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Coollines question
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43 posts in this topic

1 hour ago, Catwoman_Fan said:

^^


^ Good Advice

Perhaps I misunderstood what you meant by 'winnah good advice"  - so excuse me if I am taking this the wrong way.

I am not sure why you say its good advice to pay any price for an item you like -just because you can afford to do it.   anyone who can afford to overpay - has that right - but while most of us don't buy to resell - no one likes to be taken advantage of.   While I am generally less concerned with price - I am always concerned with value.

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21 minutes ago, Panelfan1 said:

I think if the price aligned with the amount you were willing to pay - you should not buy it and thank the heavens for the signal to go and buy a lottery ticket while the stars are aligned in your favor.

For sure! Never found alignment when I was a newb in the hobby and don’t expect for them to do so now.  

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25 minutes ago, Panelfan1 said:

Perhaps I misunderstood what you meant by 'winnah good advice"  - so excuse me if I am taking this the wrong way.

I am not sure why you say its good advice to pay any price for an item you like -just because you can afford to do it.   anyone who can afford to overpay - has that right - but while most of us don't buy to resell - no one likes to be taken advantage of.   While I am generally less concerned with price - I am always concerned with value.

 

The quote mentioned "All that matters is if I can afford it, and if I like it well enough to spend what I can afford." 

In honesty, I have never purchased from coollines, nor intend to.  I do not mean to discount value, nor advise others too.  But if you like a piece enough, that the price is justified in your mind, then you may decide to overpay (hopefully realizing that you are overpaying).

 

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4 hours ago, JadeGiant said:

I seem to recall reading some advice recently that might apply here:

 

"I buy stuff I like, and when I buy it, it stays bought. So, pricing doesn't really matter to me. It is not an investment. All that matters is if I can afford it, and if I like it well enough to spend what I can afford. I do look at prices to see what I might have to spend to get what I want, but that's about it."

That's my basic rule, but when I figured out who was the probable other bidder, ...sometimes, dumb trumps smart. (shrug)

In this case though, I think smart will definitely win. 

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48 minutes ago, Panelfan1 said:

Perhaps I misunderstood what you meant by 'winnah good advice"  - so excuse me if I am taking this the wrong way.

I am not sure why you say its good advice to pay any price for an item you like -just because you can afford to do it.   anyone who can afford to overpay - has that right - but while most of us don't buy to resell - no one likes to be taken advantage of.   While I am generally less concerned with price - I am always concerned with value.

Let me give you a different example. Let's say you have a favorite T shirt you bought years ago. Does it matter to you if if was $10 or $40? 

This also raises one of the dangers of buying comic art. A lot of it is affordable and seems like "a good deal", so there is a temptation to buy it. But, it's no deal at all if you don't like it.

There is one exception I will make: "trade bait." If you know you can buy something cheaply which is in hot demand, it may be worth buying and saving for people who will only trade for their artwork. I was able to secure some artwork that way when someone wouldn't sell what he had but would trade for it. He then identified a piece he wanted which was at auction, and I bought it to swap with him. I actually felt a little guilty because I got too good a deal, so I threw in something else for free.

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9 minutes ago, Rick2you2 said:

Let me give you a different example. Let's say you have a favorite T shirt you bought years ago. Does it matter to you if if was $10 or $40? 

This also raises one of the dangers of buying comic art. A lot of it is affordable and seems like "a good deal", so there is a temptation to buy it. But, it's no deal at all if you don't like it.

There is one exception I will make: "trade bait." If you know you can buy something cheaply which is in hot demand, it may be worth buying and saving for people who will only trade for their artwork. I was able to secure some artwork that way when someone wouldn't sell what he had but would trade for it. He then identified a piece he wanted which was at auction, and I bought it to swap with him. I actually felt a little guilty because I got too good a deal, so I threw in something else for free.

i haven't had the pleasure to trade yet - but glad it works for some. not sure how it fits here, but cool.

the t-shirt idea is not the same because - you are looking at it years ago.  no point regretting a decision made years earlier.  unless you want to dwell in the past. 

also and more importantly, it depends on the amount spent.   I don't think you can get anything from coolyness for $40.

 

I did buy something from Coolyness years back and I did overpay at that time. I was new to the art collecting and how no idea the value.  I bought out of emotion and lack of knowledge. Had I the knowledge, I probably would have spent my funds better on other art. again - not dwelling, just sharing.

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3 hours ago, RICKYBOBBY said:

I inquired about a piece this weekend to coollines that was posted also on comic link. I wanted to make a deal happen but instead I got no response and they jacked up the price on comic link by 20%? Why would you raise the price when I am inquiring to buy it? 

Strange folks....

Because if anyone's willing to pay anything close to what they've priced a piece at then they haven't properly overpriced the item and it needs to be repriced more preposterously. 

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3 hours ago, RICKYBOBBY said:

I inquired about a piece this weekend to coollines that was posted also on comic link. I wanted to make a deal happen but instead I got no response and they jacked up the price on comic link by 20%? Why would you raise the price when I am inquiring to buy it? 

Strange folks....

