Where do I go to have a meltdown? LCS First World Troubles…

[ChrisInBaltimore]

I've had pulls at, I don't know, ten different LCS in my collecting life? The pulls have ranged from around 5 books to over 25 - no single shop has ever consistently failed to pull the issues I was subscribed to. There were instances here and there where one was missed, sure, but they were by far the exception - OP's problems seems to suggest it was the rule more often than not.

 

Is this something that happens to people a lot? How could they screw this up, it's their bread and butter, it should be pretty easy, right? :shrug:

 

 

Also... I remember reading this thread when it originally went up and seeing all of the modern hate. "Whoa, you're spending $150 on moderns?"

Revisiting it now by reading this thread over again in it's entirety, I still find that the most interesting part of the thread.

 

As far as pulling books, my current store seems to have an awful system. It looks like he has a notebook paper with all my books on it. I'm not sure how he pulls them, but I can't imagine it is easy.

 

To the $150 a month: I've worked to shorten my list. It helped that Snyder left Batman for the time being. Don't forget that books are $3.99 now. I pull around 25 titles a month. That right there is $100 before taxes. I pick up a book for my son regularly and I might buy a trade here and there.

 

This year I've really slowed down with my reading. I'm literally like 4 months behind and I've been slowly telling him to drop books. I haven't added a modern in a long time. What is annoying me now is that I'm stacking up the 4 books to read in order. However, I'm consistently missing a book. Some are a few months old and now are sold out. Thus I'm going to pay a small premium.

 

It is just frustrating.

[SquareChaos]

I've had pulls at, I don't know, ten different LCS in my collecting life? The pulls have ranged from around 5 books to over 25 - no single shop has ever consistently failed to pull the issues I was subscribed to. There were instances here and there where one was missed, sure, but they were by far the exception - OP's problems seems to suggest it was the rule more often than not.

 

Is this something that happens to people a lot? How could they screw this up, it's their bread and butter, it should be pretty easy, right? :shrug:

 

 

Also... I remember reading this thread when it originally went up and seeing all of the modern hate. "Whoa, you're spending $150 on moderns?"

Revisiting it now by reading this thread over again in it's entirety, I still find that the most interesting part of the thread.

 

As far as pulling books, my current store seems to have an awful system. It looks like he has a notebook paper with all my books on it. I'm not sure how he pulls them, but I can't imagine it is easy.

 

To the $150 a month: I've worked to shorten my list. It helped that Snyder left Batman for the time being. Don't forget that books are $3.99 now. I pull around 25 titles a month. That right there is $100 before taxes. I pick up a book for my son regularly and I might buy a trade here and there.

 

This year I've really slowed down with my reading. I'm literally like 4 months behind and I've been slowly telling him to drop books. I haven't added a modern in a long time. What is annoying me now is that I'm stacking up the 4 books to read in order. However, I'm consistently missing a book. Some are a few months old and now are sold out. Thus I'm going to pay a small premium.

 

It is just frustrating.

 

Literally cross indexing two lists - the books received that week and your pull list - is all that is required to secure your pulls. If they can't even get over that low barrier to entry on a regular basis then they don't deserve to be in business.

 

As for how much you spend on moderns, the thing I find interesting is people giving you a hard time for it.

[ChrisInBaltimore]

Oh I thought you were giving me a hard time. I didn't read carefully- my mistake.

[Tbone911t]

If they don't care about your business, shop elsewhere.

I used to go to this mexican restaurant for a to go order 3-4 times a week. They started putting me on hold. I would hear them in the background chit chatting while I held for 20 min. Finally I said screw em.

I used to spend $10 a day at a coffeeshop-they treated me like -I stopped going. If you don't want me to spend enough money to buy a new car every 10 years, then later.

Now i make my coffee at home.

 

This

[MrBedrock]

walked out and never darkened their doorstep again.

I once had a homeless guy darken the doorstep of one of our stores with poop.

[TheShadowKnows]

Is this something that happens to people a lot?

I stopped shopping at my current LCS because his policy is to put everything on the shelf Wednesday morning, open the store, and during store hours fill the pull boxes. If something is hot the local flippers who show up every Wednesday morning an hour before the store opens to stand in line out front will buy every copy and I won't get mine. Sometimes I miss an odd copy (always the copy selling for more online) out of a series. Sometimes it's the entire series. Never once got my Afterlife With Archie because every time an issue came out it would sell out to flippers before my box got filled. Also, for some reason, this shop owner refused to order anything from Fantagraphics, even when you specifically request it. I wanted Love And Rockets, which was coming out annually. He missed it twice, which means for TWO YEARS he me on that. Then, on the third year, I reminded him multiple times it was coming out and I wanted a copy. What I found in my pull box was a copy of Love And Capes. I forgot which comic made me decide to not come back but I made sure to not close my pull box. I wonder how full it got before he realized I wasn't going to be emptying it? That was pretty much the end of my modern floppy buying too, which has saved me probably $800 a year.

payback is a biotch!

 

[TheShadowKnows]

walked out and never darkened their doorstep again.

I once had a homeless guy darken the doorstep of one of our stores with poop.

Me too,in his pants.

[Buzzetta]

walked out and never darkened their doorstep again.

I once had a homeless guy darken the doorstep of one of our stores with poop.

 

That's not fair. I wasn't homeless... I just had a hell of a time the night before.

[FineCollector]

My old LCS didn't have a computer, they had a page per title, and all the subscribers were listed, with columns checked off for the main title, miniseries, whatever. Worked there 5 years as a kid, never heard of them missing a book.

