Consignment Sale with NIRVC

[Texas Clodhopper]

Brett Davis is a breath of fresh air. I appreciate him publicly addressing the issue and as I always say there are two sides to every story.

 

[Neal]

Well, I don't think this story is about sides. The question is what made the seller feel this way and if something needs to be fixed to prevent this in the future, that is the takeaway. So from the seller point, whenever Renee wants to respond, what are the key areas that raised anxiety. Where could the experience be improved for a future seller? In the end I'm sure NIRVC wants the buyer happy and the seller happy. If something failed on either end of that deal, what can be improved to make this a win/win next time.

 

[TJ&LadyDi]

Personally, I think this should now be between Renee and Brett to sort out. We, as the broader public are not owed any further involvement. The facts have been well-presented and whatever perceptions created this exchange are between them.

TJ

 

[Neal]

Having spoken with Renee knowing this story was forthcoming, let's fallback to why she posted it. I know she is not available at the moment which is why I'm chiming in on her behalf.

This story was not an attack on NIRVC but for those selling via consignment to understand the process but also understand how things happen and concerns as it related to her sale. Imagine you learn your coach is in the hands of new owners and see a Facebook post of them driving off when you aren't confident it's not still your liability. Yes, there is the side of the story of how some things broke down and caused high anxiety. Others will go down this path of consignment and can be better armed with how the process works such as title prep, contracts/agreements, what if you have an existing loan on your coach (hasn't been discussed as it didn't apply to her). As I write this, maybe there is a place for @NIRVC in the Dealer Connection forum to outline how to sell your coach using their consignment services. It may actually attract business for the RV community to know that this is available and what the process is. How to best prepare for selling via consignment, how NIRVC handles your coach and sale, etc. We as fellow RVers can discuss when it's right to use consignment vs. selling on your own because you will take a significant financial hit for the price of convenience. @NIRVC could also in another post detail their IN/OUT service, which I still don't fully understand simply because I don't have to, I'm not selling/buying at this time. Just a few thoughts as education and communication are the keys to success.

 

[MapNerd]

Well, I don't think this story is about sides. The question is what made the seller feel this way and if something needs to be fixed to prevent this in the future, that is the takeaway. So from the seller point, whenever Renee wants to respond, what are the key areas that raised anxiety. Where could the experience be improved for a future seller? In the end I'm sure NIRVC wants the buyer happy and the seller happy. If something failed on either end of that deal, what can be improved to make this a win/win next time.

You raise the critical, most important question in my opinion @Neal - what made the seller feel this way.

To me, based purely on what I have read (a couple times at length now) it sounds like a case of parties not being on the same page regarding the step-by-step process of selling a coach by consignment. I will fully admit that when I considered selling early in the year, I had multiple dealers offering to sell by consignment but I always said no purely because I did not at all, understand the process.

I think @ARD raised a lot of good questions in her post, questions that none of us actually knew the answer to and could only speculate and make assumptions on. That obviously can lead to massive misunderstandings when people who don’t know the process are just trying to use logic and common sense to sort through a complicated process. Usually, the more complex a process or transaction, the more steps in that process that are completely counterintuitive, which is where we fall victim to making incorrect assumptions

Equally, I think @Brett Davis’ post did an excellent job explaining that process, what the steps are, how each party is protected, etc. This may already exist but if not, maybe a very simple, plain language, infographic educating consignment sellers on the step-by-step process, what happens when, and how they are protected at each step, should be included and gone over with each consignment seller.

The most valuable lesson I have ever learned in my life can be summed up in just 4 words.

ALWAYS. ASSUME. GOOD. INTENT.​

Many people take that to mean that one should allow themselves to be taken advantage of but nothing could be further from the truth. What it means is it is imperative to take a breath, stop for a moment and put yourself in the shoes of the other party. It’s much harder than it sounds.

If anyone is a Game of Thrones fan, there is an excellent quote from the character Littlefinger/Petyr Baelish towards the very end of the series when he is advising his new queen on how to interpret the actions of others.

Sometimes when I try to understand a person's motives, I play a little game. I assume the worst. What's the worst reason they could possibly have for saying what they say and doing what they do? Then I ask myself, 'How well does that reason explain what they say and what they do?

Here’s the important piece of context to understand about that quote though - Littlefinger is executed by the queen shortly thereafter, using the same logic that he advised her with. He was a slimeball the entire series and got what was coming to him, but if only he had advised her to assume the best.

I have learned and re-learned this lesson of always assuming good intent many times. When I fail to abide by it, more often than not it bites me in the rear.

 

[RKins]

After reading this thread, I think I learned Do Not initiate any transaction on a Friday. The beginning and the end of this story happened on a Friday - the consignment and the 2nd sale. Usually communication lapses happen over a weekend.

 

[redbaron]

After reading this thread, I think I learned Do Not initiate any transaction on a Friday. The beginning and the end of this story happened on a Friday - the consignment and the 2nd sale. Usually communication lapses happen over a weekend.

But the car and rv industries have their busiest day on Saturday, so Friday shouldn't be a factor in the sales and finance side

 

[Neal]

The problem and answer is simple. It's the most common cause for any and all problems whether relationships or business deals.

COMMUNICATION

 

[GlampDaddy]

The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.
--GB Shaw

 

[FL-JOE]

When it came time to sell out Newmar several months ago I turned to a member here who had sold his Newmar. Based on how his sale went, plus what I considered a fairly high commission rate for consignment, I decided to list it myself on RVTrader and a couple other places. Within 5 weeks it was gone for a price I was happy with. If I was honest with how many hours I devoted in showing my rig and taking calls it would add up to me making somewhere over $2,000 per hour.

Recently a friend who had my exact same make, year, model of Newmar decided to sell his. He initially toyed with the idea of consignment but after we talked he listed his on RVTrader. Within a week his sold for slightly more than mine did several months ago.

We have all dealt with RV salesmen. They don't get up in the morning and go to work thinking "wow, I sure hope I can help one of my customers out today", no, they go to work to MAKE MONEY off selling something. You just have to decide if paying $20,000, $30,000 or more to sell your RV is worth it to you. I decided it wasn't in today's market conditions.

Now I'm not taking sides with the OPs original post. I think the only thing she was doing was giving some advise to anyone considering a consignment deal, which is what I am doing. I have never met Brett Davis and I know from this forum most of you who have thinks he is a water walker and wonderful. Possibly if I ever met him or dealt with him I would think the same. But IMHO anyone who spent the kind of money she did to sell her coach should talk away with a warm and fuzzy felling that she got her moneys worth.