Re: Jumping into the Auction Fray
Your comment is making lots of cents.....eh...sense ! ! ;-))
Wim Van Loock
Antwerp-Belgium
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----- Oorspronkelijk bericht -----
Van: "Chris & Colette Wilbers" <nevus@sofnet.com>
Aan: <pumpkins@mallorn.com>
Verzonden: vrijdag 19 januari 2001 5:10
Onderwerp: Jumping into the Auction Fray
> Hi, List,
>
> I really hate to see the list get bogged down in controversy. I left the
> list for a while some time ago, and generally sit on the sidelines now,
> because of this tendency.
>
> However, I had a thought or two about the auction concerns that I thought
I
> would share.
>
> I really have no problem with people placing seeds up for auction, and I
> agree wholeheartedly that these auctions can make seeds that are otherwise
> unable to be found. I agree that it is an excellent way to entice people
to
> give money for worthy causes or organizations by giving them something of
> value to them in return. I have acquired some seed through auction.
>
> However, one problem with selling any seed for high $ amounts... everyone
> then assumes that the selling price is the current "market value" of that
> particular seed. So a Stelts 801.5 for $300 sold on a public auction
> results in any holder of that seed considering its value to be $300. The
> result...the seed becomes a much more rare commodity that ever was before
> the auction. I think most of us would agree that no seed really has $300
of
> intrinsic worth. $300 of hopes and dreams maybe, and I don't discount
> those, but a seed is not a finished product -- it is only a potential
> product. Although there are a few of us who win stand to win more than
$300
> yearly on giant pumpkins, most of us have to admit we will never see any
> monetary return on our investment in pumpkin growing. Each of us can set
a
> personal value on an individual seed, but to purchase the seed for that
> value in a public forum may set a public value on that seed which is far
> above what it should be, and place it out of reach of other people's hopes
> and dreams.
>
> A couple of brainstorming ideas that might help resolve this problem,
> without squelching our free market economy:
>
> Idea #1: auctioneers of great seed decide ahead of time what you feel is a
> reasonable market value of the seed, which you would like to see it sold
> for, and publish that at the start of the auction. First person to offer
> that price for the seed gets it, or the highest bid below that value,
> whichever comes first. I like this idea better, but it will limit the
> income for the organizations doing the auction, at least for their most
> desirable seed lines.
>
> Idea #2: auctioneers decide ahead of time what you feel is the reasonable
> market value of the seed, and publish that at the start of the auction,
> setting this as the "floor" or minimum bid. This is the amount that would
> NOT be tax deductible in a charity auction. Then take bids over and above
> this for the privilege of purchasing the seed from them at this time.
Then
> it is clear to the buyer and observers from the beginning what the
> established value of the seed is, and what portion of the purchase price
can
> safely be considered a "donation" to the selling organization.
>
> I realize there are lots of ways to shoot these ideas full of holes, but
> perhaps they can be a starting point to come up with a real solution to
> artificially inflated seed prices spurred by the adrenaline of an auction
> situation. Raffles are probably a reasonable part of the solution, but I
> hope that they will not be the only solution; there is no lasting value in
a
> "chance" for a great seed once the seed goes to someone else. I think the
> minimum would be to establish and publish a value for the seed before
> starting to take bids on it. Nearly every auction of "new goods" that I
> have ever seen has done this.
>
> As Dave Stelts proves, growing pumpkins has a lot more to do with
intangible
> things like hopes, dreams, achievement, endurance, patience, comradeship
and
> a lot of other great qualities that are in shorter supply today than
money.
> I hope we can all help to keep those qualities in our sport/hobby, and
keep
> the dollar signs out of our eyes.
>
> Just my 2 cents worth, unless I hear a higher bid!
>
> -- Chris Wilbers
>
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