RE: [CR]concerning that Rene Herse frame recently concluded

(Example: Framebuilders:Alberto Masi)

From: Edward Brooks <ebrooks@eriwine.com>
To: "'Chuck Schmidt'" <chuckschmidt@earthlink.net>, "'Classic Rendezvous'" <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
Subject: RE: [CR]concerning that Rene Herse frame recently concluded
Date: Wed, 5 Apr 2006 08:46:51 -0500
Organization: Edward Roberts International
In-Reply-To: <4C6E2672-4A9B-4554-A77F-CA62500292CA@earthlink.net>
Thread-Index: AcZYfiqStjYSV1WHTrScEqJpmrki5wANwbxg


Personally I happen to agree that it makes more sense to hold your bid until the very end rather than potentially drive up the price by placing your bid earlier in the process however having some experience with a lot of traditional live auctions I can tell you that some seasoned and savvy bidders with known reputations as high rollers use a strategy of placing their bids early and clearly letting potential competition know that they are a player for an item on the theory that this will intimidate potential competition and dissuade them from entering the fray. On one occasion I saw an affluent bidder at a live auction who strategically sat in the first row and immediately raised his paddle when the bidding opened and just keep it up there, never lowering it as the bidding progressed and until the lot closed. This definitely made it very clear he was intent to win the lot and dissuaded other bidders who clearly had intended to bid but dropped out because they were intimidated. Similarly in the internet only venue with Ebay, whether some of these bidders intend it or not, when I see a bid from a bidder I recognize as someone who has a reputation for paying big money for many items in the past I realize that there is major competition and that the item will likely sell for a very high price. Either I had better be prepared to really step up and pay a spend a lot more than I had in most cases intended, or resign myself to the fact that the big money collectors are competing for the item with the result that I it doesn't make sense for me to participate. At the end of the day, in most instances these bidders have a pretty clear idea of how much they are willing to spend on an item and so long as they are successful within that range they are satisfied. With traditional auctions a great many bidders place absentee bids prior to the day of the auction and they back the bids up to a higher level to allow for subsequent bidding by competitors.

Edward Robert Brooks Managing Director Edward Roberts International Auctioneers of the Fine and Rare 1262 West Winwood Drive Lake Forest, Illinois 60045 Phone- 847.295.8696 Facsimile- 847.295.8697 Email- ebrooks@eriwine.com Website- http://www.eriwine.com

-----Original Message----- From: classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org [mailto:classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org] On Behalf Of Chuck Schmidt Sent: Wednesday, April 05, 2006 1:57 AM To: Classic Rendezvous Subject: Re: [CR]concerning that Rene Herse frame recently concluded

Charles Andrews wrote: (snip)
> No hanky-panky implied, rather,
> why in the name of sanity do Japanese collectors bid up the price
> of these things
> way before the auction closes? It makes absolutely no sense, and,
> as an on-topic
> matter, it drives up the prices for things beyond what they might
> otherwise be if
> these bidders used the sane way of bidding, and sniped stuff. (snip)
> Do these guys get into some kind of shooting contest? Who wants to
> waste money in
> that way? If I'm a seller, I love it, of course, but if I'm a
> buyer, it's nuts. (snip)

From what I've heard over the years, bidding the item up instead of sniping at the end of the auction is a matter of honor amongst the Japanese; the honorable thing to do.

Chuck Schmidt South Pasadena, Southern California

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