eBay is closing....!

[ampapa1]

It won't happen today or tomorrow...  but the reason eBay is going to close is that Sellers when selling are being precluded by eBay trying to make money. It's no longer an auction site, it's too regulated and Sellers are always on the hook.

So I don't sell much on eBay anymore, in fact I avoid it like the plague...  for two main reasons:

   1) Their fees are ridiculous... do I need to say more.

   2) eBay looking for revenue streams, to make up for lost sales, are listing other sellers items in your auction before you even get to the description of the item that you're trying to sell.

Just venting about the system and how its morphed from what it used to be, really unique, to just another site trying to make money from the small guy.

[jrkirk]

I understand the OP's complaint because I am in much the  same situation, and I have sold here for 27 years (almost from the beginning). I have tried B&M sites, antique malls, and eBay has been the most successful for me, but the demand for what I sell is now declining for many reasons. I too don't have a solution, so my efforts at working my eBay sales have gone down, and I rarely list new items here, and I don't search for and buy new merchandise, like I used to. If it had continued to work for me, I would have worked it harder, but right now, that is not the case. Congrats to those who are making it work, and to those for whom it is not working, either work it harder, or move on to something else. This is how business economics works.

[hartungcards]

You lost me at, "do I need to say more."

[youn2240]

ok sounds good. 

[bennotbill]

If eBay ever did announce they were closing I expect it would be the same as all the high street shops I see.

Where they have a huge sign saying "Closing Down Sale" and underneath in tiny letters "closing for refit".

Or perhaps in eBay's case closing for a major bug fix.

[jameshen1]

I will give your post all the thought and consideration it deserves.

[kensgiftshop]

In most categories, the fee's have not changed much since Pay Pal processed payments.

Like any other company, they are always looking for ways for them to make more money, just like sellers here do.

[toysaver]

"I have tried B&M sites"

B&M stores are not sites.  They are actual 3D physical locations you operate as a business.  It's real estate property you own or rent that requires an intense physical presence with hour upon hour in the store, likely a minimum of 40 hours a week with 60 being average.   It requires all sorts of monthly financial support with rent and utilities not to mention paying employees.  

Anyone who has been there and done that will tell you eBay is a bargain.   

[terrycece62]

Where did you get this information? 

Ebay is alive and well

If you follow the basic rules and use some common-sense most bad transaction can be avoided or resolved through  eBay's MBG resolution center

[herway]

Their fees are ridiculous... do I need to say more.

Fees on media:

• 2010: 15.9% (13% to eBay; 2.9% to PayPal)  + 30 cents
• 2024: 13.25% + 30 or 40 cents

Fees on other sales:

• 2010: 12.9% (10% to eBay; 2.9% to PayPal)  + 30 cents
• 2024: 13.25% + 30 or 40 cents

Actually, if you really want to sell anything you MUST promote. You would need to add AT LEAST another 5% promoted listing fee to your 2024 tally.  I am not complaining at all because I do sell well, but I just think we should be honest here.

[retro_entertainment_collectibles]

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@toysaver wrote:

"I have tried B&M sites"

B&M stores are not sites.  They are actual 3D physical locations you operate as a business.  It's real estate property you own or rent that requires an intense physical presence with hour upon hour in the store, likely a minimum of 40 hours a week with 60 being average.   It requires all sorts of monthly financial support with rent and utilities not to mention paying employees.  

Anyone who has been there and done that will tell you eBay is a bargain.   

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Absolutely, costing is not even close.  Night and day.   As to eBay closing pretty unlikely, more likely a competitor buy the place up and sink it or Governmental regulatory measures end up doing so to all the marketplaces.

[dbfolks166mt]

Actually, if you really want to sell anything you MUST promote. You would need to add AT LEAST another 5% promoted listing fee to your 2024 tally.  I am not complaining at all because I do sell well, but I just think we should be honest here.

     That is what eBay wants you to think. I have never used promote listings and never will and I have no problem making sales. The use of PL may or may not improve your sales but there is no factual way to prove that it does or doesn't . 

[dbfolks166mt]

     I think the first time I saw this rumor was about 15 years ago. If you look at their financial statements there is nothing to backup your assertion. They don't dominate the market place like they used to because of all of the increased competition but the company is financially sound at the moment. 

[farmalljr]

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@goodbrakes wrote:

It is not eBay that will be closing. It will be all the Sellers who complain and leave.

But dollar to dollar it is more profitable to sell here than having a B&M.

I know because I run both. 

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Considering that you sell brake lines and fittings, no way anyone could afford a B&M without also doing internet sales. Even then, you have had under 500 sales in the last three months. The things you sell are not in high demand, and you are competing for the limited sales with auto parts stores AND other online competition. In your unique situation, sure, it's more profitable to sell here maybe. 

In a time not so long ago, someone like you would also need to sell by catalog and take phone orders because a stand alone B&M would not survive then either. 40-50 years ago, NO ONE selling just brake lines and fittings would be able to survive on an B&M either. You would have needed to sell a LOT more different inventory to survive. eBay is not what makes you able to survive selling your limited type of inventory, the INTERNET is what has allowed someone like you to specialize. If it were not eBay, it could or can be about any other platform, including your own. 

And to be honest - eBay may work for getting a business going injecting cashflow, it's not wise for someone to build a business and expect it to last, using someone else's platform. eBay can ban you at any time for any reason, and that part of your business/cashflow is over for good. Then what? eBay does not care who you are or what you sell. If at any time they decide they don't want you here, you are done. It's not like it's never happened to sellers before, even without any reason to ban them. If a competitor doesn't like you selling here, you can be banned. Sell too much, you can be banned. It does not matter how much money you have paid them, it does not matter if your feedback is 100% positive and every buyer delighted. If/when eBay decides you are too much "risk" then you are gone. If that happened to you, then what? What would you do to stay in business? 

[mksports03]

Agree, fees are killer, and I believe ebay has greater control over what is sold then what we're told. Our store comes up for renewal May 1st. First time in 26 years we are debating not renewing. Can't keep breaking even, ebay is way to controlling.

[mksports03]

You failed to mention that the 13.25% also is charged on shipping and taxes, please explain why we should be paying 13.25% on taxes ebay collects, and gets paid monthly by the government, for holding and submitting.