2018 Heroes Convention Report 1 1

[jsilverjanet]

Here’s what’s worked for me when buying books any day of the week (Thursday-Sunday) from any type of dealer (small, big, local,national)

cash and the right attitude. I don’t expect to rob you, and I don’t want you to feel you’ve been robbed. I’m a seller also so I try and put myself in their shoes. the community is small and word gets around fast. Show the respect for the work it takes to do this. 

 

 

[BlowUpTheMoon]

40 minutes ago, F For Fake said:

You all are going to the wrong Waffle Houses. Harumph!

Is there a right Waffle House?

[F For Fake]

23 minutes ago, BlowUpTheMoon said:

Is there a right Waffle House?

I'm a fan of my local Waffle House. 

[lizards2]

1 hour ago, BlowUpTheMoon said:

Is there a right Waffle House?

Waffle House Fight Club.

[Logan510]

1 hour ago, jsilverjanet said:

Here’s what’s worked for me when buying books any day of the week (Thursday-Sunday) from any type of dealer (small, big, local,national)

cash and the right attitude. I don’t expect to rob you, and I don’t want you to feel you’ve been robbed. I’m a seller also so I try and put myself in their shoes. the community is small and word gets around fast. Show the respect for the work it takes to do this. 

 

 

I agree with this and not saying you're like this.... but cash is more important than attitude, as I've witnessed first hand people dealing with absolute knuckleheads as long as they've got the long green 

[jools&jim]

Do many modern con attendees really bring large rolls of cash (e.g., > $1000) with them to Big City conventions?  Do many (all?) dealers prefer cash transactions?  Has anyone ever seen a customer (i.e., not another dealer) hand over, say, $5000 - $50,000 in cash at a convention for a major purchase?

Plus, I hear that the young folk are all about the convenience of their mobile banking apps, debit cards, etc., these days. 

When damn near everyone (except me) has a smart phone, and when money can be zapped into a bank account securely and instantaneously (and not held in non-theft-proof pockets, zippered money bags, or cash boxes), what's the downside? 

Usurious fees?  Unreliable connections at shows?  Unwanted electronic "paper trails"?  Buyer protections afforded to credit card users? 

Buyers are clearly shouldering more risk in cash-only transactions.  Is that the appeal?  You pays your $$ and takes yer chances (i.e., that the discount will outweigh the potential for undetected restoration, etc.)?

I guess I've become too much of an old f@rt: got no appetite for the hustle and flow, nor any desire to fumble around with a big wad of bills to get an extra 10% off.

Then again, I haven't been to a comic book show, large or small, in nearly three years, and have no plans to attend any in the future.  So who cares what I think? 

Edited June 20, 2018 by jools&jim

[blazingbob]

3 minutes ago, jools&jim said:

Do many modern con attendees really bring large rolls of cash (e.g., > $1000) with them to Big City conventions?  Do many (all?) dealers prefer cash transactions?  Has anyone ever seen a customer (i.e., not another dealer) hand over, say, $5000 - $50,000 in cash at a convention for a major purchase?

Plus, I hear that the young folk are all about the convenience of their mobile banking apps, debit cards, etc., these days. 

When damn near everyone (except me) has a smart phone, and when money can be zapped into a bank account securely and instantaneously (and not held in non-theft-proof pockets, zippered money bags, or cash boxes), what's the downside? 

Usurious fees?  Unreliable connections at shows?  Unwanted electronic "paper trails"?  Buyer protections afforded to credit card users? 

Buyers are clearly shouldering more risk in cash-only transactions.  Is that the appeal?  You pays your $$ and takes yer chances (i.e., that the discount will outweigh the potential for undetected restoration, etc.)?

I guess I've become too much of an old f@rt: got no appetite for the hustle and flow, nor any desire to fumble around with a big wad of bills to get an extra 10% off.

Then again, I haven't been to a comic book show, large or small, in nearly three years, and have no plans to attend any in the future.  So who cares what I think? 

How can we improve our show experience for you,  Oh wait,  nevermind LOL

[DjMartini]

5 minutes ago, jools&jim said:

Do many modern con attendees really bring large rolls of cash (e.g., > $1000) with them to Big City conventions?  Do many (all?) dealers prefer cash transactions?  Has anyone ever seen a customer (i.e., not another dealer) hand over, say, $5000 - $50,000 in cash at a convention for a major purchase?

Plus, I hear that the young folk are all about the convenience of their mobile banking apps, debit cards, etc., these days. 

When damn near everyone (except me) has a smart phone, and when money can be zapped into a bank account securely and instantaneously (and not held in non-theft-proof pockets, zippered money bags, or cash boxes), what's the downside? 

