016)

Yep, there are orchids on Ebay to match everyones budget. One of the best rules to go by is knowing what the fair market value is for what you want. Too many times bidding wars get out of hand which is great for the seller, but not so great for the buyer.


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