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I'm with you guys too. Free enterprise is what made this nation great. Unfortunatly for us,it's a burr under our saddle. I just hope these guys run out of room or money. till then I'll just be patient and pick up a few scraps here and there. I just picked up a box of Mayorga Parejos in Maduro for $58,well under retail. You just have to be more vigilant. X

GoldenGoose7 and also Trish. Hi, Trish. You recently mentioned that you found retailers annoyed you at antique auctions by outbidding you just enough to keep you from getting your bargain. Later, you were advised that this was OK because you’re never entitled to a “steal”. May I add a little insight to this? [BR]

My cousin was an antiques and art dealer in London. He explained that there was a group of retailers who made a living by going out of business, the oriental carpet business. Acting as a group, but not necessarily in collusion, they sold to the public at going out of business auctions. Any good lot would never sell at a low price because another dealer would always buy it. In that way they kept the good stuff at good prices amongst themselves. Even he, as an outside dealer, was excluded. No one is accusing CBID of this but you can see why we, the public, could be annoyed at seeing our sought after lots swept away to someone else’s store.[BR]

I did know a tobacco retailer in West Lafayette who told me that he would go to Walgreen’s to buy out their stock of sale items, in part to save a little money over wholesale, but also so the public wouldn't get the wrong idea of what the real price should be. This took from Walgreen’s their expensive loss leader promotion and the public never got their “deal”.
[br]
I still like CBID, wish you every success and hope you make a lot of money so that you can continue. And I hope my paragraph marks work this time.

You would think it would be illegal in many states for retailers to purchase their inventory this way. They don't have to report their inventory to anyone. Dont pay State taxes on the tobacco they purchased. If they keep dual books, they can sell the cigars they bid on here, charge sales tax and never have to report it to their State and local Government. In addition, they run their business at a loss on paper so they can come here and bid $27 on glass humidors. Just gotta keep bidding and hope one or two lots pass unnoticed by the retailers.

CI sells a box for $128. Personally I would rather have a Padron Anniversary.

rayder1,

You are right it is illegal, and the proper authorities in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and California have been notified and are investigating along with the BATF (a fun bunch of guys).

You may see the retailers bidding here come to an abrupt end. I have said it before "the tax man is coming".
If you suspect that the person you are bidding against is a retailer and is trying to skip out on his tax burden, turn him in. If he in not a retailer that is breaking the law, then he has nothing to worry about.

CI should also consult with thier legal counsel to see if they can be held liable.

UHH..Ya..right,I'm right behind you in line Jimmy. LOL X

I have never heard of this law. You are trying to say I have to pay my state taxes on things I buy from the mail? Thats BS. Next you will tell me I have to pay my state taxes on the souveniers I got at Disneyland. If you are talking about tobacco tax then ours is like 10 cents per $10.00.

Actually the term sales tax is incorrect when you are referring to the taxes that are suppose to be paid on out of state purchases. The proper term is "use tax". The US Supreme Court ruled in National Bellas Hess in 1967, that the Constitution prohibited merchants from collecting taxes on purchases made by out of state customers if their business had no physical presence in that state. Consumers are still required to report these purchases and pay the use tax. In the case of tobacco products that also carry an excise tax, consumers are also suppose to report these. But, since the Supreme court ruled that retailers are prohibited from collecting the tax and later ruled that the retailers were not obligated to report the sales to the various states, enforcement is almost impossible. The internet tax freedom act didn't change any of this. It only prohibited the introduction of "new taxes" that the government feared would stifle the growth of internet e-commerce. Many state govenments are pushing for a nationwide use tax program to recover these lost revenues but it will take congressional action since the states don't have the power individually to regulate interstate commerce. Some states were trying to get the US postal service and other delivery services to report deliveries. So far none of them have agreed. Considering that internet sales have grown to about $15 billion per year and will probably hit $100 billion per year within the next ten years the individual states stand to lose 4 to 5 billion annually. These are revenues that are needed for public service such as education, law enforcement and fire protection. The money has to come from somewhere. If not from sales/use tax then they'll raise local taxes or property taxes to make up for the losses. sorry for the looooooooooong post.

I did a research paper on internet taxation issues for my ebusiness course last semester. It was pretty interesting. One of the more interesting trends is some of the major retailers like Walmart and Kmart have created ebusinesses separate from their brick and mortar stores just so they won't have to deal with collecting taxes.

Through the bums out!