Sparks Auctions...well, That Sucks...

"Sparks Looking to the Future
Sparks Auctions finds itself in an enviable position as we near our twelfth anniversary. Our consignors continue to provide excellent materials for sale, buyers keep finding elusive items for their specialized collections, there have been some great prices on lots and collections, and dealers continue to build their businesses by making their customers happy with items bought through Sparks.

With this success comes the reality that we must continue to invest in the business to meet and exceed your expectations. We are now settled into new, larger space; we have made investments in human resources for lotting and presenting the auctions and of course, like you, we have seen increased costs in the areas of banking fees, printed catalogues and shipping of stamps to their new owners!

After careful analysis we have decided that the buyer's premium added to the hammer price on auction sales will be increasing to 17%, beginning with our September 2019 sale. We have held off making this move longer than most competitors, and made a deliberate decision to keep our new 17% surcharge below the market standard for North America, so that we remain competitive.

We will continue to provide great service for customers and consignors alike. There are exciting sales coming in the next year and we look forward to your ongoing participation as a consignor or buyer.

Sale #31 will take place at the end of September, with tentative dates being the 27th & 28th. Consignments for that sale are closed, but we would be glad to discuss anything you have to offer for our January 2020 auction, which must be received at our offices by August 1st.

Sparks Auctions"

"Market standard?" That's a stretch.

That's probably fairly accurate. Many co's I deal with are at 20% (such as Kelleher, although they knock 2% off if lots are paid for promptly), and some are even higher.

Being in the US where the US$ is stronger than the C$, Sparks will continue to be a favorite, the extra 2% being a bummer, but big-picture, not that horrendous, I suppose.

I never used them based upon commission rate but rather the favorable exchange rate and material that I like.

Canucks have a problem buying at most auctions due to our crappy dollar!

Oh hell yea, like their shipping costs have gone up. Who is fleecing who. A condition of sales is that the buyer pays for shipping and handling cost. "We must continue to invest in the buisness"- if you want to make more money and have to get a larger space?.Yea, more material, more sales and more income and profits from that and you want me to pay for that too. Thats why buisness are allowed expenses and depreciations on their buisness.

Then, foreign us buyers have a 30% exchange advantage right off the top as well outside of Canada customers have another 5 to 15% gst/hst tax advantage on top of that againt hat they don't have to pay like us Cannucks. No wonder material is going outside the country as it just becomes too expensive to obtain.

I mean, people will bid accordingly. Anyone participating regularly in stamp auctions knows high transaction costs are part of the game and take them into account. Auction houses can only raise those costs to a certain point, as it does depress hammer realizations; go too far and both bidders and consignors will go elsewhere and they lose money. OTOH, it's a tough business, and if raising premiums by 2% helps to keep Sparks from going the way of Regency-Superior, that's a good thing IMO. I like Sparks, and though part of that is indeed the weak CAD making my dollar go farther, part is also service and the material they offer.

"Below the market standard" is ad-speak but probably about right -- 18%-20% hammer premiums aren't uncommon nowadays, sad to say.

This morning at 4AM I was sitting in a dialysis waiting room with a bunch of grumpy old people. As usual, they were complaining about whatever topic got started; this time it was the cost of things. A 15 minute whine-fest about the price of all things...watermelons. "Eight dollars for a melon? Remember when watermelons were 20 cents a piece!?!".

I could not help myself and after sitting there not saying a word I ended the discussion with this observation. 'Fifty years from now people will be sitting here saying "Remember when watermelons were eight dollars a piece!?!".
Don

Yup. My pickup truck cost $80,000. My parents first new house that I grew up in cost $3000.

$80K for a pick-em-up truck? Hell, that's almost double what I paid for my house!