Tales from the Comic Box - Rookie Adventures in Buying/Selling/Cons 5 5

[1Cool]

10 hours ago, Artboy99 said:

we have had wall accidents 2 times before today they have all occurred at this venue.

A small dealer I know had someone in the booth behind him knock a bunch of books off his wall and he freaked out (justifiably so).  He ended up selling his entire booth to the biggest dealer in the room and walked away disgusted.  I always love getting a wall booth since the risks are minimal for someone to get behind me and knock into my wall.

[Wall-Crawler]

At the last Gateway show I did, I was stuck in a centre aisle and the people behind me kept bumping the board. Made me super nervous. I politely and strongly requested a space along the wall this year.

...Totally off topic but if anyone likes Zenescope I have a 60+ exclusive cover auction up from that collection I bought a few months ago...Just sayin' 

Edited October 31, 2017 by Wall-Crawler

[thehumantorch]

On 10/29/2017 at 10:08 PM, Wall-Crawler said:

Damn. Just bad luck or are they cramming booths too close? Little bit of both?

That also seems like a pretty significant drop in attendance even with a down turn...

Booths are fine, can't blame the organizer.  We cram everything in that we can.  In this case the small wall of the guy next to us was bumped and it was grabbed and straightened out and bumped our booth.

I'm tired of watching a small fortune in slabs crash to the ground.  I had a Marvel Mystery in a Fortress and the fortress cracked in several places and a chunk of the back frame broke off.

Our current wall is built out of rails and shelves from closets and it's pretty wobbly.  It's worked pretty well, other than getting knocked down, and it's very portable and relatively light.  Either we build a better wall or we leave more space around the wall and restrict access and hand books to customers rather than let them go near the wall.

[Wall-Crawler]

On 10/31/2017 at 2:45 AM, thehumantorch said:

Booths are fine, can't blame the organizer.  We cram everything in that we can.  In this case the small wall of the guy next to us was bumped and it was grabbed and straightened out and bumped our booth.

I'm tired of watching a small fortune in slabs crash to the ground.  I had a Marvel Mystery in a Fortress and the fortress cracked in several places and a chunk of the back frame broke off.

Our current wall is built out of rails and shelves from closets and it's pretty wobbly.  It's worked pretty well, other than getting knocked down, and it's very portable and relatively light.  Either we build a better wall or we leave more space around the wall and restrict access and hand books to customers rather than let them go near the wall.

My homemade job is all out of wood, sturdy but heavy.  It is also not all that large either...I would like to have a bigger "wall" but the legs are adjustable and it has a "lip" at the bottom to help books stay in place.  Again sturdy but heavy as heck LOL.  If I was travelling further or doing bigger shows, I would need a more portable (and larger) wall book display but for now, it serves its purpose.

Just over a week until my next and last show of 2017...Sadly, I saw the organizer put out a notice on FB for "hopeful vendors" to pay up...Also, the advertising seems weak...Apparently they are listing a radio station as a sponsor but I have not heard anything (then again, I don't listen to local radio) and other advertising seems really weak...Maybe I am just not hearing it but will be doing my own advertising via social media anyway so I am very curious to see how the turnout will actually be...

Also, I may try the FB paid boost post again but the one annoying thing about it? Now EVERY TIME I post something on my "business" page, I am getting ANNOYING messages from FB asking if I want to boost the post.

[Wall-Crawler]

I just received some interesting information...The small local show that kind of got me started, might be folding.

Following the conclusion of the last show, one of the organizers talked to me about my thoughts on the show.  My main points focused on changing the venue (it is old/dated and out of the way), institute some "vendor standards" (several vendors tables just looked like they dropped their on the table), consider maybe making it once a year instead of twice a year and better signage/more advertising, particularly via social media.  There were others, but those were the main ones. The other organizer could not be there so I gave him an assessment of how I thought the show went a few days later.

