Unicorn Books Ltd provides a leading valuation service for book and ephemera collections.

Our team have years of experience in trading rare books and ephemera worldwide, and our book valuation specialist is a member of the Valuers Institute of New Zealand.

To complete a valuation all we require are some high-quality images via email as well as any relevant history.  For larger collections we normally require to inspect the items on location.

Contact us for a no obligation fee estimate:

Single books

Unless the book is likely to be very valuable the cost is not normally worthwhile to complete a single book appraisal.

If a book is clearly not even worth spending the time appraising it we will at least tell you. We would never recommend, supply and charge for a valuation report that only confirms the item is worth less than the valuation cost, or nothing at all.

Free appraisals and valuation advice

We do not provide free market valuation advice to assist sellers with their own online sales.

Remember that a book dealer is not a local library or community service; their time and expertise is their business, just like any other trade or professional.

For people wanting to sell us their old books and ephemera.

First things first, thanks for reaching out for advice.

Unicorn Books has been in the book trade for years, from buying and selling, to valuations, as well as being offered books collections to purchase. So, this places us in a strong position to provide you sound advice.

Our feedback, especially concerning second hand book pricing can equally apply to those offering us their self-published new books.

If you seek advice from an industry professional, then trust what they say.

It astonishes us how many people tell us "I really have no expectation on price and would appreciate your guidance"  – only to become indignant and instant book valuation experts as soon as we put a number on the table.

Remember, if your collection is well suited to our markets then we will always offer you as much as we possibly can on the first bid. We never just low ball an offer because that only unnecessarily risks us loosing them to another book dealer.

A bookdealer's margin is not simply the published retail price, less what they offer you.

It also astonishes us how many people, including authors, expect a dealer to pay retail prices or just a little bit under.

Remember this when your back of the envelope calulation determines the dealer will make a fortune from your books.

• A book dealer only makes their money when they sell, and used and rare books can easily take years to sell.
• Prior to any sale a dealers costs to purchase, ship, store, digitise and market every single item is significant and is all payable in advance.
• Books sitting unsold for years is normal in this trade, it is unusual when an item lists one week and sells the next.
• The cost of hidden damage or items in lesser condition than we were advised is something that we have to factor in when buying collections, without exception there is always a degree of this no matter how helpful or best intended the seller is.
• On any sale a dealer then has to deduct the costs of sale that will take 35+ % straight off the top of the sale price including; GST, sales fees, bank card fees, AfterPay fees, courier booking fees and packaging costs.

So very quickly these sale costs deducted off the top, less all the costs paid months or years prior from the bottom, leaves an amount for the dealer in the middle that will be much less that you think.

Don’t rely completely on what prices you can see published online.

Selling second hand books is like selling a house. A published asking price is just that, you can ask all you like, but that doesn’t mean that you will necessarily get it.

Remember also when referencing very high prices published online for other comparable examples of a particular item, these listings can actually be a front for an illegal business not really dealing in books at all.  Yes, even the humble book trade has an underbelly.

Unicorn Bookshop is not a hobby trader.

We are amused by how often people insist that our prices should be less, because our business operates online therefore we do not have all the costs of a traditional retail shop.

The reality is that the costs to run an international ecommerce business is actually more than compared to a traditional retail shop. The only difference is that our shop lease has been transferred to a large warehouse and multiple digital platform(s).

Everything else about our business and the costs associated is more or less the same as a traditional retailer that includes; purchasing, inventory, digitisation, warehousing, staffing, sales and marketing, systems, office, admin, packaging, logistics, GST and taxation.

Often an old book is just that, an old book.

Remember, just because a book is old and in good condition does not necessarily mean that it is valuable.

If we advise you that your books are worth little to nothing, then that is what they are really worth; supported by the fact that we are recommending that you just take them to an op-shop or the dump.

A most frequent example is being offered original and pristine Encyclopaedia Britannica sets, you know those extensive voluminous sets that you were convinced to buy in the 1970s and 1980s for the now equivalent of tens of thousands of dollars and you were sold then “they are of such quality and detail that they will last your family for decades.”

The reality is that for a long time these are now worth little more than the paper they are printed on and should be thrown out. Google and Wikipedia took care of those large expensive sets in the same way that Netflix and streaming took care of expensive VHS recorders and tapes.

Condition and presentation is everything.

Books and ephemera are always about presentation; the dust jacket or cover is normally the most important component that determines their value.

A rare book or newspaper can be as new, but with a damaged or missing cover or jacket its value is much less.