Significance of Resale Numbers

[Bugs3x]

Hi all. This thought was induced by frustration, that of not finding any of the knife I want to buy on the individual sale forum.

I can’t help but wonder about the significance of the number – or lack – of resale of a particular product. When one has some indications that it is selling well, then one would expect some sort of average in the way of resale. I don’t know if would be proportional to its total sales, or what. I’m certain that popularity of the item would affect the speed with which it resold, and/or the price it could command, in comparison with original selling price.

I’m sure that disappointment or displeasure with the product could probably skew its resale numbers upwards. Some frequently identified flaw, for instance, uneven grind lines on a blade, could have a lot up for sale. Is it just as likely that items that were truly appreciated would seldom hit the resale forum, simply because few owners are willing to part with it?

The knife of which I speak, has been offered 3 times on the individual sales forum, since I began visiting here in early February. It is only in the last month or so, that I have decided this may be the knife for me. Last offering was posted 4/9/01. It isn’t super expensive, nor is it cheap. The knife I regard as its greatest competitor probably out sells it, by a good margin. But, I truly doubt 5 times as many are sold. Five times as many have been offered on the sales forum, in the same time period.

I can’t help but compare it to yet another knife, one usually praised highly by its owners. I have no facts, but would assume, simply because of price that the knife I’m interested in has higher sales, because of a substantially lower price than the other. Offerings of the more expensive knife are a daily happening on the sales forum. Why isn’t the knife I want showing up there? This kind of reminds me of used Toyotas in the newspaper classified section. Sometimes, there simply aren’t any. When they appear, they don’t seem to last very long. But, they are one of the biggest original sales volume cars on the road. You see them everywhere. But, they just aren’t sold often, and when they are, mostly show up on the Toyota dealer’s lot.

Anyhoo, just wanted to see what other forumites think about this. Whether sales on the forum reflect popularity/quality in any way, or whether they’re too intangible to quantify. ???


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Asi es la vida

Bugs

 

[The Towcutter]

It seems to be a popularity issue. Microtechs semm to sell super fast, as do Sebenzas. If the price is "right" on these brands they will sell fast(normally within one day of the post). If you look at it though, there are alot of LCC's and LUDT's floating around on the forums. Is that because MT has sold so many of them that there is just more out there to sell on the secondary market, or does everyone who gets one hate them and want to sell them to get rid of them. Socoms seem to be a tough sell sometimes, while auto Socom elites hardly ever pop up for sale. Is that because the original end user is happy, or did MT sell less of that model? I sense that Benchmades are pretty much dogs when it comes to re sale as are most spyderco's unless the are like 60% off retail or so. Just my 2 cents!

 

[Burke]

One of the ways I judge the desireability of a knife is by how often it shows up on the For Sale forum. If it's the kind of knife people love and cherish too much to sell, it's probably a really nice one. Ever notice how few Hossoms show up for sale? What about how few Striders? Heck, given the number of Bob Dozier's knives in circulation, I think they appear pretty rarely on the For Sale board.

 

[Bugs3x]

Thanks for your replies, both of you. Burke, you seemed to understand my question more. I guess what I was asking if people really liking their knives meant they weren't often re-sold.

Maybe should have come out and said which knife I was speaking about. It isn't a custom, but a manufactured knife. I was referring to the REKAT Carnivore.

Only 3 regular Carnis have been listed since I've been participating. One of the REKAT Talonite models was listed. There were 2 other listings that are missing, quite possibly because the sellers were dealers.

I had thought the Carnivore was selling good #s. If that is the case, then why are so few being offered for resale?


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Asi es la vida

Bugs