This week I did some research on other possible venue locations. I shared what I found. Shortly thereafter, one of the organizers said the other would be talking to me.  Today, I received a text stating the planned April 2018 show is kaput and they are not sure if there will be any other shows at all.

So, tomorrow, I will find out more.  For all the faults this show had, I still did well and I thought it could only be improved upon.  Needless to say, I am interested to learn what exactly has occurred but I am not sure if I want to be the one to pick up the pieces either.  I know what a PIA it could be to organize a show and quite frankly, I don't have the time.

I still have the one local "FanEx" show in November and two others in the city an hour and a half away that have been very successful for me.   If this show is dead, I have already started thinking of what I could maybe do on my own.  

Stay tuned...

Edited November 8, 2017 by Wall-Crawler

[spreads]

2 hours ago, Wall-Crawler said:

I just received some interesting information...The small local show that kind of got me started, might be folding.

Following the conclusion of the last show, one of the organizers talked to me about my thoughts on the show.  My main points focused on changing the venue (it is old/dated and out of the way), institute some "vendor standards" (several vendors tables just looked like they dropped their on the table), consider maybe making it once a year instead of twice a year and better signage/more advertising, particularly via social media.  There were others, but those were the main ones. The other organizer could not be there so I gave him an assessment of how I thought the show went a few days later.

This week I did some research on other possible venue locations. I shared what I found. Shortly thereafter, one of the organizers said the other would be talking to me.  Today, I received a text stating the planned April 2018 show is kaput and they are not sure if there will be any other shows at all.

So, tomorrow, I will find out more.  For all the faults this show had, I thought it could be improved upon.  Needless to say, I am interested to learn what exactly has occurred but I am not sure if I want to be the one to pick up the pieces either.  I know what a PIA it could be to organize a show and quite frankly, I don't have the time.

I still have the one local "FanEx" show in November and two others in the city an hour and a half away that have been very successful for me.   If this show is dead, I have already started thinking of what I could maybe do on my own.  

Stay tuned...

Good luck....you can always move South to the big smoke and sell in the big markets!  I'm lucky I have a regular, solid show very close to me that's been running for years.  I don't think I would setup shop elsewhere if it folded - probably take my personal collection with me, and close off all buying/selling activity once I close out that other inventory.

[thehumantorch]

5 hours ago, Wall-Crawler said:

I just received some interesting information...The small local show that kind of got me started, might be folding.

Following the conclusion of the last show, one of the organizers talked to me about my thoughts on the show.  My main points focused on changing the venue (it is old/dated and out of the way), institute some "vendor standards" (several vendors tables just looked like they dropped their on the table), consider maybe making it once a year instead of twice a year and better signage/more advertising, particularly via social media.  There were others, but those were the main ones. The other organizer could not be there so I gave him an assessment of how I thought the show went a few days later.

This week I did some research on other possible venue locations. I shared what I found. Shortly thereafter, one of the organizers said the other would be talking to me.  Today, I received a text stating the planned April 2018 show is kaput and they are not sure if there will be any other shows at all.

So, tomorrow, I will find out more.  For all the faults this show had, I still did well and I thought it could only be improved upon.  Needless to say, I am interested to learn what exactly has occurred but I am not sure if I want to be the one to pick up the pieces either.  I know what a PIA it could be to organize a show and quite frankly, I don't have the time.

I still have the one local "FanEx" show in November and two others in the city an hour and a half away that have been very successful for me.   If this show is dead, I have already started thinking of what I could maybe do on my own.  

Stay tuned...

You're very organized so perhaps you should consider partnering with one of these guys or both of them to keep the show alive.  Perhaps they need some new blood and new ideas.  A well run show can make the organizers money.

[Wall-Crawler]

On 11/8/2017 at 5:09 PM, thehumantorch said:

You're very organized so perhaps you should consider partnering with one of these guys or both of them to keep the show alive.  Perhaps they need some new blood and new ideas.  A well run show can make the organizers money.

