Sellers have been banned from selling their goods and need to send it to them for evaluation lol, goodbye, what a nonsense
Response from Geartrade.comNov 21, 2023
Thanks you for your feedback. The decision to move away from a peer-to-peer marketplace was not made lightly, but due to an increasing amount of external sellers who have taken advantage of our platform, we've decided to limit our marketplace for now. Over the years, Geartrade has grown into a thriving community of outdoor enthusiasts like you. While the vast majority of our sellers have been honest and dependable, we've faced some challenges that have made it impossible for us to keep running the marketplace business as we have.
1. Illegitimate Sellers: Unfortunately, we've seen an increase in illegitimate sellers who have taken advantage of our current marketplace system. This not only affects us but also impacts the trust within the community we've built.
2. Unfulfilled Listings: We’ve seen an uptick in sellers who have listed items on our marketplace but have not fulfilled them. This has led to a higher number of order cancellation rates, which is a frustrating experience and not fair to buyers.
In order to provide a better customer experience, we're transitioning to a consignment model. This model is easier for sellers - no more going to the post office, figuring out what to charge for shipping, answering buyer questions, dealing with returns, etc. It allows us to give people a consistently better experience, faster shipping, and a longer return window.
Here's how it works:
You send us your items, and we handle everything, from listing and photography to shipping. When your gear sells, we send you payment via PayPal or Venmo. As of right now, sellers will no longer be able to list items directly on Geartrade; they must be shipped to us first. However, all of your current listings will continue to be listed for sale and you can edit those items and fulfill new orders as usual. So, there is no impact to your currently listed items.
Please let us know if you have any questions or more feedback. We greatly appreciate you choosing to be a part of our community to re-use your gear and get more folks outside.
Thanks,
Geartrade.com
DW
Dow W.
I listed and sold quite a bit of $$$…
I listed and sold quite a bit of $$$ worth of merchandise on this site. It was a costly and frustrating experience and I finally had my account deleted. They are unprofessional and simply do not have the tools to handle returns, etc. Their website needs a major overhaul. Their excuse is that they are a small company with limited resources. Can't say in my 40 yrs of business in the Outdoor Industry, anyone every used that excuse before. Not selling themselves well to say the least. My cost in time was by far the most frustrating part, but for the commission they charge, more than EBAY, it of course makes zero sense for selling outdoor gear, new or used.
DE
Dee
Used to be good. NO LONGER!
I've used Geartrade for the past year and a half, selling dozens of items on their website. They've made a reasonable 20% commission from my sales. Recently though, and without informing their customers, they've changed their business model to NOT allowing sellers to sell their own items.
Is it their right to operate their business as they see fit? Yes. Is this a disingenuous business practice, establishing your online business as a seller-to-buyer online resource then, without warning, deleting that option? Perhaps.
I'll be deleting my account and NOT giving geartrade any of my more of my business. Big middle finger to you guys!
Response from Geartrade.comNov 21, 2023
Thanks you for your feedback. The decision to move away from a peer-to-peer marketplace was not made lightly, but due to an increasing amount of external sellers who have taken advantage of our platform, we've decided to limit our marketplace for now. Over the years, Geartrade has grown into a thriving community of outdoor enthusiasts like you. While the vast majority of our sellers have been honest and dependable, we've faced some challenges that have made it impossible for us to keep running the marketplace business as we have.
1. Illegitimate Sellers: Unfortunately, we've seen an increase in illegitimate sellers who have taken advantage of our current marketplace system. This not only affects us but also impacts the trust within the community we've built.
2. Unfulfilled Listings: We’ve seen an uptick in sellers who have listed items on our marketplace but have not fulfilled them. This has led to a higher number of order cancellation rates, which is a frustrating experience and not fair to buyers.
In order to provide a better customer experience, we're transitioning to a consignment model. This model is easier for sellers - no more going to the post office, figuring out what to charge for shipping, answering buyer questions, dealing with returns, etc. It allows us to give people a consistently better experience, faster shipping, and a longer return window.
Here's how it works:
You send us your items, and we handle everything, from listing and photography to shipping. When your gear sells, we send you payment via PayPal or Venmo. As of right now, sellers will no longer be able to list items directly on Geartrade; they must be shipped to us first. However, all of your current listings will continue to be listed for sale and you can edit those items and fulfill new orders as usual. So, there is no impact to your currently listed items.
Please let us know if you have any questions or more feedback. We greatly appreciate you choosing to be a part of our community to re-use your gear and get more folks outside.
Thanks,
Geartrade.com
CH
Celeste H.
The website no longer allows you to sell your own gear, you must use their consignment model.