 

Filling lists after putting the new issues out? Ridiculous. Your pulls lists are guaranteed income. You cater to pull list customers, and keep them happy as long as you can. Anyone who doesn't understand that deserves to close. I can't fathom any store chasing away business like that.

[fastballspecial]

It isn't hard to do. I spend about $30 to $40 a week. With books costing $3.99, it adds up quickly.

 

I understand your plight. I did this several years ago. When you are spending that type of money and you don't feel the like the LCS is treating with a decent amount of warmness and appreciate then something should change.

 

I would have talk with the owner just once. Tell them what you think. If that doesn't work then I highly recommend DCBS. They pack well and your comics will be anywhere from 40-60% depending on titles. Your cost savings per month will be massive.

 

 

[thehumantorch]

walked out and never darkened their doorstep again.

I once had a homeless guy darken the doorstep of one of our stores with poop.

 

Nice, I think that's called a brownout

[thehumantorch]

My old LCS didn't have a computer, they had a page per title, and all the subscribers were listed, with columns checked off for the main title, miniseries, whatever. Worked there 5 years as a kid, never heard of them missing a book.

 

Filling lists after putting the new issues out? Ridiculous. Your pulls lists are guaranteed income. You cater to pull list customers, and keep them happy as long as you can. Anyone who doesn't understand that deserves to close. I can't fathom any store chasing away business like that.

 

Agreed, pull lists are your bread and butter. Even a small pull of $40 a month generates a steady $40 every month or almost $500 a year. And most pull customers will pick out the occasional book off the shelf or a back issue or whatever. I'd treat my file customers like gold.

[MrBedrock]

walked out and never darkened their doorstep again.

I once had a homeless guy darken the doorstep of one of our stores with poop.

 

That's not fair. I wasn't homeless... I just had a hell of a time the night before.

"That MD 20/20 tore my azz up."

[newshane]

Things are always changing. Sometimes it sucks.

 

 

I would still take the kids to look around the store and maybe buy a book or two. But the bulk of my purchases would be made through an online source like THE DISCOUNT COMIC BOOK SERVICE.

 

You'll probably get better deals on books in better condition and you'll never miss a beat through the subscription service.

 

There's no way the new employees will be able to live up to your sentimentality and your memories and chemistry with the old crew. There is really no point in complaining. Just accept that the store has a new feel and learn to appreciate it for what it is, or move on and take your business elsewhere. It's heartbreaking but what more can you do?

[SquareChaos]

Oh I thought you were giving me a hard time. I didn't read carefully- my mistake.

 

[RockMyAmadeus]

 

The answer, as always, is the same: Stop treating comic dealers like crack dealers, and start treating them like retailers. That's the only answer. Comic Book Guy exists because Comic Book Addicts exist.

 

Your local store treats you with contempt and/or suspicion and/or an ATM and/or like they're doing you a favor by being in business?

 

Stop giving them your business.

 

...and Yelp about it.

 

 

 

[Legion HQ]

When I asked the store owner why the book is on display if it isn't for sale she got angry at the mere suggestion that a customer is trying to tell her how to run her store and she replied "lots of things you can see are not for sale. You can see my cash register, but it isn't for sale".

 

She'd have to be very hot or very funny to pull that one on me...

 

I'm having trouble understanding books on display that aren't for sale. Are they in bins, up on the wall, or well hidden in closed boxes under counters that you had to drag out?

 

On a display stand shelf beside other books for sale that have prices on them.

I have bought a book off that shelf previously.

Here is a picture of the store. Right shelf laying flat below the slabbed books. other books laying flat there have prices on them.

 

The shelves underneath are the files for customers.

 

Wow, I would never put my file customers' pull books out with the public like that. Just asking for trouble. And I would've answered that smarta** comment of hers with, "Well, I didn't walk into a cash register store!" Ew, what a troll. Wonders how anyone like that stays in business.

[FineCollector]

When I asked the store owner why the book is on display if it isn't for sale she got angry at the mere suggestion that a customer is trying to tell her how to run her store and she replied "lots of things you can see are not for sale. You can see my cash register, but it isn't for sale".

 

She'd have to be very hot or very funny to pull that one on me...

 

I'm having trouble understanding books on display that aren't for sale. Are they in bins, up on the wall, or well hidden in closed boxes under counters that you had to drag out?

 

On a display stand shelf beside other books for sale that have prices on them.

I have bought a book off that shelf previously.

Here is a picture of the store. Right shelf laying flat below the slabbed books. other books laying flat there have prices on them.

 

The shelves underneath are the files for customers.

 

Sure looks like employee space behind the counter. Most people would recognize the imaginary line between the cash register and the coffee machine, especially if customers' pull lists are being stored there. She still needs a sign or swinging doors to keep people out, but I wouldn't touch that stuff without asking first.

[youmechooz]

I wish I could have a store.

No. You dont.

[cd4ever]

I guess he got too old and his son or grandson took over. A creepy goth who didn't seem to care about comics at all and just turned the store into a clubhouse for him and his friends to play Magic. He put heavy drapes over the windows, had a GIANT table dominating the floorspace where all his friends would sit around and sneer at customers, got rid of the bargain bin. I quit going.

 

 

This. Comic book stores seem to be unique in that employees can bring their friends in to just hang out and chat. And the game playing is nuts. Is there a more unwelcoming feeling for a customer to walk into than having half the inventory covered up because a group of kids are playing a game?

 

Out of 5 or 6 stores in my area, there is only 1 I will go to. And it's like 30 minutes away. So Midtown gets all my monthly pull comics.