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Posts: 27I have been looking at the work on eBay. I am interested in why collectors buy on eBay. I am interested in the reasons for buying artist bears as I think the market is saturated and in a decline for the moment and I do hope that will change.
Do you buy for an investment? Do you buy only from "known" artists? Are you planning on selling bears for your own gain in investment or do you just buy what you love and hope that your family will accept them as heirlooms or sell them for a profit at a later date. I am an artist AND a collector and hope that some of you are as well.
Thanks!
Bethbear
bears by beesley TMWell... I collect and adopt bears that I love. I follow various artists for a time then if a baby bear touchesa my heart I buy it! I dont resell. I could not resell as I buy them for me and because I love them. I create bears and do that because I love it more than life itself and sell them so that I can keep making them!!
Hugs Louise
Delartful BearsI agree with Louise. I collect what I love. I only have a select few - only the ones I truley 
love.. so there's no way I could part with them.
I don't think bears have the re-sale value as alot of dolls do. I think most bear lovers buy because they love them.
Take Care,
Danni
Jazzy RagsI agree with Danni i buy and make things that i love not to make money on them down the line . When i start to make a bear i say to myself this ones to sell or this one for me .I never buy things thinking i am going to make money on it . 
I would never ever buy a bear from an artist just because of their "name". Yes, there are some artists whose bears I dream of owning and whose bears fetch high prices and who are "famous" but the reason I want one of their bears is because I love what they do.
Similarly, I have bought some very cool bears from people without a "name" and been just as happy with them :)
I consider my bears to be an investment in my personal happiness not in any monetary sense.
I know there are many reasons why collectors sell bears after they have bought them, but I simply don't understand people who buy bears and sell them just a few months later.
Adorable BearsI attended a Bear Show in Australia, another Sate, not Victoria. It was a VERY long drive but as my Dad had just passed away we thought it would do us good. The show turned out to be much smaller than organisers had indicated but It was a lovely location and people made us feel welcome. No one sold much including me then right at the end of the day another trader/bear artist/shop owner asked would i sell one of my bears and give her a discount as she was a trader. She bought my bear and a week later it was on ebay USA and sold for more than double the priced I asked.....legal yes but honourable...not in my books.
It was my own fault she caught me at a vulnerable time. Sadly I learnt that old saying all bear people are good is not true . She did say she was a collector and wanted the bear for herself. I was also silly enough to buy bear supplies from her table.
What I have learnt is value your work and don't discount to just make a sale ,and collect bears that you love..even if somewhere down the track you may want to, or have to sell it. I have a small collection. The Steiff may increase in value but I don't buy just to make money.
I have also learn't it is much better to give a bear away..to a friend or charity.than to sell it cheap.
Susan
www.adorablebears.com.au
Hi Susan,
So sorry about your dad, it must be a very sad time for you..my mum & dad are quite elderly and as for the thought of losing them I can't bear to think about it.... then to have that happen to you, when you're trying to just get away for awhile and take your mind off things..well, all I can say is that to some people, money is everything, all ethics just fly out the window, they don't care it's the almighty dollar, and how brazen, surely they would have realised you would find out, but by the sounds of it they wouldn't care anyway...it makes you sick.
I agree with you I would much rather give a bear away than to sell them off cheaply, I know I put a lot of time & effort into making my bears, and offering them at a very cheap price only lowers our worth as bear artists..
Once again my condolences for your loss.
big hugs, :hug:
Denise.
Oh Susan that was SO bad! I can't believe she did that!
I'm a collector and an artist. I buy a bear because I love it. But... it may seem that I only look/bid on bears of certain sellers because I have some of my favorites marked as bookmarks... and often just check to see what they are offering. I'm trying to stay off the computer lately so I often do NOT just browse the teddy bear section on eBay. Wonder if others are doing that too and maybe that's part of the reason why other good bears are not getting bids? Course, if I had lots more "teddy bear money" then I'd look thru the teddy bear section more often LOL!
Baird'sBears:hug: Susan, I hope that nasty unscrupulous lady sold your bear to a much better, loving home! :rose:
Beth, I've been watching the eBay sales too. It seems that bears by prominent artists sell well, seasonal bears sell well, and teeny tiny crocheted bears so small that I'd have trouble seeing them at all sell well. But even these go unsold sometimes. It's odd.
Artist bears are resold sometimes, and most of them draw no bids. But some few bring big money--from what I can tell, these are from prominent artists, or from artists no longer producing, or they're largish old-fashioned bears with an antique look.
I think the eBay market is saturated right now, certainly for the rest of us. On the whole, it's a bargain-hunter's paradise right now. I suspect that real collectors are visiting artists' own sites, and specialty bear sites, if only because there are so many bears on eBay that it's hard to find time to wade through all the listings. This might be better for bear artists in the longer run, because they're more likely to get fair prices.
I've read somewhere that the best resale value is in the manufactured bears; I guess it's a bit like baseball cards--collectors want the whole set.
So far I've only got one Artist Bear, and I wouldn't part with her for anything. I have an awful feeling that it's the beginning of a major addiction! These are most definitely luxury items, have-to-have things that you can't justify on practical grounds--except that, as Melissa says, they're investments in personal happiness.
On this list, anyway, most people sell bears so that they can afford to make more!
Eileen
LuxembearsI consider my bears to be an investment in my personal happiness not in any monetary sense
AMEN to this Melissa.
Susan, I am very sorry to hear of your loss and what happened with your bear. Maybe the buyer needed money for something and thought your wonderful creation would help her financially at that moment. Just a thought.
All I can add to what has already been said about ebay is that this can't go on forever. Making bears costs money, as we all know, so I believe that bargains will eventually drop off ebay. We are at the bottom of the roller coaster so soon it will be time to climb back up to the top.
