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Trade in Trade up....Joke

#61
When I trade at GC I always consider the Efficiency and Hassle factors.

Efficiency: They have something I want and are willing to do some trading to help me get it, even if it's another freakin' bass. (They have several already for sale.)

Efficiency: I can take the new item home right now.

Efficiency: If I don't think it's a good enough deal, I don't have to do it. If I do, then it's a done deal.

Efficiency: I can bring it back if it ain't right, even if I bought it used.

Hassle: I don't have to try to sell it, ship it, collect the $.

Hassle: I don't have to take the time to sell it while hoping that the thing I want doesn't get sold in the meantime.

Hassle: I won't get a disgruntled buyer who decides they want a refund.

Hassle: I won't have freaks show up at my house to "try it out".

Hassle: I won't have to meet someone who says, "yeah, I'll take if you'll knock off x $$", or, "hey, can I take it now and pay you Tuesday?"

Now, I realize many sales of equipment (especially here on TB) go very smooth. Unfortunately, patience is not one of my strong points.

When I bring an item into GC for a possible trade 1) they have something I really want and 2) I already know I'll get half of the latest ebay price on what I'm trading.

I'm OK with that.
 
#62
Geddy Claypool said:
Mine was UGLY. Here we go:

Traben Neo Standard 4. 2007 model, 9/10 condition with Dimarzio click-locks. $400 brand new. Wanted to possibly trade up to a Geddy Lee jazz.

Guess what Musician's Friend's offer was? 85 DOLLARS!!!!!!!!
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That's pretty much the correct offer. $400 new, means it's going to sell for between $170 and $200 used. They offered you half of that. That's standard in the business.
 
#63
M@ddest_H@tter! said:
I can understand that they are in the business of selling new gear, but to say that they pay top dollar for used gear is crap. I've just decided to keep the bass, after some playing and thinking. I like the sounds I can get out of it, and I can just buy a fretless form rondo.
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They do give top dollar for trade ins. The problem is that you are expecting new $$$ on a trade in. Isn't gonna happen anywhere. Top $$$ used is $200. Top $$$ trade in is $100. Neither of those equal the new price for the bass.
 
#65
embellisher said:
They do give top dollar for trade ins. The problem is that you are expecting new $$$ on a trade in. Isn't gonna happen anywhere. Top $$$ used is $200. Top $$$ trade in is $100. Neither of those equal the new price for the bass.
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Makes you wonder what some folks think "top dollar" means, Jeff. It's relative. Take it to a pawnshop and gain a new perspective on "worth".

They will not give you more than wholesale on a trade-in under normal circumstances. It makes no sense. They might as well buy it new and sell it for it's higher...NEW value.

And as Jeff points out, what you can sell a used item for will not also be the trade-in value, folks. If it were, the traded item would have to be sold for more than it's worth to turn a profit.
 
#66
cheezewiz said:
Maybe it was an exaggeration, but why would any retail outfit want to give you top dollar for a pedal? Like others have said, they have to buy low enough where they can make a profit. You have to remember they buy new items at wholesale. The pedal that sells used for $80, may sell new for $120. They may pay something like $45 for it BRAND NEW wholesale. Why would they give you anywhere close to that for a used one?
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You hit the nail on the head. My guess is that NEW Squire cost GC 150$. For them to offer you 33% less on a non warranty used one is pretty good deal. People often forget that business costs money to run. They have to pay rent, utilities, interest on their inventory, taxes, benefits, salary for the expert floor help:D, and salary for their managers and warehouse help. Roughly 36% of what you paid for that new bass at GC went to overhead, that's 108$ right off the top. Then another 150$ went to fender to buy it wholesale. That leaves them 41$ real profit on your initial deal as a rough estimate. The problem is they have half a dozen other Squires sitting there that haven't sold. Why do they want to buy yours back to compete with the other ones on the wall at a lower price if they can't make any profit on it? At 100$ trade they would be lucky if they made 25$ in real profit on it. You are always better off to sell outright in the music business, unless your trading something you bought real cheap used.
 
#67
I can't believe this thread made 4 pages....this might just be my longest thread yet......Thanks for all for all of the input fellows. I went in there thinking I would get more than I did...and didn't take all of the other factors into account.....but in hindsight I see that they were offering me what they could give and still make a profit. Although I don't agree that $100.00 is a fair trade in price....I don't set the market standards.....*sigh*....
 

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