One of the most popular questions we get is “should I recycle my pre-owned fur coat?”
Furs depreciate significantly each year whether they are used or not, being a biodegradable product made from an animal skin, they can eventually dry out and this does lead to fur skin’s worst enemy Dry Rot making the coat worthless.
The natural progression of any animal skins is to dry out no matter what is done to preserve them, like our own skin which we lotion from time to time still ages, animal skins don’t get that kind of attention, so they end up hanging in closets drying out and becoming worthless. That being said, the sooner you sell, the better!
All prices are determined from what a furrier would have paid in wholesale value as far back as 30 years ago, not the retail cost the buyer paid, these would have varied significantly from each furrier and retail fur store, they were never consistent, due to overhead cost, profit desire of each thousands of furriers that have existed back some 30 years ago, who today are now all gone (which says volume for the obsolete fur industry), these wholesale prices were set by the fur coat manufacturing company, where the individual furriers purchased from, they were all the same for every furrier buying and selling fur coats.
Some have tried to pass down their fur coats to daughters, daughter-in-law, family and even friends with no success, the global attitude of people today thru social media and the political controversy received from animal activists, makes fur coats unpopular to wear anymore.
Often fur coat owners have an unrealistic expectation of the value of their used fur coat. This is usually due to a mistaken idea of what a furrier’s appraisal tells them. An appraisal on a fur garment is an estimate of the Retail Replacement Cost. It covers the cost of a Brand-New fur coat a coat that is similar to the one you own – i.e. what it would cost to replace yours if it were stolen, lost or destroyed with a brand-new fur coat of the same fur type, style, length, size and quality, so read the fine print of your appraisal.
If any furrier indicates your coat is worth any amount, that you would be more then pleased in selling for, ask the furrier for only 1/2 of that amount in cash value, and tell them they can then sell the fur coat for the other 1/2 and keep the cash for themselves, you will see how fast they remove themselves from this deal! Yet they have the perfect environment to sell a used fur coat but they to know it is nearly impossible and are not willing to put their money where their mouth is! The old Adage is an item is only worth what the market will bare and someone is willing to pay. It is not so fashionable for fur coats today unfortunately, as it once was back some 30 years ago!
If you want to sell your used fur coat, what you need to be interested in is the Actual Cash Value of the fur coat in it’s current age, fur type, condition and marketability, this is usually significantly less than any appraised value. Usually 8-10% of the actual retail cost a consumer paid some years ago.
Any item is only truly “worth” what someone is willing to pay for it. The price we pay for a fur coat is objectively determined by factors such as the age of the fur, its condition including the skins, style, size, length and marketability.
Keep in mind that this is an animal skin considered a biodegradable and perishable item, fur coats do not retain their value like gold, diamonds, furniture or real estate, fur coats are not a commodity or even a necessity, they are considered a Luxurious Indulgence, nothing more you bought it because you wanted to, they were most likely purchased at a time when they were in style.
You will still need to find someone interested in buying that old fur coat no matter what you personally feel it should be worth, we buy many things in a lifetime that are considered expensive, which we will never receive full value for, it is just the normal course of wanting and consumerism, once again the saying goes, “Something is only worth what you can sell it for!“
Global warming has had a part on the demise of fur coats, fur is not as desired as it once was for warmth, so we tend to not wear them because we find them heavy and cumbersome.
Activists such as PETA, GREEN PEACE, have made buying or selling fur coats very uncomfortable for consumers due to fear or just plain public inconvenience, also there is no big demand for wearing or buying a fur coat that holds so much adversity in the marketplace today.
We also reimburse the shipping cost of up to $50, for pre-owned fur coats shipped to our depot.
If you have any questions, email us directly using this link.
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