Thank you for the compliment!

Turns out for sure the April 2018 show is done.  The other organizer said he is willing to try it one more time for next October though.  

Part of that though depends if I am willing to take on an organizer role. They like my product and ideas.  I said I would need some time to think about it as I am not sure I will be able to dedicate the time to it.  I work full time, active buyer/seller and I do enjoy my out door activities.  I do wonder though about how much "say" I may or may not end up ultimately having as well.  Apparently, the other vendor said that he would still deal with the dealers but looking for someone to do advertising, promotion, recruitment.  I asked about "re-branding" and that would also be on the table but kind of need to know if I am interested or not.

I don't want this little show to "die".  For me, it is a good little show.  I am leaning towards "trying out" to be an organizer for the next one to see if we can improve things. I do have to make a decision soon though.

What say thee? Give it a go and throw my hat in the organizer ring? Run away and do something else? Any advice either way?

...I also found out only about 250 people came through the doors last show (I knew attendance was way down)...Even with that low attendance, I still did very, very well thanks to my regulars...

[thehumantorch]

I think you should sit down with the organizer and see how receptive he is to new ideas and how much say you'll have.  

Do they sell snacks?  Our local shows sell a steady stream of hot dogs, chocolate bars, pop, juice etc and it's a money maker.
How many tables do they sell and what do they charge for attendance?
Door Prizes?
Do they promote on facebook?
Do they have email addy for regular buyers?

A typical small show here draws about 500 so 250 attendance is pretty low.   

[Wall-Crawler]

53 minutes ago, thehumantorch said:

I think you should sit down with the organizer and see how receptive he is to new ideas and how much say you'll have.  I think I am definitely going to have ask that. I don't want to be just some flunkie.

Do they sell snacks?  Our local shows sell a steady stream of hot dogs, chocolate bars, pop, juice etc and it's a money maker. No. They don't sell snacks. They bring in a caterer who sells pop and sandwiches and chili usually.
How many tables do they sell and what do they charge for attendance? Hmmm. Not sure on how many actual vendors there were. They charge $5 entry fee. Kids 12 and under get in for free. Not sure about a seniors discount.
Door Prizes? Nope. They did them one year.
Do they promote on facebook? Nope. This is one of the things I have been pushing. They have a FB page, but it is pretty inactive. As I said, they are looking for help with advertising/promotion.
Do they have email addy for regular buyers? Not that I am aware of, I do for my own but not sure if they ask people that as they come in.

A typical small show here draws about 500 so 250 attendance is pretty low.   Yes. Attendance last show was definitely not good. I think that is part of the reason for the "shake up".

The other thing is, I don't know if they actually "pocketed" anything, profit wise...I have no idea how much revenue was allocated to advertising, etc. but I do know most of the proceeds from ticket sales, they used to contribute to one of the organizers "political action"..It was kind of a contentious issue actually, it even made the NY Times!  The current organizer did say he would want to make a donation to "something local and historical" moving forward. 

While I am fine with that, to me, you need to reinvest properly in the show...I'll be interested to see what the financials were and what we can agree to moving forward.  I need to see how much was brought in and where it all went.  For sure though, I think a bigger portion needs to be reinvested back into the show.

I'm leaning towards YES (at least to get the October 2018 show going) with some caveats.  I do have other ideas from big to small but I would appreciate any ideas and suggestions.

[Wall-Crawler]

I just found this article about my local "FanEx"coming up this Sunday...

http://www.nugget.ca/2017/11/09/klingon-assault-group-invading-gateway-fanex-sunday

Sigh...

[thehumantorch]

36 minutes ago, Wall-Crawler said:

The other thing is, I don't know if they actually "pocketed" anything, profit wise...I have no idea how much revenue was allocated to advertising, etc. but I do know most of the proceeds from ticket sales, they used to contribute to one of the organizers "political action"..It was kind of a contentious issue actually, it even made the NY Times!  The current organizer did say he would want to make a donation to "something local and historical" moving forward. 

