Chinese sales -anybody else?
I've always had a fairly good amount of items going to China, maybe 10-15% of all my sales (mostly shipping to West Coast freight forwarders, almost never EIS), but suddenly it's kicking into high gear, like if the recent trend continues, it's looking like Chinese buyers could potentially become half of my base. Actually I just had my (I think) first ever Korean sale, but that's probably a fluke.
Anyway, I'm just wondering if anyone else is seeing a shift like this, and ....... (sigh, dare I invite this?) .... what, if anything, it might have to do with the you-know-what's. Like didn't their government enact retaliatory ones too, equally or near-equally as huge as ours on them? Do theirs not affect 'small' puchases? Or have they not gone into effect yet? If that's the case, maybe some of their consumers are making a 'run' on purchases from the U.S., while they still can.
Incidentally I don't even understand American jewelry collectors; some of the stuff they say on Facebook blows my mind, but I just silently raise my eyebrows and try to apply their weirdness to my business strategies. I can't even begin to imagine what drives Chinese collectors, but whatever they're thinking, they're starting to spoil me and that's the kind of thing that just makes me nervous, LOL. I don't trust "too good" of things because they never seem to last, so I don't know if there's a business strategy to apply here.
gurlcat
OP1 year agoOkay WOW. I just had 2 auctions end -not only were the winners both Chinese, but so were nearly all the bidders. And the winning bids were pretty low, one of them abysmally bad.
So what this tells me is, the next time I do an auction, instead of gearing it to end in the evening before Americans go to bed, I need to aim it at Shanghai time instead. That is literally my market now.
pls-consignments
·1 year agoBtw, your pictures are very well done, which adds value to your jewelry. Keep it up! 😊
luckythewinner
·1 year agoif the recent trend continues, it's looking like Chinese buyers could potentially become half of my base
{snip}
I don't trust "too good" of things because they never seem to last
With regard to international trade, the "recent trend" changes with the breeze. I would not trust it either.
wisteriahill
·1 year agoI've noticed more international sales lately, not China but Europe and Canada
tarotfindsandmore
·1 year agoCongrats on the sales!
I'd be very careful about trying to build any kind of strategy just yet. There's a possibility that the surge in sales is akin to those happening here. They know, as well as we do, that it could get very difficult to get anything from us at a reasonable price in the near future so they're grabbing what they can while they can.
I wouldn't assume anything we're seeing is/isn't a sign of anything at this point. The man in charge is a fickle pickle and, love him or hate him, none of us actually knows what he's got up his sleeve. One day the news tells us he's backing off the tariffs, the next day it goes up another 100%. Anyone who tells you they know what he's going to do clearly missed the lessons of 45. Remember we just saw this rollercoaster with the markets just a week or two ago. So, I'd hold off on counting any chickens just yet.
If the sales have been jewelry, keep in mind that China uses our vintage jewelry to create molds for the purpose of mass production of those designs. They will take your pieces, place them in tray, pour a nice thick layer of silicone over them, then use the newly created mold to manufacture endless "vintage style" fake Weiss, Kramer, and Lisner knockoffs.
gurlcat
OP1 year ago🤣Yeah like white people do with Native American jewelry. But just because it can happen doesn't mean it "will" with my pieces. Vintage jewelry collecting is big among Gen Y and Z Chinese women with spending money.
But if any of my pieces are used for copying, I couldn't care less. They just as easily could be steadily growing verdigris in musty old drawers or getting hot-glued onto picture frames or whatever. As long as I'm paid, I'm happy.
tarotfindsandmore
·1 year agoExactly! I hear you on not caring. I don't care when they use their freight forwarders to buy from me either (I don't ship to China), but that might part of why you're seeing an increase. If any of the IP stuff gets dealt with or the final tariffs are higher than they expect, they will just make their own "vintage" jewelry and be done with us. The inclusion of that part of the post wasn't intended as a judgment as much as a potential explanation for the increase in interest. I may be totally off on this of course as I have no idea what's been selling for you.
gurlcat
OP1 year agoOMG it's happening already, and FAST!!
Within just the past 40 minutes:
I can barely hold the camera straight, I'm working so fast!!! 😆😂🤣
fbusoni
·1 year agoGorgeous items!!
meme6253
·1 year agoCongrat's, Hope it continues!
fbusoni
·1 year ago@gurlcat
The headlines today indicate that he-who-shall-not-be-named has completely capitulated on the “T†matter (as I predicted he would) and caved to Beijing.
(Also reversed himself on firing the Fed chair.)
So yes… now that a certain “consistency†has been demonstrated, it’s conceivable that just like Wall Street, consumers across the ocean too are celebrating. 😊
Congrats on your sales!!
gurlcat
OP1 year agoOH SNAP! Thank you for the update! Wonderful news, but with one caveat: gold will drop back down now, so I need to list mine and get it sold TO-DAY. 🤣