[meteorite-list] CR2 prices ruin......

From: Michael Blood <mlblood_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:55:47 2004
Message-ID: <3C475614.12E5_at_cox.net>

Rob, Matteo and all,
        I just gotta laugh! As I been sayin' in my column in
VOYAGE!, the meteorite market has not been this good
since the 60s & 70s.
        The flood of material from Africa, and, more importantly,
the American buyers' "invasion of Africa" have forced prices
down tremendously!
        Now, I have actually had a respected dealer tell me he
LIKED the guy who stole from a museum, "...because he drove
the prices up on meteorites to what they are really worth."
        Are you shi..ing me!? What is WRONG with some dealers
that they somehow think HIGH prices are "better" than low
prices??? I don't get it. My customers still spend about the
same amount of $ with me - they just get MORE for their
$! AND, I have never been so prolific in adding to my collection!
In the last year and a half, I have nearly trippled my collection! -
more, if you count in terms of "value" or rarity instead of just
# of pieces. Why? BECAUSE I CAN AFFORD TO! If a customer
spends $100 with me now and gets 10 grams of something, how
is that less desirable than 2 years ago he spent $100 with me
and got 1 gram of the same material? I still mark up the same
% - well, a little less, but basically, I am making a percentage - and
my customer is getting MUCH more for his $! AND I can also
get much more (in meteorites) for MY $ for my own collection.
So, where is the down side?
        Well, there IS a "down" side - but ONLY for dealers. One can
no longer afford to buy ANYTHING and "sit on it" for ANY amount
of time! You gotta buy/sell almost overnight - that is why I do sell
stuff for less % markup now - GOTTA move it - it might go down in
price. Now, I definately HAVE sold stuff that way only to have it
go UP in price - sometimes by a lot, but hay, I made my mark up and
played it safe.
        Time was, no matter how much I bought, it was a GREAT investment,
as it could only go up (with very few exceptions). Now, no one
knows day to day - but, GREAT buys to be had! When Africa dries
up, as it most certainly will, THESE will be the days we look back
on as THE GOLDEN YEARS. It might be in 4 months or 4 years or even
more, but you can be SURE this "glut" will stop - and when it does,
supply/demand will quickly drive prices up.
        So, I get all I can of as much stuff as I can and save as big a piece
as possible of everything for my own collection NOW - in time, sooner
or later, it will be back up in price, making getting more very, very
difficult. Each and every one of us will, one day, kick ourselves in the
ass, and say, "MAN, I could have gotten as much as I wanted of -----
for ----$ a gram back in ought two!"
        Hay, what days we live in, eh?
        Best wishes, Michael
Received on Thu 17 Jan 2002 05:54:11 PM PST