FOH Auctions Update 14th Jan

[bayala]

We promised you an update 

Final development signoff will occur in the next few days and then we will be inviting our mods and selected locker holding members to test over the course of a fortnight. Testers will be given some dummy credit cards for the testing (they can be used at checkout)  in order that the complete array of features can be rigorously examined. 

A quick intro. This is not a detailed intro as that will occur before launch. 

FOH Auctions is a stand alone auction platform developed for members seeking to buy or sell cigars with a minimum of three years box age. 

There will be three stages to the rollout:

In stage one, the source of the cigars will be:

• FOH member locker stock
• FOH Aged Stock

In stage two, the source of cigars will be expanded to:

• Selected FOH member private held stock (outside of locker).
• Invited trusted retailers whom hold personal relationships with ourselves. 

In stage three, we will expand again to:

• Open trade with the necessary checks and balances in place. 

The progression timeline  between stages one and three will be determined by the deemed success of each stage.

.This project has been in development for the past 18 months and the focus of development has been:

1. Provide a user experiences that focuses on simplicity and ease-of-use

 

2. Tiered membership and buyer/seller commissions that reward active members

• Primary (Higher seller commission %) / Gold / Platinum (Low to no seller commission %) *
• Flat rate buyer commission for all tiers. 
• Users will move up and down membership tiers based on the combined value of their purchases and sales. **

*     All FOH Members will commence on a Gold status setting. 

**   The higher membership tiers of Platinum and Gold are readily attainable. 

 

3. Build a platform with intelligent backend logic to promote the provenance and validity of listings

 

 

4. Offer multiple payment methods that meet fraud and anti-money laundering requirements.

• Credit card with 3D Secure authentication
• Bank transfer to our multi-currency accounts (AUD, USD, CAD, GBP, & EUR) 

5. Managed escrow systems. 

5. Accountability for buyers and sellers using a review system

 

We will be handing over the site to our mods / selected member testers in the next 7 days. This will allow us to fine tune the auction processes under more realistic conditions and with people who have extensive knowledge about purchasing and selling cigars online. 

Please restrain from asking detailed questions of the ins and outs at this point in time. Let us get through the testing period first which will allow us to fine tune the final product before launch. 

We will provide an update next Monday!

 

Cheers

Ben

[El Presidente]

Thanks Ben. 

This will provide members an avenue to move locker stock to other members. 

If you have a locker and have cigars with 3+ years of age that you are no longer interested in...........keep FOH Auctions in the back of your mind. We will send out an email to all locker members once testing is finished. 

 

 

[99call]

Hats off FOH. Never standing still, always got the guts and creative problem solving ability to move forward. As a sole practitioner business owner I really look up to and admire this. 

[El Presidente]

2 minutes ago, 99call said:

Hats off FOH. Never standing still, always got the guts and creative problem solving ability to move forward. As a sole practitioner business owner I really look up to and admire this. 

necessity is the mother of invention 

Plato

[ac031898]

Can’t underscore my excitement for this! Joined the FOH community in 2018 and continually impressed by the customer service and support of the online community. Keep it up!!

[CaptainQuintero]

Exciting times ahead, seems a long way away from the LFTH madness and Sven!

  If you need any more testers/guinea pigs give me a shout, always happy to help out

[UpInSmoak]

Sven was amazing!! Miss that guy!?

[El Presidente]

9 minutes ago, UpInSmoak said:

Sven was amazing!! Miss that guy!?

Great bloke. 

He was always there for me. 

[Fuzz]

Sven and his Asian partner LFK did party a little too hearty.

[mgcrunch]

Exciting stuff. Thanks for the update, looking forward to go live!

[Lotusguy]

Following this with great interest.

The UK auctions were never really practical for someone residing in the US (plus the assorted issues related to Mo’ Money).

Kudos!

[Hoepssa]

Can't wait 

One day we might have the chance to buy FOH stock...

[canadianbeaver]

So looking forward to this and you can count on me as a playah!

Perhaps even

”some dummy credit cards (they can use at checkout)“

Lisa and Diana already have mine on file.?

 

CB

[golf4less]

I am looking forward to participating in this endeavor, thanks FOH team!!

[MD Puffer]

Are you anticipating locker spaces opening up, or is that going to be phased out once all stock is removed/sold/etc?

[El Presidente]

45 minutes ago, MD Puffer said:

Are you anticipating locker spaces opening up, or is that going to be phased out once all stock is removed/sold/etc?

We have put that decision back to June. 

There is no use opening it up if it will be full again in a few months.  I would be happy to provide a new facility but only if we can have all members follow the rules.  That will require a significant upgrade on the tech side (automation of processes/emails/warnings etal). 

Right now we have enough on our plate. Let members run down a % of their OLH storage (by shipping home or sale) and we can revisit. 

 

[BJRPorter]

Wow. There must be some gems in storage!

[teewinot]

Is there anyway that PayPal would be acceptable payment?  Might just be a US thing..Please pardon my newbie ignorance and lack of knowledge of international money trade

 

 

[El Presidente]

2 hours ago, teewinot said:

Is there anyway that PayPal would be acceptable payment?  Might just be a US thing..Please pardon my newbie ignorance and lack of knowledge of international money trade

 

 

While many do it, it is illegal to use PayPal for tobacco products. If discovered your account will be locked. 

Full gateway for CC's and International transfers (4 currencies) will be available for settlement. 

[alloy]

This will be very interesting!

[Lucass111]

Sorry if this has been discussed but how will the shipping be handled? Will a shipping fee be assessed after the auction is completed?

[El Presidente]

Just now, Lucass111 said:

Sorry if this has been discussed but how will the shipping be handled? Will a shipping fee be assessed after the auction is completed?

That's now getting technical and  the full detail  can wait until testing is complete. 

In short,  The seller lists where he is prepare to ship to. The winning bidder and the seller go into a secure (in platform room) to determine the shipping. 

Shipping fee is determined after discussion and agreement  (digitised) between buyer and seller. Transaction proceeds on that agreement (digitised). 

[mt1]

My bank account is ready for this...I hope...

[ponfed]

I've been off the forums for a while because of major upheavals which put a bit too much on my plate to get into forum rabbit holes, discussions and arguments. 

Not to mention the constant siren song of the 24/24;)

But I suddenly remembered the upcoming auction platform opening so I had to comeback!

I just want to tell everyone involved, from the Prez on down, how freaking impressive this all looks!

I work in IT in the banking sector, and let me tell you that building an auction platform, as a non financial institution... from where I'm sitting it shows a rock solid operation, mature organization. A well oiled machine that's ready to take on all challenges!

Kudos to everyone at FOH. Impressive. Really impressive.

And now, I have to go and sell one of my kidneys, maybe part of my liver...

 

 

[mnmlst]

Yes, kudos to you and your team, Rob for constantly improving. This is an exciting and welcome development.