AUCTION MANAGEMENT FIRM: Garry Heath of Dealtree says iPods are big sellers this year. eBay sellers see green Increase in online shopping for the holiday season keeps part-timers, companies busy meeting demand. Saturday, December 24, 2005 By JAN NORMAN The Orange County Register
It's the day before Christmas and all through Bill Moore's Irvine house, not an eBay brand Priority Mail box is stirring. It's still as a mouse. Finally. Online sales pick up the week of Thanksgiving and don't ease off until a few days before Christmas, Moore says. Then the pace slows because most shoppers are unwilling to pay for next-day delivery to get their gifts to their destination before Dec. 25, he says. The year-end hecticness has grown since Moore began selling electronics and toys on the eBay auction Web site in 2002. In December 2004, his sales increased 30 percent from the previous December. This year his sales were up 60 percent by mid-month – and he's just one of thousands of online retailers who are experiencing brisk sales. American consumers are projected to spend $19.6 billion (excluding airline tickets) online in the seven weeks before Christmas, according to ComScore, a market research firm. And eBay is one of the most heavily trafficked e-commerce sites, with 63.3 million visitors compared to Amazon's 47.9 million. EBay won't release sales figures, but the site's popularity attracts potential buyers to sellers ranging from part-timers such as Moore to companies such as Dealtree, an Aliso Viejo auction management firm for major manufacturers. And like their brick-and-mortar counterparts, these eBay sellers get a big boost from people shopping for Christmas.
Dealtree always gets a significant bump in eBay auction business after Thanksgiving, and this year's holiday sales are 35 percent to 40 percent ahead of last year, said partner Paul Fletcher. TiVo sets and iPod music players were flying off the shelves. While companies like Dealtree can adjust staffing to handle the increase, most eBay sellers are part-timers working solo. During the holiday season, the average eBay seller responds to 150 e-mails a week on top of actual orders; devotes two rooms of the house for inventory; and makes 4.3 trips weekly to the Post Office to mail products, reports the AC Nielsen polling company.	ONLINE STOCK: Garry Heath of Dealtree walks through the company warehouse in Lake Forest.
Moore doesn't bother going to the post office. He works full time for the City of Irvine, so he does his eBay business only at night. "Most bidders want Priority Mail, which the post office will pick up free from my house," he said. Huntington Beach resident Jeff Minard also uses Priority Mail for most of the old license plates that he has been selling on eBay since 1997. While his merchandise is less seasonal than Microsoft Xbox game players and Mattel Barbie dolls, his winning bidders pay a third more in November and December than the rest of the year. "Prices go up because of competition among more bidders," he said. "I've learned to put expensive stuff on eBay at this time." He recently sold on eBay a 1914 porcelain California license plate for $75 and a 1944 Mexico plate for $50. "This time of year, people buy presents for themselves or for a family member or friend who is a collector," he said. "I'm sold out right now." Even people who don't know how to sell on eBay have reaped some holiday profits from the online auctioneer. They have discovered eBay drop-off stores such as iSold It, a Pasadena franchisor that handles all the logistics of listing items, selling and shipping. The company's 170 stores handled 35,000 eBay auctions in November for $3 million in sales, and December is 25 percent ahead of that pace, according to Chief Executive Ken Sully. He attributes the increase to more customers and the opening of about 28 stores in recent weeks. Morgan Lanchantin, an iSold It franchisee in Anaheim Hills, said his December business was up 35 percent from November. The company ran a Christmas promotion right after Thanksgiving "to put a little jingle in your pocket." Many customers did want to get extra money for Christmas, but they also were cleaning out their closets. In recent weeks, he has auctioned such items as a 1907 piano for $1,519, Lalique crystal for $1,000 and "lots of train sets, guitars and Hummel (figurines)." He had expected his busiest auction-closing day would be Dec. 12 to allow plenty of time for delivery by Christmas, but sales continued strong for several days after that. Now he is preparing for a Dec. 26 stampede of customers unloading unwanted Christmas gifts and electronics and cameras for which they received a newer version. Moore is also using this relatively slow period to change his eBay business from auctioning electronics and toys to selling military T-shirts, coffee mugs and hats. This product line will have more year-round sales, which he hopes will take the December pressure off while increasing profits. "I'm not worried about Christmas sales (of the T-shirts). If (buyers) don't want them for Christmas, they'll want them sometime," he said.

 
About Dealtree
Dealtree is a leading provider of auction management, logistics and value added services.  Dealtree provides a full service, single source solution that efficiently moves goods and information through the reverse supply chain.  The company leverages world-class technology infrastructure, and professional services to deliver its partners with optimal efficiencies and superior market value on asset recovery. More information on the company can be found by visiting www.Dealtree.com or email bizdev@Dealtree.com.

Dealtree, Inc.
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