My girlfriend and I have come upon two fur coats that used to belong to her grandmother. Having no use for them (yet retaining a use for money), we’ve decided to sell them. As a preface, neither of us know nothing about fur coats in general. I haven’t even a clue as to what kind of fur it is.
I’ve read the basics on various websites. It seems the two of the three largest buyers of used fur are in New York, and the third is in Chicago. Being in Indianapolis, I’ll probably have to resort to long-distance selling, which really isn’t my concern.
My concern is, I’m naturally skeptical about selling a fur coat whose value is beyond me… Selling something with unknown value to a company that’s going to resale it to make the biggest profit is a bit discerning. At the same time, I’ve also read that appraisals usually value a coat at much more than someone is willing to buy it, making them fairly unreliable as a gauge for selling price.
So what’s the best way to avoid getting screwed? Selling to a store, selling on consignment? eBay? I’m not out to make a ton of money… The coats could be worth a few hundred. They could be worth a few thousand. Either way, I’m just trying to make sure the store won’t completely screw me twice over by underpaying me and then selling it at a huge profit to them. Is anyone here familiar with fur coats enough that some pictures could give any insight to their worth? Anyone have experience with this escapade I’m currently on?
How is that screwing you twice? They just screw you by underpaying you. Whatever profit they make afterwards is just a byproduct of them underpaying you.
Have you checked the coats for hidden labels that might contain some info? Can you ask any relatives of your wife’s grandmother who might remember when the grandmother got the coat?
I’ve seen nice old fur coats at estate auctions sell for $25 to $50, sometimes less. The fur business isn’t what it used to be and most people would prefer a new one because they do degrade over time unless properly stored. Makeup and perfume build up on them over the years as well. That and styles change, most of what you pay for with a new one is the style and designers name vaule.
I asked a woman why used furs weren’t very popular and she told me it was like buying used underwear. Seems one of the first things a lot of people do with a new fur coat is have sex while wearing it.
AVOID this place like the plague. They will quote you a price range and ask that you send them the coat. You tell them what you know. I followed their instructions when sending the coat that cost $64 at the USPS. When they received the coat, they said the maximum they would give me was $200 including shipping. They quoted me $200-$300 based on a review of the pictures I sent them. I was cool with that. I wasn’t expecting much and have no personal attachment to the coat. They also said before I shipped that they would reimburse me for shipping that was very costly as I mentioned earlier. They come back after seeing the coat stating that they would pay a max of $200 INCLUDING shipping. Net, I received $138. After following up with them about the price and asking for $230 to cover half of the shipping, the first response was to look back at the sale terms and after review, I accepted their offer of $200 by email. This is where it gets fun; the SECOND response was as follows which I believe was in response to my $230 counter offer.
“Rather return it the coat is nothing like you said it is old and hasn’t had the proper storage for many years making the skins very stiff, but the worst part is having so much leather between the fur skins that it can’t be used for pillows only fully dropped skins get that usage, so an item like this is more likely a rug or blanket not what we like to do.” In plain English, they are saying that the coat is trash, I lied to them, and I should be happy they are offering me anything.
I never lied about the condition of the jacket. As mentioned earlier, I sent numerous pictures including one that explicitly shows the leather strips inside. They have this pull-down menu on their website you need to complete before you submit the item that asks you a few question. I answered everyone honestly. Would I have spent $67 to someone who I never met and who could just take the coat and run if I was trying to pull off a scam? I’m not in charge, they are. If you want to get treated like a criminal, these are your guys. DID I FORGET TO MENTION, THAT THEY SAW THAT I ACCEPTED THEIR OFFER AND SENT MONEY TO MY PAYPAL ACCOUNT? I had to work through PayPals dispute resolution center and after their complete incompetence, after being held by the buyer, Paypal decided that Cash for Fur Coats acted inappropriately, and I received the original agreed to amount of $200.
You are probably better off selling locally. Don’t waste your time.
I bought an heirloom silver-gray Persian lamb coat. From the monogram on the lining and it’s petite size, I guessed it to have been custom made. Perfect condition. Not a tear anywhere, and the lining was spotless. I pulled the lining back a bit to see the underside of the pelts. The coat was made from many small pieces of lambskin, sewn together with many many many tiny hand stitches. On the outside, it looked all of one piece.
The coat fit me perfectly. It was very warm. It also weighed a ton and was stiff as a board.
It cost me all of $25. And it ended up at a local thrift store, on a rack full of other heirloom furs, for even less than I paid for it.