BuyaFont - No Commissions?

Rob Barba
Rob Barba Posts: 86
in Type Business
Hey all,
I was just contacted by a new font site called Buyafont.com about selling with them and while the idea is intriguing, it also set off a number of red flags:
- 100% payment, no commission: this is the big one for me.  How the hell are they going to stay in business that way?
- Delaware LLC: while they are listed as an actual business, it's in Delaware, which is known for its shelf companies.
- Spelling errors ("developpers") and grammatical styles (9.00AM - 8.00PM) that don't particularly pare well with standard American English.  While that doesn't necessarily mean anything, tied in conjunction with the previous, it's a concern.
- 100% payment via Paypal.  While again, a minor concern, if they're a legitimate business willing to do that amount of volume, why not upgrade to stripe?

I wanted to see if you guys had been approached as well, or if you did, had the same concerns.  As for me, I'm staying clear for now.
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Comments

  • JoyceKetterer
    JoyceKetterer Posts: 812
    100% could me 100% of your fee and they are marking you up.  I'd not mind that it if it was itemized... but only with some sort of large b to b fulfillment house.


  • Dominic Stanley
    Dominic Stanley Posts: 32
    edited October 2019
    Hi, they also contacted me. I've never heard of them before so I'm reluctant to trust them. If anyone has more information, feel free to share.

    Thanks

    D
  • Lars Schwarz
    Lars Schwarz Posts: 114
    Try to license something via their website (I'm not able to see the term I have to accept, because they are not linked nor published on their website?).

    That section when adding something to their cart also says "100% of your payment will be made directly to the owner of the fonts. So the invoice will be provided by them." (They receive the money, but you will send the invoice the the buyer?). Their "sell your fonts" page says:

    1. You sell on our marketplace and get 100% payment.
    2. Full payment will go to your registered Paypal.
    3. No commission deducted.

    Huh, so they pay all PayPal costs/fees and even transfer the money they received from the buyers for free? Hmmm.

    Check their social media channels (a business that says it exists since 2006, but only has 148 followers on Twitter and 437 fans on Facebook?).

    Search TypeDrawers for buyafont: 0 results (except this post here of course)

    However you still could look if you know any designers that currently sell via this website and ask them about their experience with this service, but ... well, I guess your first impression I right. 
  • Robin Mientjes
    Robin Mientjes Posts: 132
    @Lars Schwarz I actually looked up the top four ‘best-selling’ designers on the site and they have no online presence other than this site, so I’m gonna say this is, at best, dodgy.
  • James Puckett
    James Puckett Posts: 1,992
    Looks like they’re making money from advertising.
  • Thomas Phinney
    Thomas Phinney Posts: 2,883
    I see a lot of weird/bad grammar on the site.

    Also, some typefaces that are clearly ... “derivative” shall we say? One is definitely an Albertus knockoff, for example. But the designer is exclusive to BuyaFont, so there’s that.
  • Simon Cozens
    Simon Cozens Posts: 740
    I got contacted by them, which tells me that they aren't exactly discriminating.

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