While I am fine with that, to me, you need to reinvest properly in the show...I'll be interested to see what the financials were and what we can agree to moving forward.  I need to see how much was brought in and where it all went.  For sure though, I think a bigger portion needs to be reinvested back into the show.

I'm leaning towards YES (at least to get the October 2018 show going) with some caveats.  I do have other ideas from big to small but I would appreciate any ideas and suggestions.

It doesn't make sense for a show that's struggling to make donations to anything, especially something controversial .   One local show charges an admission fee or a donation to the food bank and that's a fairly effective and easy way to help the community, and it's up front.  This is a show that needs to focus on stabilizing, building it's brand and making a bit of money.

Vendor's fees should cover all costs and admission fees should be profit or reinvestment.

I'd start collecting email addresses and send out an email before each show to remind buyers and to highlight new vendors and dealers with new collections.  That would require the organizer to ask vendors what they're bringing and what's new but that's not hard.  And of course using facebook is a must in this day and age.

I wouldn't bring in a caterer, especially for 250 people.  I'd probably have chips and pop at the admission table and I'd consider a 'dealer' pizza order at lunch time - set up special with a nearby pizza place, walk around, thank the dealers for coming, and ask if they want to order.  

The organizer of the Red and White show in Calgary walks around before the end of the show and collects from vendors for the next show.  Consider doing this as it saves a lot of work later and it gives you a good feel as to how vendors did and how many dealers will return.

 

[Wall-Crawler]

46 minutes ago, thehumantorch said:

It doesn't make sense for a show that's struggling to make donations to anything, especially something controversial .   One local show charges an admission fee or a donation to the food bank and that's a fairly effective and easy way to help the community, and it's up front.  This is a show that needs to focus on stabilizing, building it's brand and making a bit of money.

Vendor's fees should cover all costs and admission fees should be profit or reinvestment.

I'd start collecting email addresses and send out an email before each show to remind buyers and to highlight new vendors and dealers with new collections.  That would require the organizer to ask vendors what they're bringing and what's new but that's not hard.  And of course using facebook is a must in this day and age.

I wouldn't bring in a caterer, especially for 250 people.  I'd probably have chips and pop at the admission table and I'd consider a 'dealer' pizza order at lunch time - set up special with a nearby pizza place, walk around, thank the dealers for coming, and ask if they want to order.  

The organizer of the Red and White show in Calgary walks around before the end of the show and collects from vendors for the next show.  Consider doing this as it saves a lot of work later and it gives you a good feel as to how vendors did and how many dealers will return.

 

To your first point, I agree 1000% with everything you said. I had been thinking that for a long time as well.  I'm pretty sure the vast majority of "profits" were going towards the cause. I do also know, that vendor fees covered the cost of the hall.  Again, this is why I want to find out what the financials were. A donation is a nice idea, but we need to build this show first.

Email is a good idea.  Again, I think I am being considered to help do the promotion, etc.  Again, I need to find out what I am in this "partnership".

I really don't know how well the caterer did...I can't imagine all that great. Her chili is very good but I think it is mostly vendors who buy?  Another show I did invited a charity to host a bbq outside...I also thought that was a good idea to get some community good will w/o having to spend $$$ and it works for both.

These are great ideas and I have a lot of others but I don't want to get too invested until I find out my role and how much "say" the other organizer actually wants me to have. Depending on the answer, I may just do the October one "as is" and maybe consider other alternatives.

[spreads]

Good luck, keep us posted on what happens!  I imagine the guys that setup our monthly show do very well because there are many dealers that show up, a regular crop of locals and out-of-towners.  And donating profits to a political cause,  WTF??? 

Not a bad idea on getting the dealers pizza torch, I try to eat healthy but I guess it beats having to worry about packing a lunch.

