Pawn Shops or eBay - getting rid of unwanted jewelery?

[fs5]

friend needs to get rid of some old jewelry (tiffany's stuff, unbranded ring, movado watch)... what's the best way to go about it?

I advised her to try to sell the name brand stuff like the tiffany necklace and movado watch on eBay even though it's worn. And the ring at the local pawn shop. (only question is how not to get swindled at a pawn shop).

Good advice?

 

[dxkj]

Pawnshop vs Ebay
A single customer vs potential millions
Someone trying to make money off you vs you trying to make money off of people
Lowballer vs auction style competition
close/fast vs slowish/possibly problematic

your call

 

[shortylickens]

Ask what the guy will give you for it and then sell on eBay with a minimum bid plus money for shipping.

 

[sixone]

You will get swindled at a pawn shop. They expect to get half of retail when they sell it, so they'll be willing to pay you half of that, tops.

You should be able to find a decent jeweler who will give you approximately half of retail. Find out what that is before you go, and be prepared to walk away from their first offer. Or list it on ebay - it will take longer, but you'll get more for it.

 

[monk3y]

I would probably go with ebay. You'll get more but you'll have to wait longer to get it.

 

[halik]

some guy's guess vs. true market value. I'd give you lesst han the market if i was the guy...

 

[Lola]

i went to a pawn shop to try and sell some things and what they were gonna give me was insanely low. Instead, i would try as you said and put it on ebay and try craigs list too.
I never was in a pawn shop i felt "comfortable" in. ever.

 

[Conky]

Pawn shops are for crackheads. You will get a fraction of what you might get on Ebay.

 

[Conky]

Originally posted by: LolaWiz
i went to a pawn shop to try and sell some things and what they were gonna give me was insanely low. Instead, i would try as you said and put it on ebay and try craigs list too.
I never was in a pawn shop i felt "comfortable" in. ever.

Agreed, Pawn shops are just icky. You hope to find bargains but all you see is junk and feel bad for the people that were desperate enough to pawn that junk(or more likely, had it stolen from them).

 

[SonnyDaze]

Yeah like others have stated, the Pawn Shop will see you as a desperate customer with a need (i.e. Crackhead) and lowball the hell outta ya. EBay (or even Craigslist/newspaper) on the other hand will have experienced buyers in the market for this stuff but they may be skeptical as to the authenticity of the items if they are supposed to be brand name.

 

[mercanucaribe]

A pawnshop isn't for selling stuff. The idea is to get a loan and pay it back before they sell your stuff. She'll probably get like $15 or however much it costs to get a hit of crack.

 

[SuperFreaky]

how about an ebay drop off store? see if there is a SnappyAuctions or a Quickdrop close to you...

 

[fs5]

Hm.. alright I'll just tell her to list all the stuff on eBay then. I agree on the icky pawn shop sentiment though. I suggested a pawn shop for the non-name brand items because she has no idea what they're worth retail. Not to mention I can't imagine someone buying jewelery off eBay through just a description. Then again some eBay buyers are suckers.

Thanks for the advice guys.

 

[Mermaidman]

You could try a local consignment store.