Usurious fees?  Unreliable connections at shows?  Unwanted electronic "paper trails"?  Buyer protections afforded to credit card users? 

Buyers are clearly shouldering more risk in cash-only transactions.  Is that the appeal?  You pays your $$ and takes yer chances (i.e., that the discount will outweigh the potential for undetected restoration, etc.)?

I guess I've become too much of an old f@rt: got no appetite for the hustle and flow, nor any desire to fumble around with a big wad of bills to get an extra 10% off.

Then again, I haven't been to a comic book show, large or small, in nearly three years, and have no plans to attend any in the future.  So who cares what I think? 

 

Many dealers now deal with CCs and the like but I doubt they would hesitate if someone rolled out a wade of cash. 

I know I wouldn't feel comfortable having more than $1,000 on me and walking around a con or anywhere. That's what having a CC is for.  

Not sure what people have done if they really need more than $1,000 for a purchase and it had to be straight cash. 

Maybe meet the dealer at their hotel or a dark alley 

 

[CKinTO]

I'll typically bring ~$1500 in cash to a con, and am not worried about carrying it around (I'll put it in an envelope buried inside my backpack, or in a pocket with a zipper). I find cash is much easier to negotiate with - not only because seller avoids the CC fee, but presumably because all-cash transactions can avoid getting charged sales tax. I assume for a dealer, it's harder to not charge sales tax if there's an electronic papertrail when customer uses credit card... I've never done it before, but I've heard other dealers tell other buyers that if they pay CC, they'll have to charge sales tax. This may be a tactic to try and push cash when possible, or maybe it's true (probably a bit of both).

I'm in my mid-30s and am 100% cashless outside of the comic world (credit card for everything, except for certain small businesses when I'm buying very little, I'll try to pay cash), but to me anytime when negotiating occurs, cash is king

[Logan510]

I find most dealers prefer cash and will often offer discounts if cash is paid as opposed to cc's, especially if you're buying several books.

I think in the last 10 years of con going I've only needed to use the CC once as most of the time I bring more cash than I need.

[1Cool]

29 minutes ago, jools&jim said:

Do many modern con attendees really bring large rolls of cash (e.g., > $1000) with them to Big City conventions?  Do many (all?) dealers prefer cash transactions?  Has anyone ever seen a customer (i.e., not another dealer) hand over, say, $5000 - $50,000 in cash at a convention for a major purchase?

Plus, I hear that the young folk are all about the convenience of their mobile banking apps, debit cards, etc., these days. 

When damn near everyone (except me) has a smart phone, and when money can be zapped into a bank account securely and instantaneously (and not held in non-theft-proof pockets, zippered money bags, or cash boxes), what's the downside? 

Usurious fees?  Unreliable connections at shows?  Unwanted electronic "paper trails"?  Buyer protections afforded to credit card users? 

Buyers are clearly shouldering more risk in cash-only transactions.  Is that the appeal?  You pays your $$ and takes yer chances (i.e., that the discount will outweigh the potential for undetected restoration, etc.)?

I guess I've become too much of an old f@rt: got no appetite for the hustle and flow, nor any desire to fumble around with a big wad of bills to get an extra 10% off.

Then again, I haven't been to a comic book show, large or small, in nearly three years, and have no plans to attend any in the future.  So who cares what I think? 

Some dealers do not like credit card transactions (especially if they do not know the person) since they don't have their product and all risk of a charge back is on them.  And more dealers (especially smaller dealers) want the cash to avoid paying taxes on the sale.  They may not say it but I highly doubt all those cash transactions get accounted for come tax time.

To your first point - yes I've seen $5,000 - $10,000 sales done in cash.  I'm a small fish and I ponied up $1,500 in cash for a purchase at Heroes.  A typical 10% discount becomes 20% when you are pulling out 15 $100 bills - is $300 in savings worth bringing cash to the table?  That is up to you but most people say yes.

[jools&jim]

1 hour ago, blazingbob said:

How can we improve our show experience for you,  Oh wait,  nevermind LOL

A (somewhat) related anecdote:

I remember going to a big NYC show years ago...early/mid '90s maybe.  I was shopping at a well-known dealer's booth, and overheard an exchange between the dealer and a customer which went something like this:

CUSTOMER: "Will you take $35 for this?"

DEALER:  "Why?  This isn't a flea market!"

The response was delivered with a smile and in good humor, and I don't recall the original asking price or if the deal was closed or not. 

