A few days ago, one of my regular blog readers sent me a link to the Oxfam online shop. They had a second-hand copy of ARRIBA ESPANA!, a book I wrote back in 1989, on sale for £22.00!
I was gobsmacked! I could not believe that a second-hand copy of one of my earliest books would be worth much more than a pound ... and certainly not twenty-two of them!
Perhaps I have missed a trick and should seriously consider re-publishing these rules. It is certainly something I need to consider, especially as it would be relatively quick and easy to do.
Bob, in my experience charity shops, relying as they do on volunteers, do not always have the expertise to price more esoteric items appropriately or predict customer reaction.
ReplyDeleteAt Cats Protection we recently had a table lamp in the form of a hideous sitting baboon, covered in blue flock, with a light fitting and shade affixed to his head. One of the volunteers put it on social media and received over 200 enquiries. It was sold for £40 but we were later advised it could have gone for far more, although it was only a modern item, manufactured in China and sold at Debenhams.
Your book is listed on Amazon uk as currently unavailable. Noticing your recent prolific PW publishing, someone - possibly with some knowledge of wargaming and the sort of prices charged by Caliver - has probably concluded that it is rare and collectable.
Then there is the locality of the shop. At CP Morden we charge only £1 for paperback novels, £1.50 for hardbacks and 50p for children's books, yet many good books remain unsold. Charity shops in Wimbledon and the Village charge more. Chris Jarvis takes his unwanted MW review copies to a charity shop in Teddington where there is someone who knows military history and prices them close to their cover prices, whereas Ziffit.com will only offer me about £4.50 for a brand new Helion paperback priced over £25.
Perhaps you should bring out a second edition!
Best wishes,
Arthur
Arthur1815 (Arthur),
DeleteThanks for explaining the pricing methods used by charities. Before he became ill, my father worked for Cancer Research UK, and told me a bit about how that charity sorted out donations of goods. Most paperbacks went for pulping, but hardbacks were either sold in the local shop or passed up the line to a specialist who priced them.
I’m giving very serious thought to producing a new edition of ARRIBA ESPANA. I think I could do the necessary work in a day or so, and then it can be published.
All the best,
Bob
The Oxfam online shop does tend to price things on the expensive side. There are usually some good titles in there though you have to Wade through a long list to get to them as the filters don’t allow you to drill down much by period.
ReplyDeleteNundanket,
DeleteI did try using the Oxfam online shop, and thought that it was not particularly user-friendly. As you comment, the filters are not very effective in doing their job.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteAn interesting topic- Books. Over the years I've managed to dispose of many unwanted Books - Lately I've taken batches of them to a Local Secondhand Bookshop and the Chap there writes down a 'Credit' for me of his assessment...I can then buy CDs, DVDs and other Books as needed- anything in his shop...though, I might add that the amount of 'Credit' is very small compared to the original worth of the Books I want to part with...All the very best to you there in London. Cheers. KEV.
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteI’ve tried different ways to dispose of my surplus books, and none of them ever generates anything like their original cost. Nowadays, my surplus fiction books go to a local charity shop and my non-fiction goes to a specialist second-hand book buying website.
All the best,
Bob
Well, Bob, you may be interested to hear that there are three copies of PNW on ebay uk at the moment for £77+ each.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333992428498?epid=26046710406&hash=item4dc38003d2:g:rv0AAOSwy-tglTAW
As I already have a copy I resisted the temptation...
Martin S.,
DeleteIn the words of the late Victor Meldrew, ‘I don’t believe it!’.
Rest assured, it isn’t me that is selling them at that price!
All the best,
Bob
Echo comments on the Oxfam website - it ain't easy and the categorisation by volunteers can be a bit erratic, so the filters will miss interesting stuff anyway. They are, though, quite good at checking their prices online, so rarely deliver a really low price (in person in shops can still turn up a few gems though). The best thing about Oxfam online is the sales. 50% or higher deductions can generate bargains, especially as they tend to mark items for sale if they've been hanging around for a long time, so you can sometimes pick up that odd tome you thought was overpriced before.
ReplyDeleteAntony Climpson,
DeleteThanks for the information about Oxfam online’s sales. They might be worth bookmarking for regular checks.
All the best,
Bob