[Bird]

13 hours ago, Wall-Crawler said:

The other thing is, I don't know if they actually "pocketed" anything, profit wise...I have no idea how much revenue was allocated to advertising, etc. but I do know most of the proceeds from ticket sales, they used to contribute to one of the organizers "political action"..It was kind of a contentious issue actually, it even made the NY Times!  The current organizer did say he would want to make a donation to "something local and historical" moving forward. 

While I am fine with that, to me, you need to reinvest properly in the show...I'll be interested to see what the financials were and what we can agree to moving forward.  I need to see how much was brought in and where it all went.  For sure though, I think a bigger portion needs to be reinvested back into the show.

I'm leaning towards YES (at least to get the October 2018 show going) with some caveats.  I do have other ideas from big to small but I would appreciate any ideas and suggestions.

Consider letting them die and filling the vacuum. Pay attention and ask questions at the next show and just do it yourself.

[spreads]

Hey Torch,

Do you guys execute many trades, and how do you structure the deal if you do?  I'm starting to get guys contacting me about trades...the stuff they have is decent but nothing I'd write home about.  I guess my trade in value would be higher than what I would purchase the books, but an equal value trade wouldn't make much sense if I'm not actively looking for it.

[thehumantorch]

1 hour ago, spreads said:

Hey Torch,

Do you guys execute many trades, and how do you structure the deal if you do?  I'm starting to get guys contacting me about trades...the stuff they have is decent but nothing I'd write home about.  I guess my trade in value would be higher than what I would purchase the books, but an equal value trade wouldn't make much sense if I'm not actively looking for it.

Yes, we've noticed a trend towards trades.  I believe it's a combination of higher prices for keys and in our case the cnd usd exchange rate. 

We did a trade at the last show, 2 easy to sell keys worth about $900 plus $400 for a similar demand key worth $1100.  I guess we're ballpark looking for a 25% profit on a trade if the books are similar in value. 

Another way to value a trade like this is, what would we pay cash for the trade offered to us and  subtract it from what we expect to get for the book they want.  That helps to account for taking lower quality books for higher quality books. 

But in general we should all try to trade up in quality.  I have a guy trying to trade for a FF 52 worth about $600.   He's offering a bunch of low grade FFs worth maybe $800 or some Adam Hughes and odds and ends worth about the same and I'm not remotely interested.  It's a lot easy to haul, display, and sell one hot key than a bunch of books.

[Wall-Crawler]

On 11/8/2017 at 2:02 PM, spreads said:

Good luck....you can always move South to the big smoke and sell in the big markets!  I'm lucky I have a regular, solid show very close to me that's been running for years.  I don't think I would setup shop elsewhere if it folded - probably take my personal collection with me, and close off all buying/selling activity once I close out that other inventory.

 Sorry, but no way am I moving south to the "Big Smoke".

[Wall-Crawler]

14 hours ago, Bird said:

Consider letting them die and filling the vacuum. Pay attention and ask questions at the next show and just do it yourself.

That is still very much an option.  I was thinking about it and as 98% of my sales were to regulars who pretty much just come to see me, I could probably set up in my own location advertise myself (most of them follow me on FB) and do nearly as well.

I have not yet contacted the other organizer with my answer. Told him I would need a few days to think about it.

[spreads]

11 hours ago, thehumantorch said:

But in general we should all try to trade up in quality.  I have a guy trying to trade for a FF 52 worth about $600.   He's offering a bunch of low grade FFs worth maybe $800 or some Adam Hughes and odds and ends worth about the same and I'm not remotely interested.  It's a lot easy to haul, display, and sell one hot key than a bunch of books.

Good point.  Unless you're looking for inventory why would you take on that additional burden.  I have another person offering a collection, but I offered to take on a few books consignment instead.  I'm still in building out my inventory at the show, so I'm not super keen on this idea, but I wouldn't mind starting off slow with a few books.