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

[spreads]

Great setup! 

I like the cheap stuff for 25 cents each, any time I see a parent with a child I tell the kid they can grab a book out of the $1 box for free.  I like having cheap sets too, I plan on having more of those. 

[Wall-Crawler]

At the very end of the show two sketchy people sneaked in. A guy and a girl. Looked like they were on a mission. Guy asked me if I was into Heavy Metal magazines. I was packing up and just said "no". Guy and his girl kept moving.  They were going from vendor booth to vendor booth. Sometimes she would be at a separate booth and he would be flipping through someone or talking to another vendor.  I hate to judge a book by its cover but sometimes...

My wife recognized them from when she use to work at the local antique store and back in the day when my town had a big two day antique market.  They were kind of "known" thieves. We informed the organizers that they snuck in (no stamps) and were kind of wandering around the hall as vendors were packing up. Sketchy.  The organizer asked them to leave, they did, but not without a few expletives. 

Sad that we have to always be so vigilant with our stuff.

[1950's war comics]

Nice thread,..reading your posts gives me even more respect for how hard it is to set up at shows for dealers ,,,, i am sure i woudn't ever be able to have the patience and energy

[spreads]

4 hours ago, Wall-Crawler said:

At the very end of the show two sketchy people sneaked in. A guy and a girl. Looked like they were on a mission. Guy asked me if I was into Heavy Metal magazines. I was packing up and just said "no". Guy and his girl kept moving.  They were going from vendor booth to vendor booth. Sometimes she would be at a separate booth and he would be flipping through someone or talking to another vendor.  I hate to judge a book by its cover but sometimes...

My wife recognized them from when she use to work at the local antique store and back in the day when my town had a big two day antique market.  They were kind of "known" thieves. We informed the organizers that they snuck in (no stamps) and were kind of wandering around the hall as vendors were packing up. Sketchy.  The organizer asked them to leave, they did, but not without a few expletives. 

Sad that we have to always be so vigilant with our stuff.

Great work, Watson....this jotted my memory of something crazy which happened at the last show.  Apparently there's this guy who has a FB or youtube channel where he goes around buying books and selling them, ala pickers style with the price paid and profit in the webcast.  I think I've met him before as a toy buyer/seller but I guess he's into anything that can make a buck.   Apparently this guy was videotaping a known regular dealer and a customer of this dealer, when asked to stop he and another guy started yelling and swearing at both the dealer and customer.  Then the show organizer came and this character started yelling more expletives, to the point where the organizer said he called the cops and they were banned from coming back!  The whole time I'm wondering why this person would do this and what possible benefit could be had?

None of us outside the main hall got to witness this, which is too bad because it would have been awesome entertainment! 

[W16227]

21 hours ago, spreads said:

4 for $1 seems like you would move a lot of books!  Are these books that haven't sold a few times at $1 each in the past, or do you just give them one attempt to sell at $1.

 

I ran them 2 for 1 on Saturday - four for one Sunday.  For most of the stock - it was the first time I had it out. Note that I do NOT do many shows - I really was trying to move books. Still have a lot of good stock in there. At .25 a book ---- very low margin, but I do NOT care. Just unloaded at the storage unit this morning, still packed TIGHT (I had a ton of the drek at the house, so it is good to get that out at the "annex").

 

I may go to one of the smaller shows in the areas-- talking with some of the box diggers there- general opinion in the area ( according to them) - is that this is not that well known as a comic selling event...... And it really did seem that way.  At 4-1, I of course had a lot of the dealers there picking.

 

Will have a better report later in the week -- overall I did the same as last year ( in the same sized booth). Disappointing in a way - as I was able to plan out the space better this year and brought a lot more to sell. BUT --  not disappointing I would say that I had much more traffic than the other comic booths. My buddy who helps me was scanning the area a lot, and even the other group that had 4 for a dollar - were nowhere near as busy.  The crowd seemed a lot smaller this year - and even my sets and such that were buy one get one free ---  only moved a little ( and I expected to move a ton of that).

Sold 5 slabs - including a spidey 2 ( restored) -

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Wall-Crawler]

Not sure if anyone remembers from awhile back but the antique dealer I bought a bunch of comics from is ready to sell a standing Hey!! Kids Comics standing rack (non-spinner). It is complete but not in mint shape but functional. Anyone have an idea of what a fair offer would be?

 

Edited October 25, 2017 by Wall-Crawler

[thehumantorch]

1 hour ago, Wall-Crawler said:

Not sure if anyone remembers from awhile back but the antique dealer I bought a bunch of comics from is ready to sell a standing Hey!! Kids Comics standing rack (non-spinner). It is complete but not in mint shape but functional. Anyone have an idea of what a fair offer would be?

