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What are your collecting goals for 2014?

Started by delekkerste,

148 posts in this topic

Jesusjon

Jesusjon

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Posted

Something Felix said earlier got me thinking. (He tends to do that with me.)

 

Setting goals and going after specific pieces I think has, in the past, led me to pay higher prices. (Trying to pry something out of someone's collection tends to lead to paying over market value.)

 

Obviously this stuff is one of a kind so sometimes that is necessary, but my new mantra is to buy just a few pieces a year and stay on budget, so his Moneyball idea hits home, as long as I'm still being patient and waiting for the right pieces to surface, primarily from my want list.

 

I don't know if it's just me and what I collect, but it seems like a lot of quality art that was heretofore locked up is seeing the light of day. Perhaps a combination of plateauing prices at relatively high levels, while many longtime collectors are getting older and making asset choices? Or paring down their collections to just essential pieces and letting go of lesser examples? In any event, lately I feel like I haven't needed to look, because great stuff is surfacing.

 

So, my goals for 2014 are to continue the work started in 2013 - buy for quality over quantity, and only buy pieces that really speak to me, while not breaking the bank. ;)

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Nexus

Nexus

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Something Felix said earlier got me thinking. (He tends to do that with me.)

 

Thanks, I'm flattered!

 

Setting goals and going after specific pieces I think has, in the past, led me to pay higher prices.

 

Bingo. While it's good to be disciplined, setting specific goals can also lead to tunnel vision. it's similar to a mentality I've seen from collectors at conventions, where the show isn't a success unless they go home with art. And thus they put a lot of pressure on themselves to buy something-- anything-- so the show isn't a "failure". They've limited their fishing to a single pond for a short amount of time, while forgetting the bigger picture. I've tried not to do that.

 

...so his Moneyball idea hits home...

 

Heheh...I tend to have baseball on the mind a lot. If you're referring to my draft analogy, that's a general baseball idea. Moneyball is a bit more specific. I've talked about it with other friends over the years. I apply basic Moneyball philosophies to OA collecting, mostly in terms of trying to identify market inefficiencies and undervalued assets. Everyone can decide what those are and what that means for themselves.

 

I also try to be adaptable. For example, when I started collecting, I was buying both published and unpublished art. It soon occurred to me that 10 sketches/commissions cost about as much as one very nice published piece. And, on the whole, I preferred to have the one very nice published piece. So I stopped spending my money on sketches/commissions and saved up for published pieces.

 

In the ensuing years, though, the ratio has become something like 50:1. Now, sketches and commissions are becoming a more interesting proposition again...

 

I realize this may sound goofy (baseball and OA?). All of this is just theory, something fun for me to think about. It's not about investment, it's about how I can best allocate my resources to maximize the fun I have in the hobby. There's no winning or losing, everyone collects in a style that works for them and makes them happy. This works for me, especially because my likes/wants are diverse; those with a more narrow collecting focus won't approach the hobby in the same way. Hope this makes sense!

 

 

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GreatEscape

GreatEscape

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I agree with the baseball 'Moneyball' philosophy but emphasize that collectors can choose their ballparks (so, a solid double for one collector can be home run for another) and personal metrics (some try to maximize runs, others simply play to have fun, still others keeps stats privately allowing only a few hits making the scoreboard).

 

Perhaps, OA collecting is also like golf where everyone judges success relative to personal handicaps (time, money, experience, venues) but we all can enjoy playing with friends, respect others' game, celebrate remarkable shots while keeping own score.

 

Just my 2c

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Jesusjon

Jesusjon

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I agree with the baseball 'Moneyball' philosophy but emphasize that collectors can choose their ballparks (so, a solid double for one collector can be home run for another) and personal metrics (some try to maximize runs, others simply play to have fun, still others keeps stats privately allowing only a few hits making the scoreboard).

 

Perhaps, OA collecting is also like golf where everyone judges success relative to personal handicaps (time, money, experience, venues) but we all can enjoy playing with friends, respect others' game, celebrate remarkable shots while keeping own score.

 

Just my 2c

 

That golf analogy is great! Wish I had that about 8 years ago.

 

 

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fmaz

fmaz

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Owning only two pieces of art, my goal is simple. Piece #3! Thing is, because I only have two I can't go for anything I don't "love"... Which makes it tricky. Spidey pieces from the 70's are my goal. Still sad I missed out on those great Superman vs Spiderman pages on eBay a few weeks ago, but they ended up out of my price range!

 

Good luck to all in 2014!

 

Frank

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Sharkey

Sharkey

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The last couple of years have been transition years for me. I have sold off a number of my core Kirby pieces, including ones I thought I'd take to the grave, in order to realize a dream of buying a house on some acreage in Florida. I'm not retiring yet, but buying while the market was still low and interest rates were still low was a priority over buying more art. The goal of course is to have the house paid off well before I retire.

 

However, I did still acquire a piece I'd had my eye on for a long time (JIM 66 Return of the Hulk splash) and am very psyched to have it!

 

So 2014 I'm hoping to stabilize my collection and start identifying my goals for the future.

 

And of course, I will continue to live vicariously through a lot of the other acquisitions of my collecting brethren. You know who you are (*cough cough* Ron Sonenthal *cough cough*)

 

 

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Dwitkin82

Dwitkin82

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Get commissions done by Ron Frenz,Brett Breeding,Tom Grummett,Eddy Barrows and find a way to convince Dan Jurgens to do something for me (He already said no once).

 

I only tend to collect small convention style sketches so this should be attainable for not a lot of money..Ahhh goals!!!

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Pete Marino

Pete Marino

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Get commissions done by Ron Frenz,Brett Breeding,Tom Grummett,Eddy Barrows and find a way to convince Dan Jurgens to do something for me (He already said no once).

 

I only tend to collect small convention style sketches so this should be attainable for not a lot of money..Ahhh goals!!!

 

Made me think of this article:

 

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/230333

 

Set up systems not goals =)

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mister_not_so_nice

mister_not_so_nice

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Get all of my art scanned and posted. :blush:

 

And finally get some art framed, dammit!

 

That's a good one! I want to get more of my art properly scanned and posted. Best part-- no cash out-of-pocket!

 

Merry Christmas, everyone.

 

In addition to this I want to get several Prat spiral bound portfolios and organize the complete issues in their own portfolios. I hate having to organize everything in 48 page increments.

 

 

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mister_not_so_nice

mister_not_so_nice

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In 2014 I'd like to:

 

 

  • Find a nice PREACHER page (Who am I kidding, I'll take any page) :gossip:
  • Get a nice Ben Tolman piece. He's not a "comic artist", but I dig his stuff <3
  • Go through the collection and sell some pieces I may be able to live without ???
  • Sell more art for the artists I work with :wishluck:
  • SPread the word that the Comic Art Escrow service is in full effect and quit reading horror stories from fellow collectors :flamed:

 

I've no doubt I'll be able to keep the 2014 budget under the 2013 budget. This year I found a small cache of 48 pages that I was able to make a deal on. I don't think 2014 will be as lucky :boo:

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