Is Mile High a reference to their prices? 5 5

[Mmehdy]

1 hour ago, mycomicshop said:

We probably don't have more total comics than Mile High since accumulating piles of unsold bulk comics isn't our goal. We exceed them by more meaningful measures:

- sales, by a very wide margin
- selection - We maintain a significantly better selection despite higher turnover of our inventory. We have to continually replace books we're selling to maintain our selection, vs books at MH that don't move because they're overpriced.
- inventory value - Mile High doesn't have much of a footprint with older and more expensive books. My guess would be that our inventory at any given point in time is considerably more valuable than any 10 million bulk comics they've accumulated.

 

I believe said he had 10 million items ( comics ,GN etc) at the store along, plus another 3-4 million in storage at his ranch that would him between 13-14 million items, yes he is a hoarder and tends to hang on to large inventory. I do not doubt that you outsell MH comics probably 3-1 or greater or that you have many more employees.I also agree on selection as you have many more expensive items. I think chuck prices his comics books on the higher side or highest side of the spectrum such that he can maintain as much stock as possible. Valuing your inventory vs chucks at 13-14 million do you have a rough estimate as to how many comics you maintain in stock day in and day ?...13-14 million is a awful lot even if it is just bulk?

Edited November 6, 2020 by Mmehdy

[dupont2005]

Seems like every modern key is something I at one point or another sold for a dollar, so just wait until Chucks warehouses of drek get movie deals. Ten million copies of Radioactive Hamsters #3 won’t be too shabby if they ever reach the retail value of a dollar 

[1950's war comics]

paying Chucks prices would be throwing money away ...

it would be the equivalent of going to a store , and buying something with this $5 bill at face value

 

[paperheart]

what a business model.  every time you need to juice the cash flow, there's magically: a flood, a robbery, a natural disaster. rake in the insurance on overvalued garbage, voila...

Another Robbery at Mile High Comics

Howdy!

I am using my last week of convalescent leave from my recent abdominal surgery to finally undertake the truly depressing task of (Slowly) sorting through our storage trailer that was ransacked by thieves over a period of several weeks (months?) earlier this year. This trailer is one of seven that we parked in a “secure” lot four years ago, when we sold our 56th Ave. warehouse. The trailers are filled with pallets of unsorted and overstock comics and magazines, excess office fixtures, and all ten+ tons of our steel pallet racking from 56th.

Truck interior

It had long been our desire to move those 53’ storage trailers over to Jason St. to unload them, but that task was repeatedly delayed due to a lack of space, and the logistic difficulties of being unable to close our dock doors once a 53’ trailer was parked in one of our 45’ bays. Getting our storage trailers over to Jason St. was the easy part. Getting them totally unloaded, and then arranging to have the empty trailer retrieved by the trucking company that same day, was where it all became difficult.

In any event, our storage yard was ransacked by thieves who broke into at least 20 trailers, and burned one of them (not ours) to a shell. They caused minimal harm to the contents of six of our trailers, but this seventh one was savagely pillaged, with tens of thousands of comics and magazines being stolen, and many more being damaged as the thieves dumped boxes everywhere, and then walked all over the contents.

Burnt Trailer. Not ours, so it could have been worse.

Truth be told, I am the one who has to sort through this horrific mess because I am the only one left in the company who knows what was on those pallets, as many of them were (intentionally) stashed by me to quietly age over 30 years ago. I will not dismay anyone by revealing precisely what was taken, but I am currently estimating that our loss (at retail) is at least $250,000.00, and probably end up at least twice that much. That is just a conservative estimate, however, as I cannot yet even access to the middle of the trailer at this point, much less the front. Suffice it to say, our losses are looking really, really bad.

[ADAMANTIUM]

Is this like dr who where you step into the "truck" and its humongous inside?

I mean I know those are real pics, and I'd rather not speak on ethical quandaries that may or may not be based in theory on convenience 

But that is a lot of inside for a truck to magically end up in a "pile in the truck", does that make sense?

These theives must have been throwing stuff around, but with all that stuff, how was there room to throw?

Oye maybe it's too close up of a pic idk  still doesnt look good 

Edited November 7, 2020 by ADAMANTIUM

[southern cross]

Looking at that picture I see a very large amount of empty comic book boxes. You'd think thieves would just pick up a box with handy hand holds then to empty the boxes and remove books by hand. Looks strange to me but I don't have a criminal mind. 