 

I'm not sure what it's worth but I wouldn't hesitate to offer a couple hundred bucks.  It's not only cool but you could sometimes use it in your booth when you have a small space that wouldn't fit a table.

[revat]

40 minutes ago, thehumantorch said:

I'm not sure what it's worth but I wouldn't hesitate to offer a couple hundred bucks.  It's not only cool but you could sometimes use it in your booth when you have a small space that wouldn't fit a table.

$200 CDN sounds like a fair offer.  But that might depend somewhat on how old you think it is.

[thehumantorch]

1 minute ago, revat said:

$200 CDN sounds like a fair offer.  But that might depend somewhat on how old you think it is.

Looks like 1950s to me but not sure.  Looks pretty beat up also.

[Wall-Crawler]

31 minutes ago, thehumantorch said:

Looks like 1950s to me but not sure.  Looks pretty beat up also.

It does look beat up but I never come across these...Took me forever to find my spinner w/o a base...

I'm thinking $200 seems fair given condition.  I just texted him. They are asking $250.  Meeting at noon tomorrow.  We shall see.  Thanks for input guys!

[spreads]

I think I've seen these for less than that, pretty sure there was one for sale in Eastern Ontario for $100 not that long ago....

[revat]

2 hours ago, spreads said:

I think I've seen these for less than that, pretty sure there was one for sale in Eastern Ontario for $100 not that long ago....

For sure you might luck out and get it for cheaper if you're in the right place at the right time.  But how long will you have to wait til the next cheap one comes along, and will you be in the right position to jump on it? 

[thehumantorch]

20 minutes ago, revat said:

2 hours ago, spreads said:

I think I've seen these for less than that, pretty sure there was one for sale in Eastern Ontario for $100 not that long ago....

For sure you might luck out and get it for cheaper if you're in the right place at the right time.  But how long will you have to wait til the next cheap one comes along, and will you be in the right position to jump on it? 

Agreed, could be a long time.  Can always offer less and point out the condition issues.

[Wall-Crawler]

I passed on it.

I got some good advice from @Artboy99

First of all, in the pic, it is NOT rust but rather black spray paint, so it had been repainted and rather poorly.  Also, it is not rust on the sign but black spray paint over spray. Someone went a little nuts with the spray paint.

Secondly, the right hand side of the rack had come loose from the welds so it was only "attached/holding" at the top. Several of the holding wires were pretty bent too.

Thirdly, it was a newer rack.  It would not hold silver age books.  The "vintage" was not what I was hoping for.

Finally, they would NOT budge from their asking price of $250. I offered them $200. 

All of these, plus the fact I already have a really nice spinner rack I picked up earlier thanks to a tip from @Iceman399 that I just have to make a base for and that I have a decent National Enquirer/News rack I picked up at a yard sale for $10 that just needs a repaint and it would be great for shows,  I decided to pass.

While I would like to have had it, not at that price and the reality is, I didn't "need it" and I'd rather keep that $200 to go towards the next collection anyways.

...Yes, I know I need to re-organize my shed 

 

Edited October 26, 2017 by Wall-Crawler
spelling, info

[Artboy99]

50 minutes ago, Wall-Crawler said:

I passed on it.

I got some good advice from @Artboy99

First of all, in the pic, it is NOT rust but rather black spray paint, so it had been repainted and rather poorly.  Also, it is not rust on the sign but black spray paint over spray. Someone went a little nuts with the spray paint.

Secondly, the right hand side of the rack had come loose from the welds so it was only "attached/holding" at the top. Several of the holding wires were pretty bent too.

Thirdly, it was a newer rack.  It would not hold silver age books.  The "vintage" was not what I was hoping for.

Finally, they would NOT budge from their asking price of $250. I offered them $200. 

All of these, plus the fact I already have a really nice spinner rack I picked up earlier thanks to a tip from @Iceman399 that I just have to make a base for and that I have a decent National Enquirer/News rack I picked up at a yard sale for $10 that just needs a repaint and it would be great for shows,  I decided to pass.

While I would like to have had it, not at that price and the reality is, I didn't "need it" and I'd rather keep that $200 to go towards the next collection anyways.

...Yes, I know I need to re-organize my shed 

 

 

 

 

That it was spray painted suggests there was something to hide and I bet it was rusted in spots. That the wire framing had broken away from the welds is a reason to let it go as hiring a welder to re-weld / repair adds cost and suddenly your rack cost you $350.00 and it still needs lots of work. Maybe the spray paint could be removed from the sign, likely not.

Since it was the wrong size pockets = definite pass unless you want to display moderns.

[Wall-Crawler]

18 hours ago, Artboy99 said:

That it was spray painted suggests there was something to hide and I bet it was rusted in spots. That the wire framing had broken away from the welds is a reason to let it go as hiring a welder to re-weld / repair adds cost and suddenly your rack cost you $350.00 and it still needs lots of work. Maybe the spray paint could be removed from the sign, likely not.

