Have you ever heard of a red letter day? Today and yesterday were both red letter days in my book.
My Bonanzle colleague Bobbi85710 of Benton, Arkansas signed up for Bonanzle July 13th 2008, and opened her booth the following day. On the 14th July Darleen of Lee, Massachusetts opened her booth jabar5 and a few minutes later I opened mine. You can read about me anywhere in my blog but today I want to introduce you to my friend Bobbi.
Bobbi and I are both extroverts and even though we are about as far apart on the political spectrum as it is possible to be, we are friends. There are just some things we do not discuss. Let me tell you about my friend Bobbi.
Here is a treasured endorsement from Bill Harding CEO & founder of Bonanzle.
Bobbi joined eBay June 10th 1997. Her first feedback was June 20th 1997 and her last feedback received on the site was June 30th 2008. Unlike me, she was not a boycotter. She had traded for eleven years and weathered all the changes, one would think she was set for life on the site. What was the straw that broke the camels back so thoroughly that she not only stopped selling but closed her account?
Bobbi’s son had wanted to sell his game system complete with an extensive library of games so he could buy a car. She sold it for him on eBay, 2 large boxes, delivery confirmation, signature required “all t’s crossed and i’s dotted” exactly as required by eBay. The buyer, a dealer in games, claimed it never arrived and the transaction was reversed. Both eBay and PayPal completely ignored the evidence, it took three months and involvement of the AG of her state to get the money.
The path forward, or, there is life after ebay.
Bobbi has a deep background in retail, she was a store manager for Value Village for many years and was moved by the company many times in the course of her career. She keeps her Bricks & Mortar ‘hand’ in with a booth in an Antique Mall, has her own website and lists on several venues. She does not duplicate listings at all. Her philosophy when buying stock is very simple “I only buy what I enjoy”. 
Rock Hound
Both Bobbi and her husband are keen “rock-hounds”, they have hunted for minerals all over the USA. Her current stock includes Kimberlite Diamond Matrix (you might find a diamond in a specimen of rough) and other rare and obscure mineral specimens some of which are museum quality such as this hefty chunk of Brookite in a Smoky Quarts matrix. Click Picture to embiggen.
Bobbi’s minerals shipped to Australia, Japan and New Zealand this year as well as all over the USA. She reports a 25% net increase in business overall (not just on Bonanzle) this past 12 months over 2007.
With a large household, (six children) I am not sure how Bobbi finds the time to run her various enterprises but as a serial customer, I can assure you she does run them, and very efficiently too.
Go check her out, one of the first real sellers on Bonanzle and tell her Red Ink sent you!
Y’all come back!
I’m pretty sure I remember seeing her many times on ebay. I loved her rocks. Interestingly enough almost the same thing happened to my son on ebay but he never got his money back. He sold a set of golf clubs on ebay and the buyer said it never arrived, although it was signed for and insured, blah blah blah. It was late due to an error at our local post office but it definitely arrived. Sad because the poor kid was paying college tuition with the money. It obviously wasn’t enough to buy a car so his heartbroken mom (me) came to the rescue with cash. Only a few hundred $ so not worth going to the state but sure left a bad taste in my mouth. Thanks for giving me a place to tell my sad little story. Shame on pay pal and ebay and shame on that buyer (supposedly he was a judge - go figure). Nice profile of this Bonanzle seller Henrietta.
Posted by fitzcharming on July 14th, 2009.
What a wonderful write-up. It is great to read about the success of sellers who have managed to leave eBay. There really is “life after eBay” and Bobbi (as well as you) are real examples of that. You and Bobbi are a great inspiration to sellers.
Love your blog!
Posted by TheBrewsNews on July 14th, 2009.