Ebay hikes their fees. Again.

We know this is not denim news but many of our readers love Ebay and this definitely will affect the availability of quality, authentic denim on Ebay, as well as those of us who sell on Ebay. Check out the email we just got from Ebay (our editor is a PowerSeller):

Seller Update: Fees, Rewards & Standards
eBay buyers want value and selection from sellers they can trust–and good sellers deserve rewards for delivering great customer service. PowerSellers rank among the most successful eBay sellers and we’re proud to recognize and reward your contributions to the success of the eBay marketplace. That’s why we’re making a number of important changes that may affect you:

Reduced Listing Fees
You asked, we listened. We’re reducing Insertion Fees and adjusting Final Value Fees to lower your up-front cost to sell on eBay. You wanted free Gallery, now you’ve got it–plus more feature discounts.
Lower Insertion Fees
Free Gallery picture with every listing
Lower fees for Gallery Plus, Picture Pack, and Feature Plus

Rewards for great sellers
There will be discounts and incentives for those who satisfy customers best. Who decides who gets rewarded? Customers do, by giving sellers high Detailed Seller Ratings (DSRs). You get:
Fee discounts for PowerSellers
Unpaid Item protection for PowerSellers
Expanded seller protection for PowerSellers from PayPal
More search exposure through Best Match

Feedback Changes
Significant changes coming soon will increase buyer confidence and showcase good sellers.
Buyers will only be able to receive positive Feedback. (Ed. Note – wait, WHAT?! What about deadbeat bidders?!)
Positive repeat customer Feedback will count and Feedback more than 12 months old won’t.
Negative and neutral Feedback left by the buyer will be removed for transactions in which a buyer doesn’t respond to the Unpaid Item (UPI) or if the member is suspended.

For more details on how these changes may affect your business, attend a special Seller Webinar at 10:00 a.m. this Friday, February 1. You may also see announcements from eBay executives on the Announcement Board.
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Here’s the problem. Check out the final value fees and how much they go up:

They are offering some discounts for PowerSellers with good feedback or DSR scores over a certain level but we are not sure exactly how they are calculating that score – how can you tell if your fees are even correct on your invoice at that point? This is going to drive a lot of sellers out of business. You can read more about Ebay’s impending doom, er…. fee changes, here.

Thoughts? Guess we are going to start seeing more people posting their authentic denim in the HonestMall as opposed to Ebay.

Editors note: I used to sell denim on Ebay for a living, full-time but due to Ebay’s constantly raising fees and invoices at over $600 per month, had to quit doing Ebay so heavily. This is not good for the Ebay marketplace.