Both my wife and I have been buying customers and selling consignors of this company for a while now. Until now, we've always been satisfied as both.
A few weeks ago, I brought Neil three different watches to consign. I had initially emailed him detailed photos and links to the manufacturer's websites to identify them. It was to be a very easy transaction with a complete and accurate description/photos included.
I eagerly awaited seeing a listing for two weeks, but I realize as busy as they are, it could take a few weeks. I finally found the listing for auctions ending on 7/5/2025. To say the least, I'm very disappointed as to the both the final information and photos presented. Here's a link to the listing.
https://auctions.ejsauction.com/auction-lot/3-invicta-benrus-watches-watch-strap-parts_730471d9f3
The first issue was I had spoken to Neil, setting up an appointment to drop off the watches. I live some distance away, so I realized I'd have a bit of time invested to accomplish this. I arrived on time, but was told after waiting about 15-20 minutes that Neil wasn't there. They arranged to have someone else take the consignments. Neil planned on listing all three watches as one lot, but the other person taking them in for consignment thought that they'd be listed separately. I agreed with this strategy, because I know I won't bid on a multi-item lot of I don't want all the other things included. Listing them separately certainly made sense.
Previously, I had sent Neil a detailed email about the watches, their conditions, that they kept perfect time due to all having fresh batteries, plus links to the manufacturer's websites where the person creating the description could conveniently get all the specs of each watch to create a professional listing. The photos I sent were infinitely better than the ones taken by EJ's for the auction listing.
What I spent for batteries exceeded the final auction bid by over $20 - before commissions and fees. Since few jewelers even provide battery replacement anymore, knowing these batteries were new would probably have increased the interest in these watches. I also get that there's no way to know the batteries were fresh, but mention could have at least been made that all of them were keeping accurate time.
Next, whomever wrote the description is unaware how a watch is measured. It's the diameter of the dial, but the description lists the overall length of the watchband from end to end! Really???
As I said, the links I provided would've given all the specs, but they chose to ignore them. At the very least, the dial circumference measurement could easily have been ascertained using a metric tape measure. I don't think these people even know the industry standard for measuring watches are listed in millimeters, not inches. Finally, each week when viewing their on-line auctions, they usually have three general categories that items are listed under. Their listings are very inconsistent, where watches, for example, can often be found in any of them. They should keep all their items placed consistently under just one category and preferably close together, so buyers looking for a watch don't have to look through almost every listing.
When I first saw the listing after it went live, I emailed Neil what I thought was friendly advice, making some constructive suggestions to improve the listing. I never heard back from him, nor anyone else. The piss-poor description, along with really bad photos, remained on-line the entire time. Of course, this is why three high quality watches only sold for $40. I'd think that it would be in their best interest to get higher bids for their clients as well as maximizing profits for themselves.
What I saw, and consistently see with EJ's, is that there is very little effort put into anything. Bids are low, and by reviewing the many different reviews found on-line, they don't seem to care. If they did, things would change. The peeves I have with my listing could've easily been corrected during the week the auction was posted. The quality and professionalism exhibited with my auction is something you'd expect to see in a Craigslist ad or at a small garage sale - not a professional auction house.
In their business, many of their buyers are not local and cannot actually see the item(s) in person. Buyers rely on detailed, accurate descriptions/photos.
I know someone who just lost his mother, and he mentioned he'll be looking for an estate liquidation company that can sell everything for the most money possible. Believe me, EJ's WILL NOT be one I recommend.
Sorry for the long review, but potential consignors need to know what they're likely to encounter with this company. read more