Mercari Stays the Course on Zero Selling Fees

by: COVID-19

Nobody wants to pay fees for the privilege of buying garage sale items and thrift store junks that these flippers flood Mercari with.

by: pace306

I guess that employee was 1) drinking the Kool Aid and 2) can’t be honest or they will loose their jobs 3) hasn’t read the Reddit comments and declarations of account closings.

by: None Such

It’s true that buyers of some collectibles - including myself- are used to paying buyer fees.  But these are generally for higher end items that I’m unlikely to find on online marketplaces - or that I want to be sure are genuine  And I have to really to want the item if I’m going to have to pay a 15-20% buyer fees.  For cheaper stuff that is available on online marketplaces like Mercari or eBay, the introduction of a buyer fee makes it less likely I will buy, unless the price is right. And for some many things on Mercari, the flipper sellers often have a wildly inflated idea of what something is worth.  
I suspect Mercari, having now eliminated selling fees, will be even more flooded by worthless stuff, such that finding worthwhile collectibles will be like looking for a needle in a haystack, and who has time for that?   As a seller, I’m fine with a reasonable selling fee.  Conclusion:  agree that we will see how this shakes out but my first impression is that this may have been a boneheaded move taken without a clear sense of implications for the marketplace.  

by: Chicago48

One reader wrote on the AuctionBytes Blog, "in theory sellers should be reducing pricing because they no longer have to pay those fees. I personally don't think that is going to happen as much as Mercari and the buyers would like to see."
^^
I made one sale on Merc last year compared to previous years when I made several sales.
I re-listed some stale listings on their site and they automatically deducted $5 from your ask price.
And I still don't have a sale.
I made one sale on Merc about a month ago.  Merc feels like Bonanaza and Ecrater to me, nothing happening in the way of sales.
You should go to Walter's theory about WHY Merc is making this move and he makes good sense. Search YT:  The REAL Reason Mercari Has 0% Fees

by: toolguy

I've been an active buyer on Mercari for the past 2 years.

That said I haven't bought a single item on Mercari since the change.

I tried buying something but the 10% service fee had me backing out of the sale.

If Mercari had been smart about this they would've split the fees 50/50 between buyer and seller.

by: MARK NICHOLS

I found Mercari back in February of 2022 ... in 2-years I have managed to BUY over 150-items from their marketplace.  I WILL BE CLOSING MY ACCOUNT!!

DON'T GIVE ME MORE JUNK FEES to have to pay ... I WON'T!!  Now, a buyer on Mercari has NO IDEA what an item will REALLY COST unless it's added to the cart!  The ''JUNK FEES'' vary for each item, it seems.

Sellers on the Mercari marketplace ''CLAIM'' to have ''lowered prices'' due to the JUNK FEES ... but when you add the JUNK FEES to the item, now it seems like you have to pay more!  BAIT-N-SWITCH ... Las Vegas Strip hotels ADVERTISE a ''LOW PRICE'' but that all changes when the RESPORT FEE is tacked on to the bill.  NO JUNK FEES!!!

Credit card companies had RULES that a business could NOT pass CREDIT CARD FEES on to buyers.  It's my understanding ... gas stations may have fought for the option to pass credit card fees on to customers after they had seen a decline inside their retail stores as sales of those items help to offset the credit card fees that worked against the low profit margin on gas.

As it is ... if I enter a store or restaurant and find out that I have to PAY THE CREDIT CARD FEES then I WALK RIGHT BACK OUT THE DOOR and NOT TO RETURN!  Thus, goodbye ... Mercari.

Buyers may want to put a quick end to this one ... or we may see more businesses attempt to pass credit card fees on to buyers.

by: Whatever

Just my opinion - I am a seller and also an occasional buyer. Joined in 2021. M has a problem in the past of attracting lowball buyers. Buyers who lurk around grabbing items to re-sell elsewhere. Alot of them. I sell alot of vintage - been doing it many many years. I know the value of what I have. I'm willing to knock off some $'s but when I have the only piece in the entire world wide internet - not much. I've had more sales in the last week than in the prior month. If Mercari cleans up their site with this move I'm all for it. I'm also taking more offers now as opposed to turning them down.

Now for the sellers who sell low end product and take every single dollar when they sell something - I know sellers like that. They take daily withdrawals even if it's just a couple of bucks. I understand as a business owner how mind boggling that must be for Mercari never mind how the heck are they (seller) keeping up with accounting? They have now eliminated that process with the $2 fee for withdrawals. Good for them. Additionally if a seller leaves their money pending for longer durations I'm sure Mercari is banking on the interest to add some revenue to their coffers.

I think clothing sellers will leave maybe in droves. I never wanted to sell clothing - too many problems creating honest listing - too much work answering all those questions and returns from scammers. Most complaints are always about clothing. Good move Mercari

All in all I'm just like many waiting it out to see how this shakes out. Mercari is not my only revenue source and I'm not broke so I can afford to see how it works.  I think it's going to be a game changer for internet sales.

by: Stone Cutter

*** Amazon’s “added fee”  ***

I suspect Mercari is struggling to find Buyers….therefore the new fee structure. Mercari could be sinking hard & fast.

With a surge of inflation and high interest rates, the low income Buyer will not shop for goods they do not need.

Meanwhile, Amazon has a new fleet of electric delivery trucks that now cruise through my neighborhood. These new trucks are  energy efficient and are quiet as a mouse. Amazon continues to move forward.

If I place an order with Amazon in the morning, I can spend an added fee of $6.99 to have my order delivered SAME DAY.
Amazon sells necessities at a 30% discount compared to my local retail stores, while I never have to leave the house to spend money on gas. How can any other online retailer compete with Amazon?

Sites like Mercari, Ebay and Etsy sell too much junk that consumers do not need. Mercari has data that we don’t have. This new fee structure could be Mercari’s last ditch effort to turn things around as their ship may be sinking.