After 14 years of selling on eBay, I am being forced to begin the process of closing my store, due to the changes mandated in the eBay 2012 Spring Seller's Update.

This update requires me and other sellers to do several things that are impossible or just plain stupid.

Here's what they want sellers to start doing:

1. Ship every item the very next day. Goodbye, combined shipping! Some of my customers know I am legally blind, and a trip from my house to the Post Office requires a trip across the Bolivar Ferry to Galveston, a 40 mile round trip.

2. They want me to put delivery confirmation and a tracking number on every shipment. So, on a 99 cent card, the shipping cost triples. Bear in mind that in 14 years on eBay, I have had ZERO resolution center cases.  Also, in order to qualify for a tracking number, a package has to be 1/4 inch thick.  One or two cards aren't quite thick enough. So I have to add packing material (old newspapers, etc.) to fatten up the package. Essentially, they want me to send garbage through the mail, and pay 3 times more to do so!

3. They want my pictures to be much bigger on the listings. I try to make my scans actual size. This avoids any misunderstandings later. To comply with their new rules, I would have to make a Topps size card appear to be 8 inches wide x 11 inches tall. This is sure to create problems at some point.

4. They have already started charging me a 12% commission on shipping charges! My shipping charges are low, 99 cents and under.  That new 12% commission is probably why they want to triple my shipping costs.

These are bad ideas for me, my buyers, and for the planet.

Imagine all the gas that is going to be burned up by  several hundred thousand eBay sellers having to go mail packages every day. Imagine the additional pollution, highway congestion, and longer lines at Post Offices.  Imagine the stupidity of millions of tons of garbage being added to packages and shipped through the US Mail, a waste of cargo space, fuel, time, and money.  It is indicative to me of the insensitivity and lack of business sense that has started to emerge at eBay.

So I am planning to leave eBay. I am a Top Rated Seller, a Silver Powerseller, and have completed over 11,000 transactions with 100% positive feedback. During 2011, there was no eBay seller with over 5,000 transactions who compiled higher Detailed Seller Ratings (DSRs).

Of course, I will continue to provide the same level of excellent service, packaging, and low prices.

Thank you & happy collecting….
Grouchy