Have sold gear in the past on Geartrade with no issues. I logged in a week ago to list about a dozen winter items for sale, and discovered that there is no longer a way to list your own items for sale. The only option is to now use their Consignment model, even though the help desk documents still show that you can list your own items for sale. I emailed the help desk a week ago asking how to navigate to the "list your own items for sale" via the menu options and still have not received a reply. If gear trade no longer allows or supports members listing their own gear, then the website should clearly state this and your help desk documentation should be updated.
Response from Geartrade.comNov 21, 2023
Thanks you for your feedback. The decision to move away from a peer-to-peer marketplace was not made lightly, but due to an increasing amount of external sellers who have taken advantage of our platform, we've decided to limit our marketplace for now. Over the years, Geartrade has grown into a thriving community of outdoor enthusiasts like you. While the vast majority of our sellers have been honest and dependable, we've faced some challenges that have made it impossible for us to keep running the marketplace business as we have.
1. Illegitimate Sellers: Unfortunately, we've seen an increase in illegitimate sellers who have taken advantage of our current marketplace system. This not only affects us but also impacts the trust within the community we've built.
2. Unfulfilled Listings: We’ve seen an uptick in sellers who have listed items on our marketplace but have not fulfilled them. This has led to a higher number of order cancellation rates, which is a frustrating experience and not fair to buyers.
In order to provide a better customer experience, we're transitioning to a consignment model. This model is easier for sellers - no more going to the post office, figuring out what to charge for shipping, answering buyer questions, dealing with returns, etc. It allows us to give people a consistently better experience, faster shipping, and a longer return window.
Here's how it works:
You send us your items, and we handle everything, from listing and photography to shipping. When your gear sells, we send you payment via PayPal or Venmo. As of right now, sellers will no longer be able to list items directly on Geartrade; they must be shipped to us first. However, all of your current listings will continue to be listed for sale and you can edit those items and fulfill new orders as usual. So, there is no impact to your currently listed items.
Please let us know if you have any questions or more feedback. We greatly appreciate you choosing to be a part of our community to re-use your gear and get more folks outside.
Thanks,
Geartrade.com
CM
Chernor M.
I need my correct amount payout.
I have a question and would like someone to explain to me. The invoice stated the amount I sold my item for which is $250 in which I barely made profit and the item is brand new with the plastic bag on it and tag. Also in the invoice it shows tax for $23.98 and $32.00 for flat rate shipping which I asked the buyer to pay. And I saw $235.33 as my final payment from you guys. You guys took $70.65 of the item I sold which is totally wrong. After taking $46.67 as commission you guys still robbed me of the tax for $23.98. at the end I lost. I paid $43 just to ship the item. This is unfair.
I am supposed to be left with $259 after taking your Commission not $235. my name is chernor mansaray and would like you guys to fix it and give me my correct amount.
Response from Geartrade.comJun 12, 2023
Chernor,
We are happy to break this payment down for you. All of our fees are stated on the 'How it Works' page here: https://www.geartrade.com/how-it-works#list-it-yourself
When your gear sells, our commission is a simple, flat 15% fee plus a 2.9% + $.30 payment processing fee on the order total.
You listed your item for $250. When it sold we charged you a 15% commission on that item price which equals $37.50. The order total was $305.98, so the payment processing fee was $9.17. In total there were $46.67 in fees.
The buyer paid $23.98 in tax, which we submit on your behalf, so there is no tax implication on your end. There is nothing you have to file or pay here! We handle all of the taxes for our sellers.
Additionally, you decided to charge the buyer $32 to ship the item in which you were reimbursed in full for. We do not charge any commission on your shipping rate like other marketplaces.
Here are your order details:
Purchase Price: $250.00
Commission: - $37.50
Payment Fee: - $9.17
Shipping: + $32.00
Seller Total: $235.33 (this is the amount we paid you for the sale)
Let us know if you have any other questions and we'll be happy to walk you through the selling and payment process.
Thanks,
Geartrade.com
BK
Brandon K.
Zero support for sellers
Edit 2: Geartrade is now "asking for more details" on negative reviews at Trustpilot in an attempt to get them removed. If you do not respond to the "request" in a timely manner, your review will be removed, as per Trustpilot policies. Essentially they are trying to game the system to silence negative reviews and improve their lackluster rating, instead of making the necessary improvements on their business to get better reviews. Geartrade just keeps getting slimier.
