Barbie and eBay --Caveat Emptor!
Nov 12 '02
The Bottom Line Acquiring Barbie dolls through eBay can be a productive experience, but learn to recognize and avoid ripoffs by educating yourself.
Because most of my Barbie collection consists of new or recently released dolls (within the last 5-7 years), I have acquired most of my Barbies (and her friends) from retail outlets, doll collectables dealers, or Home Shopping Network. I became aware of online auction service eBay shortly after I began my collecting activities in 1998, but I stayed away from it until about two years later. Yes, eBay is a powerful and useful resource for finding Barbies, but the service has drawbacks that consign its use to just one part--and not the whole--of my overall Barbie purchasing strategy. Of course some of those concerns not only arise from the seller's end of the auctioning process, but the lack of knowledge with which I'm afraid many buyers enter the process. I touched on some of these issues in my review "Tips for Beginning Barbie Collectors" (see my list of reviews to find it), but I want to go over those items and a few more below.
ARE YOU REALLY GETTING A BARGAIN?
Even if you are only a casual Barbie collector, you should be aware of the price and availability of the particular doll you wish to purchase. For Playline/Pink Box (children's) Barbies, you can peruse prices at any of the major national retail outlets (Target, WalMart, Toys 'R' Us or Costco, for example) to get a good idea of the price for that doll. For the "Collectables" line, you also want to find prices at a doll specialty store--if there isn't one in your area, look at Barbie Bazaar magazine to get the names of Barbie dealers throughout the US and Canada. There are also closeout/liquidation stores (such as Big! Lots), discount retailers (like Ross Dress for Less in the western US), drug stores, "mom and pop" stores, and so on.
Why do you want to determine Barbie availability and price at the local level? You want to know that you're truly getting a bargain for that eBay Barbie. I have seen sellers offer newly released Barbie dolls that are still in plentiful supply in the stores, and often on sale! Even if you can win a cheap bid, shipping costs may eradicate the difference in price between an auction-acquired doll and the same one that's available in stores. Target, WalMart and Kmart will often lower doll prices for clearance, and within a week I will find dozens of that clearance-priced doll offered on eBay. A regular (bi-weekly or sooner would be ideal) visit to your local retailers should keep you abreast of additional markdowns (don't forget the weekly sales, too!) When the auction and shipping costs add up, you may find you would've been better off buying that Barbie at Target!
IS SHE REALLY RARE?
Of course there are limited editions, store exclusives, surprise hits and other types of Barbies that aren't widely available. You may have missed out on that Barbie because you didn't know it existed? I often don't hear about such Barbie's until after the fact, and I'm sometimes anxious to get my hands on THAT ONE. But I suggest you calm down before you leap to eBay. Again, check out those sources I mentioned above, and see if that Barbie's as hard to find as the eBay seller claims. I know that not all Barbie dolls are equally distributed throughout the country. Check out a major retail website such as toysrus.com or kbtoys.com, then compare their prices to what you find for the same item on eBay. If you want to know in advance what dolls are to be released shortly, check out Barbie Bazaar, and Mattel's sites barbie.com and barbiecollectables.com. You may also want to get on a doll dealer's mailing list, as they will often keep you informed of new dolls also. I have seen instances in which a few eBay sellers will claim a Barbie is "rare" when in fact it has only just been made available, and may have not reached my neck of the woods yet.
Finally, as I mentioned in "Tips for New Barbie Collectors," many KB Toys and Toys 'R' Us stores will often have some dolls up 2-3 years after their initial release.
IS IT A BARBIE AT ALL?
EBay sellers often list non-Barbie fashion dolls under the Barbie category so that those dolls get a better chance of being seen and bidded on; the ethical sellers will tell you whether that doll is "similar to" or "like" Barbie, as well as the precise identity (name, brand, etc.) of that doll. But the more devious (or unaware) ones will attempt to pass the non-Barbie off as the real thing. Of course, the buyer can only be tricked if he or she is uneducated about Mattel's Barbie products--the various dolls, lines, and their history. That leads to my next section,
KNOW YOUR BARBIE DOLLS!
The best weapon against getting ripped off on eBay is learning not only the history the doll on which you want to bid, but also cultivating a general awareness of what types of Barbie dolls have been offered over the years. Below are some issues you may encounter in an auction posting:
The seller indicates that a "Copyright 1966 Mattel Inc." notice appears on Barbie's back. Was she in fact made that year?
Some artists sell "Original One of a Kind" (OOAK) Barbies--dolls whose faces have been repainted, hair rerooted and restyled, and given new, custom made costumes. Has the seller indicated the original "identity" of the restyled doll? Are those new clothes truly "original?"
When the dealer mentions that the doll has a "Mackie" face, a "Superstar" face or an "Asha" face, do you know what he or she's referring to?
If you don't know the answers to any of these questions, I advise you to stay away from eBay until you have some basic knowledge in hand. Reading Barbie Bazaar, or collector's books such as "Barbie Exclusives" by J. Michael Augustiniyak will get you started (Check out my other review for more titles.) The "Barbie Start Page" in the Dolls section of about.com will also help your education.
Don't get taken on eBay because the dealer has preyed on your lack of information.
WHAT DO I USE EBAY FOR?
Don't let my caveats dissuade you from using eBay at all. I think there are several instances in which this route is the best means of acquiring particular Barbies:
Playline Barbies--With the exceptions mentioned above, certain of the Barbies made for children (the playline or pink box Barbies) will be sold rather quickly, never to be seen in Toys 'R' Us, Walmart or Target again. Many of the doll dealers specialize only in the Barbie Collectables products, so you may have a hard find finding that "Beyond Pink" Barbie from 1998 unless you go to eBay. Most of the dolls I buy on eBay are playline dolls, particularly "Teresa" (AKA Hispanic Barbie) that were released during the mid-nineties.
Store exclusives and limited editions--I have bought two Hispanic-themed Barbies that were only available at those "warehouse club" outlets in the southwestern US. I didn't even know they existed until I read Austiniyak's book mentioned above. The book gave an estimate of the then-current value in the collectables market, which I used as a benchmark when bidding.
Real Bargains--If I can't find that Barbie anywhere else at a better price, then I try my luck at eBay.
THE MORAL OF THE STORY
I haven't mentioned the general potential pitfalls of eBay--shill bidding, product misrepresentation, etc. Check out the eBay reviews here at epinions.com, or read "eBay for Dummies," it's a great guide. But what I want you to take away from this is to go into eBay Barbie auctions well-informed, and to consider other options to online auctioning when appropriate (that's almost always).
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Epinions.com ID:
indigospot
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Location: Oakland, CA
Reviews written: 32
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
Artist, avid reader, comic book fan, toy collector, and obsessed Barbie doll collector since 1998
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