Back Road BearsI think the eBay market is saturated right now, certainly for the rest of us. On the whole, it's a bargain-hunter's paradise right now. I suspect that real collectors are visiting artists' own sites, and specialty bear sites, if only because there are so many bears on eBay that it's hard to find time to wade through all the listings.
That is the exact reason I DON'T shop eBay for artist bears. That, and I want to support bear shows so go to those and buy there. I poke through bear mags to see what my fav artists are up to and look for new favs too! And I visit my favorite artist's websites frequently to see what they have. Bear Pile is another great place but they need to list aritsts by country or something as their list is overwhelming and if one just wants to browse they'll never get beyond the B's!
So, I don't feel eBay is THE place to sell and it is sooooo saturated. More than half don't sell, few go for what they should and none get the hits they should because who has the time to sift through them all? Only the big names or those with a following are really successful on eBay. That doesn't seem to stop seemingly everyone from listing. Go figure.
Sigh......
Daphne
Apple Dumpling DesignsSad state of affairs isn't it....unfortunately I'm not in a position to do artist shows, have a website yet, etc., so my only venue for selling/advertising whatever is Ebay...sad. I'm sure I'm not alone. I was going to sign up on Bearpile but it seems you have to have a website to link back to in order to use their service...unless I completely am missing something. Even though my last little one didn't meet her reserve I had about 15 watchers (stop it you guys...that's cheating... 
I just keep telling myself that when it's meant to happen...it will!!
Sophie Z'OursI am both a collector and bear artist. i am totally addicted to Merrythought cheeky bears because of their so smily face! Even if I guess these adorable bears will get valuable with years going, I cannot even think about selling them... I love them too much. Impossible to let them go!
I buy some of my Cheekies on e-Bay and the others brand new from a Merrythought retailer in Witney, Oxfordshire (Teddy Bears of Witney). This shop-museum is absolutely terrific and the people working in so friendly. I have visited it a few times during the year I spent in England. My collection of cheekies began the first time I went to this shop...
I haven't sold any of my handmade bears, so far, but tried to sell one on the french e-Bay site. As expected, no one bid on it... My partner was releived, as he did not want to let him go!!! :P
But I really want to sell some of my bear to allow myself to buy more teddy bear making materials.
I have to confess that I easily make bears to give as gifts to my familly and friends. That way, it is a bit like if I were keeping them for myself... they are not really gone, as I can visit them!
I fell a bit worried concerning how difficult it gets to sell our bears on e-Bay nowadays. I guess the problem is that there are more and more sellers...
Here, in Le Mans, there are no bear shows. There are a few in France, but generally quite far and tables there are too expensive for me if added to the travel, accomodation, etc...
Beary hugs,
Sophie.
Baird'sBears
Judi, :rose:
I think you're absolutely right on the basic economics. The eBay market will hit bottom, driving a lot of less determined bear makers away. At that point, it will likely begin to improve--and maybe we can buy off the quitter's stashes at a discount!
In the meantime, I think it makes sense to set reasonable reserves.
Eileen
Oh Shantell, I do understand how you feel - being stuck here in the bottom of the world also has its disadvantages. Our market is tiny and until recently ebay has been my only option for selling too. I started off doing comparatively well there but recently it has gone pretty quiet for me (selling one in four bears). It's so tempting to lower prices but it just isn't realistic and I don't think my no reserve starting price of $45 is too high.
It's a shame about bear pile requiring you to have a reciprocal link - when I first joined it way back when it first started - I didn't have a web page at all. Does your web hosting service give you a free personal web page Shantell?? Maybe you could set up a really basic one page web page with just a bit about your bears and a photo and the link back to bear pile. I've only been on bear pile a week so I don't know how it affects sales but I do know that I've had a number of views on my bears and that cant hurt!
Daphne, you can view by country...it's an option along the top somewhere.
Shantell... I don't think you HAVE to have a website! Many people use Bearpile instead of a website! THey just have the box to fill in if you do have one.
Go ahead and try to sign up anyways. Dave (the owner) is really a nice guy and does answer any questions you may have
If I buy certain bears...I buy because they talk to me..but I buy very few in that way.
I do buy Steiffs and other old bears which I sell on and I make a small profit. I don't buy often but I watch ebay for likely candidates. I bought Teddy Rose last year for an absolute bargain price and doubled my money when I sold him...I have done that 3 or 4 times. But I do look upon Steiffs in a different way.
I think that being sentimental about bears is fine but I see it as an interest which makes me a bit of money and pays for itself...I don't get upset when they go because I don't attach myself in the first place. I mean the Steiffs...not my own...I always get a bit upset when they go.
If I buy an artist bear I don't buy to make money...I buy because I love the look of the bear. I have seen a couple of my own bears on the secondary market and I get a bit confused...and a bit hurt. But again, when someone buys from me it's theirs to do what they want with really. I wouldn't like someone to con discount out of me then sell it on at a profit...that's just downright sneaky.
Apple Dumpling DesignsThanks Laura Lynn...I can't find any place on the site that doesn't say you need to do a link swap so I've emailed them. I'll post back by results...may help someone else too.
In terms of adopting and reselling...I think some people buy and then resell them later when they find an artist or a style that they like better...their tastes change. There is also life circumstance which leads to people needed to sell for the sole purpose of needing money. Sh... happens. However, doing what Susan shared is downright not very nice...and so blatantly doing it...HOW RUDE!!!
And I'll come clean and admit that I have bought and resold a couple reborn dolls...simply because I got them...and later decided I liked another better and couldn't justify having both...or rather 20+.