[ttfitz]

13 hours ago, mycomicshop said:

- inventory value - Mile High doesn't have much of a footprint with older and more expensive books. My guess would be that our inventory at any given point in time is considerably more valuable than any 10 million bulk comics they've accumulated.

About a year and a half ago my son and his bride moved from Seattle to Denver. We went to visit in the summer (2019) and while there we went to the Mile High Comics store at Jason Street.  By far the most interesting comic shop I've ever been to, and I recommend anyone who goes to Denver should definitely check it out, it is a real experience.

While we were there, one of the clerks came over and talked to us, and (quite proudly) pointed out to us the most expensive item in the store - an early (Hal Jordan) issue of Green Lantern. Don't remember the exact number, only that it wasn't issue #1. I think it was marked as Fine, and the price on it was maybe 10x (or more) of Guide.

So yeah, not a trove of high ticket items.

[EC Star&Bar]

6 hours ago, southern cross said:

Looking at that picture I see a very large amount of empty comic book boxes. You'd think thieves would just pick up a box with handy hand holds then to empty the boxes and remove books by hand. Looks strange to me but I don't have a criminal mind. 

Likely there were lots of "visitors" to the opened trailer at different times, who helped themselves to what they could easily carry -- but as you've indicated, the easiest way to make a haul would be "by the box"...!

[Ken Aldred]

9 hours ago, paperheart said:

They caused minimal harm to the contents of six of our trailers, but this seventh one was savagely pillaged

The selectivity and the pillaging MO suggests that the culprits were Conan fans. There’s a starting point.

[Hudson]

10 hours ago, paperheart said:

what a business model.  every time you need to juice the cash flow, there's magically: a flood, a robbery, a natural disaster. rake in the insurance on overvalued garbage, voila...

I read Chuck's email last night and found it "strange" how often bad things seem to happen to Chuck and to his "inventory".

One line I found of particular interest was, "... but I am currently estimating that our loss (at retail) is at least $250,000.00, and probably end up at least twice that much."    

I am not sure an insurance company (which I am glad I am not Chuck's insurance company) is going to pay you losses "at retail" (especailly if your retail prices are many times greater than FMV.  I would be interested to know exactly how much of a "pay out" he gets on this one.

I think recycle centers pay $50 - $75 per ton of paper.  Maybe that should be a starting point.

[1950's war comics]

44 minutes ago, Hudson said:

think recycle centers pay $50 - $75 per ton of paper.  Maybe that should be a starting point.

haha ... more likely the real value of his 30 year old secret stash with the value unknown to anyone but him

[1950's war comics]

with Chuck's business model in place, if Milehigh was a coin shop they would go to the bank and get rolls of pennies, look for everyday pennies from 1990's and and sell them for a dime each

(and call them  uncirculated to boot)

i would be interesting to see what he would sell the pennies from the 60's for .......

[Mercury Man]

11 hours ago, ADAMANTIUM said:

Is this like dr who where you step into the "truck" and its humongous inside?

I mean I know those are real pics, and I'd rather not speak on ethical quandaries that may or may not be based in theory on convenience 

But that is a lot of inside for a truck to magically end up in a "pile in the truck", does that make sense?

These theives must have been throwing stuff around, but with all that stuff, how was there room to throw?

Oye maybe it's too close up of a pic idk  still doesnt look good 

So much drek, even the thieves didn't want it for free. 

[valiantman]

3 hours ago, Ken Aldred said:

13 hours ago, paperheart said:

They caused minimal harm to the contents of six of our trailers, but this seventh one was savagely pillaged

The selectivity and the pillaging MO suggests that the culprits were Conan fans. There’s a starting point.

I assumed the burned trailer would be an indication they were fans of Trogdor and upset there were no Trogdor comics.

...also - Trogdor comes in the night.  Almost a perfect match to Chuck's clues.

Edited November 7, 2020 by valiantman

[Mmehdy]

5 hours ago, Hudson said:

I read Chuck's email last night and found it "strange" how often bad things seem to happen to Chuck and to his "inventory".

One line I found of particular interest was, "... but I am currently estimating that our loss (at retail) is at least $250,000.00, and probably end up at least twice that much."    

I am not sure an insurance company (which I am glad I am not Chuck's insurance company) is going to pay you losses "at retail" (especailly if your retail prices are many times greater than FMV.  I would be interested to know exactly how much of a "pay out" he gets on this one.

