The Consignment Conspiracy: Wolves in Consignment Clothing
Be aware and beware of those professing to be your 'friend and ally' in your new venture. The plan is to devour a good bit of your profit quickly and with $1,000's of your dollars on the menu, they are unabashed in their methods and unashamed of themselves.
Clearly the objective of some individuals is to relieve you of as much money as soon as possible. After all, following their self-serving advice ("Give me your money!") might assure that you won't survive the first year, so here is who they are and how they operate:
The Conspirators
'The conspirators' is a small group of 4-5 individuals using the Internet and some not-quite-so-professional marketing tactics to persuade consignment newcomers to do business only with members of their little group.
It is not at all ironic or coincidental that these individuals offer or promote products and services with outrageous $1,000+ price tags for software, hardware and computer help.
One individual sells an over-priced 'manual' while proclaiming herself to be 'the queen of consignment'. A few others sell marked up hardware and over-priced software (with big support fees) while yet another exploits with exaggerated 'support fees' and even higher fees for 'emergencies' (defined as any time outside 10-5 M-F EST).
Inside the Conspiracy
The individual selling the book pushes the high-priced software and the over-priced support services. The software individuals push the book and the over-priced services. The support individual pushes the high-priced software and the book.
Together they create a whirling dervish designed to keep newcomers locked in a spin and to keep outside information locked out (like a pod of dolphins herding a confused and frightened school of tuna).
Outside the Conspiracy
Those who look outside the conspiracy wonder why the conspirators don't mention no-fee software priced $200-500; why they don't mention computer services at half price, 8-8 EST Monday-Saturday.
The fact of the matter is that they aren't the least bit concerned about your success. In the end, to put it bluntly, these are just (less-than-professional) individuals with a keyboard and an Internet connection hoping your store profits will stave off their having to seek real employment.
Whom to Trust
The answer is simple: Don't trust people pushing $1,000+ products and services. (They will be the same hombres tossing nonsense arguments at you like, "You get what you pay for" as if paying more to them will assure better products and services. Don't buy it.)
For example, is an individual who wrote his own software program trying to sell it to you for $1,000 + annual service fees + tack-on fees for cables and shipping + add-on fees for services he conveniently excludes from the annual service fee?
For example, is an individual proposing that you pay him $100/hour for computer-related services (between the hours of 10-5 EST Monday-Friday) and higher 'emergency rates' at any other time?
Fortunately there are people in the 'consignment industry' who are like you: honest and above board with fairly and competively-priced products and services.