Edit: Geartrade's response is largely falsified. They made exactly one mediocre attempt to contact the buyer and then hoped I would just drop the issue by not following up on my previous emails. Again, I repeat: they 1) pressured me into making a sale I did not want to make 2) reneged on a written promise made in email 3) invented rules on the spot that never existed in any written policies 4) modified my profile without notifying me or getting my consent
---------------------------------------------------------------
I (was) a five star seller on Geartrade with 34 successful sales and 13 unbroken five star reviews, and also frequently shipped the same day the item was purchased, with an average ship time of 14 hours. In addition, I offered free shipping on all my items, paid for out of my own pocket.
Months ago, I had to cancel a sale to a buyer because I was out of town for the holidays (it was shortly before Christmas). I owned responsibility for this and promptly informed the customer.
Shortly later, I received an email from Geartrade claiming the buyer was very interested in purchasing the item, and despite my misgivings in selling an item to a customer that might be annoyed and therefore give me a bad review, I gave into pressure after Geartrade repeatedly emailed me.
I bent over backwards trying to get the item shipped as fast as possible to the buyer, including taking unpaid time off work to ship the item on the day I said I would ship, yet the buyer ended up leaving me a one-star review, which was exactly what I feared.
I contacted Geartrade about getting the review removed as 1) They had interfered in the sale and pressured me to make it happen, 2) I had a very good track record, and 3) the one-star review was clearly not indicative of the experience and against the review policy of the site.
After many emails, in which Geartrade dodged my questions and concerns and generally just patronized me, I finally threatened to leave the site after not hearing from them for two weeks. On this they offered to remove the star portion of the review, which I agreed to.
However, they didn't delete the star portion, they deleted the whole review, which was fine by me but a little weird.
Now, 5 months later, they suddenly re-added the entire review back to my profile without consulting or informing me. When I contacted them about this, they said they made a mistake and decided to reverse their decision, without providing any explanation other than their "review policy" (doesn't actually say this if you read it) only allows reviews to be deleted with both parties' consent.
When I told them I would have no choice to leave, the CSR sent an extremely sarcastic response back, and ignored my request to delete my account.
Don't sell here. They treat sellers like second-class citizens and let buyers do whatever they want with zero consequences.
Response from Geartrade.comJul 8, 2022
We sincerely apologize that this buyer left a second negative review and that you felt pressured in any way to make this sale as that was never our intention. Post your cancellation of this sale, the buyer contacted us to reach out to you on their behalf. Unfortunately, the same impatience you received during this sale, and consequent review, we received on our end as well. We wish that this buyer would have been more patient especially since this sale was during the holiday season.
We attempted many times to reason with this buyer and see if they would be open amending their review. They unfortunately were not and eventually we had to let it go. We did remove the 1 star rating as we had stated but we were maybe too successful, as our attempt to do so resulted in the entire review being removed. That was a technical error on our end and not one that we anticipated happening at that time or foresee happening again in the future. We truly apologize for that error on our end.
We do not see any outstanding payments for you in our system. As of today, we see that you have been paid out for every sale that you have made in our marketplace within the stated time frame for established sellers. We will never place a hold on a seller’s payout unless the item has been misrepresented in some way and we are coming to a resolution between the buyer and seller. Please feel free to reach out if we can help support you and your adventures in any way, we’re always here to help.
LE
Les
Very slow to pay…high sales fee
Geartrade charges a similar to EBay high sales fee without EBay’s service. Additionally they definitely are in no rush to send you your money. Since selling fees are the same as EBay, EBay gives such great support, and EBay pays fairly quickly, I see no reason to sell on this site.
Response from Geartrade.comJul 8, 2022
We were unable to search for your order since we can only see your first name in the review. Please reach out to us direct at gearheads AT geartrade.com and we will be happy to help you out!
RW
Rom W.
Item shipped slowly (3-5 business days) and then never arrived
Item shipped slowly (3-5 business days after the order), and then never arrived. The entire process of dealing with the shipper was a pain and it took multiple follow-ups on my part to figure out what was going on and to request a refund from geartrade.
I suggest not using the geartrade seller backcountry until they stop using USPS for delivery. At this point in time USPS is not dependable for expensive items.
I am even more frustrated as I lost out on multiple sales for the same item while waiting for the past month while geartrade assured me it's likely just still on the way, and to please wait. In the end, I can no longer find the item online (let alone on sale). Geartrade nor backcountry offered nothing in return for the entire hassle and lost a potentially good customer.
Response from Geartrade.comJul 8, 2022
We are so sorry your order was lost by USPS. We hate to see this happen. I see you ordered your item on 4/15 and as soon as we found out the package was officially lost, we credited you in full for this on 5/6. Thanks for all of your business since this order was lost and for trusting us with your business moving forward. We really appreciate it!