I think recycle centers pay $50 - $75 per ton of paper.  Maybe that should be a starting point.

There is a possibility of no insurance payout...I don't know if storing material in trailers outside of Jason street in a yard down the street  would be covered. Clearly the  loss due to theft would be covered by a tax deduction off of income. SO either way I think it might be a win-win...looking at the pic...if they had been there for say 30 years it appears that more than one theft occurred over time. How can Chuck warn other comic shops or buyers about what to look out for if he does not know himself exactly? Either way its not cool, and I hope the thieves get nothing for their trouble.

Edited November 7, 2020 by Mmehdy

[the blob]

Just checking out the mile high website and there are some awesome prices on certain books, especially with the 40% off coupon. If they had the books in stock. I suspect some of the prices have not been updated for years as they haven't had the book in stock. Goon 1 from Avatar in NM for $63 or so after the 40% discount? https://www.milehighcomics.com/cgi-bin/backissue.cgi?action-list&title=36881308736&snumber=1

(Speaking of Goon, how the heck did Powell mess that up?)

[B2D327]

33 minutes ago, the blob said:If they had the books in stock. 

That’s the key right there. I stopped buying from them in the late 80s/early 90s for that reason. The majority of books I ordered from their catalog were not in stock and I wound up with a shipment of substitute books

[Prince Namor]

On 11/6/2020 at 9:41 PM, paperheart said:

what a business model.  every time you need to juice the cash flow, there's magically: a flood, a robbery, a natural disaster. rake in the insurance on overvalued garbage, voila...

Another Robbery at Mile High Comics

 

Howdy!

 

I am using my last week of convalescent leave from my recent abdominal surgery to finally undertake the truly depressing task of (Slowly) sorting through our storage trailer that was ransacked by thieves over a period of several weeks (months?) earlier this year. This trailer is one of seven that we parked in a “secure” lot four years ago, when we sold our 56th Ave. warehouse. The trailers are filled with pallets of unsorted and overstock comics and magazines, excess office fixtures, and all ten+ tons of our steel pallet racking from 56th.

 

Truck interior

 

It had long been our desire to move those 53’ storage trailers over to Jason St. to unload them, but that task was repeatedly delayed due to a lack of space, and the logistic difficulties of being unable to close our dock doors once a 53’ trailer was parked in one of our 45’ bays. Getting our storage trailers over to Jason St. was the easy part. Getting them totally unloaded, and then arranging to have the empty trailer retrieved by the trucking company that same day, was where it all became difficult.

 

In any event, our storage yard was ransacked by thieves who broke into at least 20 trailers, and burned one of them (not ours) to a shell. They caused minimal harm to the contents of six of our trailers, but this seventh one was savagely pillaged, with tens of thousands of comics and magazines being stolen, and many more being damaged as the thieves dumped boxes everywhere, and then walked all over the contents.

 

Burnt Trailer. Not ours, so it could have been worse.

 

Truth be told, I am the one who has to sort through this horrific mess because I am the only one left in the company who knows what was on those pallets, as many of them were (intentionally) stashed by me to quietly age over 30 years ago. I will not dismay anyone by revealing precisely what was taken, but I am currently estimating that our loss (at retail) is at least $250,000.00, and probably end up at least twice that much. That is just a conservative estimate, however, as I cannot yet even access to the middle of the trailer at this point, much less the front. Suffice it to say, our losses are looking really, really bad.

 

It's very possible those thieves stole that inventory and then sold it back to him unknowingly.

[Prince Namor]

3 hours ago, the blob said:

Just checking out the mile high website and there are some awesome prices on certain books, especially with the 40% off coupon. If they had the books in stock. I suspect some of the prices have not been updated for years as they haven't had the book in stock. Goon 1 from Avatar in NM for $63 or so after the 40% discount? https://www.milehighcomics.com/cgi-bin/backissue.cgi?action-list&title=36881308736&snumber=1

(Speaking of Goon, how the heck did Powell mess that up?)

The price will change when and if it ever gets restocked.

[ThothAmon]

On 11/6/2020 at 9:41 PM, paperheart said:

Another Robbery at Mile High Comics

Robbery   not sure that’s what insurance investigators will call it. Given that the lot where the “robbery” occurred is apparently not Chucks my guess is it’s not his insurance company that will be receiving the claim. The very fact that Chuck would feel the need to blast this out in a press release makes me even more skeptical.  Who’s he trying to convince?  Apparently his narcissism knows no bounds.