But the sense of the remark was clear: "I'm a professional comic book dealer -- this isn't a bunch of un-priced garbage dredged up from the depths of my basement and strewn all over a card table in some church parking lot.  I have paid to be here, have spent decades learning the market and know it very well, price my books accordingly, organize my stock carefully, present it neatly, and spend countless hours loading and unloading boxes and setting up booths to bring these books to shows all over the country.  So next time, pause, and maybe take all of this into consideration before asking dealers for a discount, especially on a single book."

As I remember it, there was a cultural assumption in certain circles, even back then, that weekend-warrior/hustler-flipper types and cash-is-king deep discounters were bringing down the real-estate values for the long-term pros, and risked turning cons into glorified rummage sales.

Which is a long-winded way of saying this: one mark of a pro for me is that they take credit cards, and will work with me on larger purchases no matter which method of payment I choose.  

Edited June 20, 2018 by jools&jim

[revat]

11 minutes ago, 1Cool said:

Some dealers do not like credit card transactions (especially if they do not know the person) since they don't have their product and all risk of a charge back is on them.  And more dealers (especially smaller dealers) want the cash to avoid paying taxes on the sale.  They may not say it but I highly doubt all those cash transactions get accounted for come tax time.

To your first point - yes I've seen $5,000 - $10,000 sales done in cash.  I'm a small fish and I ponied up $1,500 in cash for a purchase at Heroes.  A typical 10% discount becomes 20% when you are pulling out 15 $100 bills - is $300 in savings worth bringing cash to the table?  That is up to you but most people say yes.

I think 2K is the most cash I'd bring unless I had something set up before hand.  Just make sure its secure, maybe split it up on your person. If you need to bring like $5K-$20K for a deal I'd say bring a friend with you.  I'd say the discount is usually worth it.

[F For Fake]

Same as several others, I bring about $1k-$1500 cash, depending on my plans. When negotiating a price, I can't count how many dealers have asked "you paying cash?", the implication always being that they'll do the deal for cash, but maybe not for a card. But I am a very, very, very small fish. I've often wondered how the high rollers close deals at shows, if it's card, wire transfer, handcuffed briefcase full of cash, or what?

[DavidTheDavid]

Cash keeps me in check. Instead of thinking, "Well the next quarterly bonus arrives in X weeks," I just know that I have X dollars. But I rarely get to even our little Nashville comic show in December.

I've always heard great things about HeroesCon, so it's been really interesting to follow this thread. One of these days, I will make it there.

[VintageComics]

I personally wouldn't be posting on the internet how much cash I carry around.

But seriously...

I tend to carry very little US cash (I'm Canadian) and have used Paypal, CC, Checks to pay for purchases.

[Robot Man]

2 hours ago, VintageComics said:

I personally wouldn't be posting on the internet how much cash I carry around.

But seriously...

I tend to carry very little US cash (I'm Canadian) and have used Paypal, CC, Checks to pay for purchases.

Really, I was thinking the same thing. Same people probably post on Facebook when they are on vacation...

[Hey Kids, Comics!]

On ‎6‎/‎15‎/‎2018 at 5:31 PM, HENRYSPENCER said:

 He'd mentioned booth prices this year were north of $800 for the weekend and that he'd been told they were going to exceed $900 next year.  

I won't mention his name but one dealer in particular who runs some spectacular eBay auctions that I've gotten some choice material from at unbelievable prices over the years didn't even have a wall display set up nor did he bring any books valued above $5 or $10.  I bought cash and was looking to buy some material but to no avail.
 

 

 

 

Endcaps were already $900 if you didn't pay before 12/31, If you did, you got it at last year's price of $850.

As long as you're talking about a particular dealer from GA, he had TONS of better books. They were on the backside of the main tables and facing where his wall would normally be. If you went by on Sunday, all that stuff was gone and all that was left was the $2/$5 which was now $1/$3.

[Hey Kids, Comics!]

On ‎6‎/‎16‎/‎2018 at 8:53 PM, 1Cool said:

 

 Not to say I did get some pretty good deals (especially from Hey Kids Comics) but it was definetely work trying to put together large combo purchases and pretty much disregarding the sticker prices.  Big Earl sold his booth to another dealer right when I was on my way back to try to work out a combo deal which took the wind out of my sail.

Thanks for the shoutout (and the cash)!

And Earl didn't want to sell out, but was forced to due to a death in the family.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Hey Kids, Comics!

[Hey Kids, Comics!]

On ‎6‎/‎17‎/‎2018 at 5:59 AM, G.A.tor said:

Definitely our best show ever at heroes,  sales wise 

I told a buddy of mine from my hometown about you as he has been in search for a FF1 for some time. He ended up buying one from you during the show! And hopefully that individual who shall not be named pulled the trigger on that big slab at the end of the show on Sunday. If so, I'm sure that helped! 

Sam