Why subject yourself to this behavior? Instead why not consider the piece:

23 hours ago, comix4fun said:

Burned in a ship fire....on a ship lost at sea...where the ashes are preserved in a museum...that's permanently closed for renovations...in Atlantis.

It's a hobby, where we seek to find happiness and enjoyment. What part of dealing with them gets you closer to either? 

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21 hours ago, Rick2you2 said:

Let me offer my approach: unless you plan on selling in the next 5 years or so, it's best to mostly ignore the subject of pricing. 

I buy stuff I like, and when I buy it, it stays bought. So, pricing doesn't really matter to me. It is not an investment. All that matters is if I can afford it, and if I like it well enough to spend what I can afford. I do look at prices to see what I might have to spend to get what I want, but that's about it.

I've said this before, but I don't see a 20 year investment strategy for this stuff. It's a hobby that will grow old with these generations, like collecting porcelain dolls or toy trains. So, for those who buy and hoard, their day of judgment will come. 

I compare it more to newspaper comic strip art. Some of the great stuff will continue to be held in high esteem and be valuable. It’s been almost 100 years since a Little Nemo strip was published. Yet it’s highly esteemed by even young OA collectors who encounter it. Great is great. 

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3 hours ago, williamhlawson said:

(I believe)...They raise the price because they genuinely don't want to sell it, only provide the illusion that it is for sale (even if at multiples of market value).  Money isn't important to them it would seem, merely control of the art.  If someone shows interest and they raise the price a common sense buyer leaves.  The fool with too much money pays it immediately, justifying their prices further and they laugh their asses off waiting for the next fool.   They then use the fools money to buy things at real prices, jack up 500% and repeat....and repeat.  They sell to those with a NEED for a piece of art and no concern for it's price, or those whom money truly isn't an object.  I wouldn't even imagine entering into a trade with them either...

Almost like...drug dealers. hm

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8 hours ago, williamhlawson said:

(I believe)...They raise the price because they genuinely don't want to sell it, only provide the illusion that it is for sale (even if at multiples of market value).  Money isn't important to them it would seem, merely control of the art.  If someone shows interest and they raise the price a common sense buyer leaves.  The fool with too much money pays it immediately, justifying their prices further and they laugh their asses off waiting for the next fool.   They then use the fools money to buy things at real prices, jack up 500% and repeat....and repeat.  They sell to those with a NEED for a piece of art and no concern for it's price, or those whom money truly isn't an object.  I wouldn't even imagine entering into a trade with them either...


I'm pretty sure part of it is that they live the constant attention / online chatter about them and their pieces. I have to imagine it drives a lot of traffic their way and makes them pop up on associated Google searches more often than it otherwise would.

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17 minutes ago, SquareChaos said:


I'm pretty sure part of it is that they live the constant attention / online chatter about them and their pieces. I have to imagine it drives a lot of traffic their way and makes them pop up on associated Google searches more often than it otherwise would.

I've thought about hiring a cosplayer, to dress as Elsa, and dance around their booth in SDCC and whenever someone approaches the booth have her start singing to them....

 

giphy.gif

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On 1/28/2018 at 9:04 AM, ignimbrite said:

I realize there have been a lot of posts about Coollines Artwork but from what I can tell my question is new.

Does anyone understand their business model? It seems as though the idea is to buy everything of value and resell it for a huge markup. That is fine but they must have a fortune tied up in inventory and their turnover must be really slow. Is the idea to create the market themselves? Eventually they buy enough to create their own art bubble they can take advantage of? It all just seems odd to me.

It’s a really fair question. Always wondered how they can ask for those prices and hold that kind of inventory.  Don’t they as a business need to pay tax on inventory?

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I just sold a piece of art on ebay (Ben Caldwell Wednesday Comics) and coollines was the buyer! And they/he asked if I have more (which I do!). So interesting how a sale arouses the feelings that this one did. But in the end they paid what I asked and that is all I really need from the transaction.

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14 minutes ago, Bird said:

I just sold a piece of art on ebay (Ben Caldwell Wednesday Comics) and coollines was the buyer! And they/he asked if I have more (which I do!). So interesting how a sale arouses the feelings that this one did. But in the end they paid what I asked and that is all I really need from the transaction.

Well, they asked about other pieces you might have.....so make sure to double the price for every time they ask. 

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2 hours ago, Bird said:

I just sold a piece of art on ebay (Ben Caldwell Wednesday Comics) and coollines was the buyer! And they/he asked if I have more (which I do!). So interesting how a sale arouses the feelings that this one did. But in the end they paid what I asked and that is all I really need from the transaction.

Shoulda replied, "I'll ask my brother if I got any more."

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I have sold to Mandel, DocJoe, Burkey, Donnelley, the main thing is just set your price and don't worry about the aftermath, their networks are beyond me.  I have always had smooth transactions with these big type dealer/collectors.  Best, David

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3 hours ago, aokartman said:

I have sold to Mandel, DocJoe, Burkey, Donnelley, the main thing is just set your price and don't worry about the aftermath, their networks are beyond me.  I have always had smooth transactions with these big type dealer/collectors.  Best, David

I tried lowballing Mandel on some Travis Charest sketches before I knew who he was  -  short time later I saw he got married when I read in the New York TimesI 

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