[doug.goodman]

Originally Posted by thecatspajamas

+1

Another thing to consider is that Henry Yee's auctions do bring buyers to eBay that would not normally venture onto the site.

Not everyone is willing to invest the time to dig through the morass of crap presented on eBay on a daily basis to pull out the few gems, in the same way that not everyone is willing to dig through a pile of clothes at the thrift store looking for designer labels. Many will just go to the designer's stores where they know there will be an abundance of what they are looking for, albeit at higher prices, rather than investing the time and energy hunting for something that might be at the thrift store for a cheaper price. Pull all the "good stuff" off into one small section that is only open a few days each year though, and make the buyers compete with each other for the opportunity to buy it, and you'll have well-heeled collectors and bargain hunters alike elbowing each other to get at the goods.

And the prices inch (or leap) up accordingly.

Lots of factors to consider here, and lots of things done right on Yee's end. I just get tired of the kneejerk "high prices = shill bidding" response without any real evidence to back it up.

Well said Lance