Since it was the wrong size pockets = definite pass unless you want to display moderns.

The people are kind of known "wheeler dealers" and refused to move even after I politely pointed out the flaws. Had the welds been fine, held silver age books and the spray paint not been so bad, I would have paid the $250 but now way it was worth that with all its problems, at least not to me. I appreciate the advice on checking for the welds. I checked all of them and the loose weld was not obvious until you moved/touched it and it was one of the last things I checked.

[Wall-Crawler]

Next  and Final Show for 2017:

North Bay Gateway Fan Ex - Sunday November 12, 2017

This is another show right in my home town. Last years show was the first attempt of a local "convention style" show.

Based on the difficulties last year, I have been assured that I have a space along the wall (not in a centre aisle) and as costs were cheap, I decided to pay for a double wide booth (essentially two booth spaces), so 20 x 10.  I plan on having a mix of boxes and books (particularly sets) laid flat and displayed on at least part of the table.  I don't have time to restock my $2 boxes or sets unfortunately (taking down dying maple in backyard on Saturday, taking dock out at cabin on Sunday and next weekend taking out other dock at my parents and likely the boat) but I should still have enough variety and I am only  taking "mainstream" stuff and that basically just has to be loaded.

I like that now I am pretty much at the point where I can just load boxes. I still have more stuff to price but it is nice to just have to only double check prices once in awhile and being ready to go/set up pretty easily.

I know some vendors did not do very well at the last show and are not returning.  There were problems with advertising, signage, etc.  so it will be interesting to see how those problems have been addressed.  The organizers are very pleasant though and I think some of these issues, hopefully, will improve over time.  I am pretty sure I will be the only comic guy this year.  I did well enough last year, mostly thanks to regulars who knew I would be there and the "casual buys" were a nice bump.  I cannot understate how important it is that my local regular customers come out and support me with these shows in my home town.  Without them, it is likely they would not be "worth" doing.

I know this year they are planning on a cosplay contest, a few tournaments for things like Magic, Pokemon and there will be a Wii tournament of some sort.  

We shall see!

 

[Artboy99]

Good luck!

Being the only comic vendor has the obvious benefit, but it also has a negative: as a comic buyer I would probably not return to this show if there is only one seller.

Then as the only comic seller you find you do not do as well next time as fewer comic buyers return, then you don't go the following year and if the show continues it does so without comic books.

 

Saw this happen locally at a show called the Eek!

The first year there was only 3 comic sellers, and we did marginal but decided to return for the following year. At that show there were only 2 comic sellers 1 of which was us and the other was a local store and all they were selling was trades. Many of the show attendees told us that we were the only booth worth visiting and that they wouldn't come back the next time.

The next year we didn't go, and the show organizer contacted me, and even offered us a free booth if we would come but there was no point in going.

[Artboy99]

10 minutes ago, Wall-Crawler said:

Next  and Final Show for 2017:

North Bay Gateway Fan Ex - Sunday November 12, 2017

 

 

we have a local show this weekend on Sunday called Popculturefair. The show runs twice a year: once in March the other in October. It is generally a show we do ok at so we like to do it but the organizer is difficult to deal with due to his poor contact. You email or phone and you never hear back from him. You wonder if you have tables and then a day or 2 before the show he emails you a floorplan that shows you have been assigned a spot. It is frustrating.

We also have another local show the same day as yours: Nov 12th called the EdToyShow/ Edmonton Collector Con. Normally we have the previous day to do setup, this year we can only load in the day of so it will be more challenging to get ready in the 3 hours we have.

[Wall-Crawler]

2 minutes ago, Artboy99 said:

we have a local show this weekend on Sunday called Popculturefair. The show runs twice a year: once in March the other in October. It is generally a show we do ok at so we like to do it but the organizer is difficult to deal with due to his poor contact. You email or phone and you never hear back from him. You wonder if you have tables and then a day or 2 before the show he emails you a floorplan that shows you have been assigned a spot. It is frustrating.

We also have another local show the same day as yours: Nov 12th called the EdToyShow/ Edmonton Collector Con. Normally we have the previous day to do setup, this year we can only load in the day of so it will be more challenging to get ready in the 3 hours we have.

That is frustrating.  

I never understand why people have trouble with basic communication.  Due to set up issues last year, I spoke in advance with organizers so I am was assured of my spot but as I am sure you know, you kind of have to be prepared to "roll" with whatever ends up happening.

The only show I have had that I have ever been able to set up the day before is Graphic Con in Sudbury, ON.  All the other ones, yep, a few hours before the show.

Good luck with your show! Love to hear a report and see some pics!