A Flipping Bargain
In addition to being a euphemism for several expletives and a rapid-fire way of turning pancakes and burgers from one side to the other on a grill, flipping now has a new meaning.
According to London's Guardian journalist Amy Oliver, flipping means purchasing the latest must-have item with the sole aim of immediately selling it for a fat profit via the internet and is the latest trend sparked by eBay. While shoppers used to have to wait in long lines for a chance at buying one of the limited editions from a hot designer's new collection, the worldwide web has made exclusivity accessible to all - albeit at an inflated price.
Ms. Oliver points to an oversized trench coat from Stella McCartney sold over the counter for £79.99 and then "upwards of £200" in cyberspace. But flipping can be applied to a wide number of consumer items.
"Any new item can end up reselling for more than its usual retail price, whether it is a George Foreman grill, sample-sale handbag or a charity wristband, particularly when feverish demand outstrips hyped short supply," Ms. Oliver writes.
Skin care has proven to be a particularly good "buy to sell on eBay" product. For instance, Boots No 7 Protect and Perfect anti-aging serum got a huge boost after Professor Lesley Regan proved on BBC2's Horizon program last month that it worked. Just 24 hours after the program, the only place you could get a bottle was eBay - with an inflated price tag of up to four times its £16.75 retail price. In the U.S., limited-edition Nike Air Jordans and hot concert tickets are frequently flipped on eBay.
Some retailers are trying to take precautions against excessive flipping. In advance of Kate Moss's Topshop launch on May 1, the store is handing out wristbands and restricting both the number of customers allowed indoors at any time and the amount of time they are allowed to stay. Furthermore, no one is allowed to buy duplicates, especially in different sizes.
Are flipping sellers taking advantage of buyers by creating artificial shortages and prices that do not reflect real value?
Some think so. Ms. Oliver points to some anti-flipping vigilantes roaming around on eBay. Apparently two sellers of Banksy prints complained that their first buyers refused to pay after winning the auctions. One claims that a buyer deregistered (from eBay) after having success, "suggesting they objected to the capitalism of the eBay world and scuppered the listing on purpose."
On the plus side, though, Ms. Oliver applauds the ease with which people nowhere near a bricks and mortar store can now become the proud owner of a collector's item. Despite the inflated prices, she observes that "for the true collector, or the truly impatient, expense is no object."
Discussion Questions: Is flipping good or bad for retail? If you can't get to a store to buy something yourself and you can afford to pay top dollar, whose business is it anyway? Or is this capitalism gone mad?