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Dealers / Rinse and Repeat model
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283 posts in this topic

2 minutes ago, FlyingDonut said:

The person selling comics at a comic book show isn't there to make a collector happy. The person selling comic books at a comic book show is there to sell comic books

If I have books priced at X, I do not care whom I sell them to. I am absolutely NOT going to hold books back for that mythical unicorn "collector" who will come and buy all of my comics at my asking price on the Sunday afternoon of a three day show. No. If I'm setting up on a Thursday afternoon and @blazingbob comes over and buys out my long box of comics, two things have happened. (1) I probably priced my books too low, but (2) - and this is much more important - I have sold my books for my asking price and I can put that money in my pocket

I said I get it lol :makepoint:

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10 minutes ago, 1Cool said:

But from a collectors stand point what problem do you have with other people (in this case other dealers in the room) grabbing deals before you get there.  The big dealers aren't buying every book in the room and marking up the prices so no collector can find a copy.  They are buying up all the books priced at much below current market prices and marking them up accordingly.  The collectors don't get a chance to get a steal on a book they need but is that what true collectors are looking for when they go to a Con - books at steal prices?  We all like deals and don't want to spend money but do you the small part time collector think you can compete with a full-time dealer who's family income depends on grabbing those steals before you do?

Wow, let me clue you in to the business model of buying at shows.

It is one step below buying from auction houses where I spend a lot of time to not make a lot of money.

Buying from other dealers is where you spend some time to make some money.

I am very rarely getting "steals" buying from other dealers.  They are NOT THAT STUPID.  A dealer who travels at shows is more aware of national/international sales trends than a local/regional economy impacted dealer.  The local dealer selling knowledge is limited to how large a customer base they have and the selling platform they are using.  It also depends on the business model they are using to sell the books.    

 

 

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5 minutes ago, ADAMANTIUM said:

I don't blame anyone for making a living :foryou: @1Cool I really don't even have that much beef with con prices.

As I mentioned the used bookstore near me kind of got me in a twist yesterday. I couldn't justify a business not keeping their "best foot forward" by allowing customers to see all available merch.

I then came on here yesterday, and I drew a correlation to my experience that day with Con's and Dealers..... :sorry: 

You can also ask that seller what it would take for you to get first look at new arrivals.  Unfortunately Money talks and you know the rest.  

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3 minutes ago, blazingbob said:

You can also ask that seller what it would take for you to get first look at new arrivals.  Unfortunately Money talks and you know the rest.  

It take being called Greggy to get first shot at all books.  We all know this.

Edited by 1Cool
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7 minutes ago, blazingbob said:
13 minutes ago, ADAMANTIUM said:

I don't blame anyone for making a living :foryou: @1Cool I really don't even have that much beef with con prices.

As I mentioned the used bookstore near me kind of got me in a twist yesterday. I couldn't justify a business not keeping their "best foot forward" by allowing customers to see all available merch.

I then came on here yesterday, and I drew a correlation to my experience that day with Con's and Dealers..... :sorry: 

You can also ask that seller what it would take for you to get first look at new arrivals.  Unfortunately Money talks and you know the rest.  

Ya I stand corrected :foryou:

Everybody has to start somewhere to get an "in" with connections or dealers lol

I'm not any different!

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Just found these thread, didn't read everything, but giving my two cents on the matter. (Reply to OP).

The reality is, no one needs comics in their life to survive.  This is purely a hobby, and is fueled by the hobbyist.

As long as the demand is there, you can squeeze all the juice you can outta the lemon.

The lemon will always have juice, if there is demand for AF15 lemon juice.  The price of it will probably grow like inflation.

 

And this demand will be fueled by movies, branding, modern comics, and all that current pop culture marketing that Disney has / will do.

 

When will AF15 be worthless? Or have zero juice left.  When big companies stop marketing Spiderman, and generations pass, and no one knows who spiderman is.  By then, we would all be gone / died.

 

In this life time of ours (regardless how old you are), AF15 will have value.  Disney is not going to spot marketing this cash cow.

 

The fact that we are evening discussing this on Forums shows we have interest.  And to everyone that thinks there will be a comic book "recession" or the bubble will burst soon?  Well, I personally think, that means the global economy will probably be in recession, and there is a bigger bubble that just exploded.  I wouldn't be worried about my comics, I'd be more worried about my actual 9-5 job.  

Nothing is 100% --- and I'm known to be wrong, but this is my two pennies ;)

 

Btw --- you know the money in your wallet, take a look at it, technically speaking, it's not worth the paper it's printed on, but for some reason, everyone slaves themselves for it!

 

 

 

 

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Business is business as far as I’m concerned in regards to who dealers sell too.  

Of course Con prices can be higher.  I’m sure the dealers are taking into account credit card fees, etc.  If I’m buying slabbed books I offer GPA or a little lower and always pay in cash.  Their families gotta eat too.

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6 hours ago, blazingbob said:

Can I put out there that the only time I have to look at other dealers books is before the show opens.  

I VERY rarely get to walk around and look at other dealers inventory while a show is going on.  Why you ask?  Because I'm supposed to be back at my booth trying to sell my books,  making sure books are not being stolen,  answering questions etc.  If you think that at the end of the show I'm looking at other dealers books you are sadly mistaken.  I'm tired, hungry and want to go home.  So do a lot of other dealers.  And since a lot of other dealers very rarely come in early to setup that puts even more pressure on my time when I do get to look at something.

Thanks for stopping by my booth at Megacon Bob. Every sale helps the bottom line.

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Just now, Parabellum said:

Business is business as far as I’m concerned in regards to who dealers sell too.  

Of course Con prices can be higher.  I’m sure the dealers are taking into account credit card fees, etc.  If I’m buying slabbed books I offer GPA or a little lower and always pay in cash.  Their families gotta eat too.

Good Luck buying Hulk 181 at GPA :) Unless you mean last sale GPA ---  (I'm just teasing you, I do the same, unless it's a hot book)

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Just now, tdotcbc84 said:

Good Luck buying Hulk 181 at GPA :) Unless you mean last sale GPA ---  (I'm just teasing you, I do the same, unless it's a hot book)

Fortunately I don’t have to worry about a Hulk181, hahahahaha.  

I think having GPA has kept everyone in check about prices.  I like it, it makes buying at cons significantly easier with less haggling.  

 

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22 minutes ago, Parabellum said:

Fortunately I don’t have to worry about a Hulk181, hahahahaha.  

I think having GPA has kept everyone in check about prices.  I like it, it makes buying at cons significantly easier with less haggling.  

 

.

Edited by NoMan
Importance (or not) of GPA covered in other threads. Never mind.
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LOL,  I did enjoy reading that market report.  Subtle as a Mack truck.  GPA is one source of pricing.  And no I don't mind hearing GPA if a buyer is willing to hear my data sales since I'm one of those who doesn't report to GPA.  And my sales data goes back a lot further.  

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On 8/14/2018 at 3:27 PM, Ryan. said:

People are wildly over-exaggerating the amount of pre-show dealing that occurs.

I doubt this.  Lots of stuff happens before the doors open to “Joe Collector” (where are you?).

Nearly all the mega-shows have a preview night.  And lots of books trade hands then.

On a smaller scale, the one day shows setup time is a great time to make some cash.  As Bob mentioned earlier, if someone is willing to pay your prices why wouldn’t you sell to them?

The very first show I set up at (split a table cost with my buddy), I had $700 in pre-sales.  Stuff I had maybe $300 in.  Table cost was $40.  It was already a profitable show before I even sold a book to an attendee.

 

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On 8/14/2018 at 12:47 PM, Ryan. said:

I see. There's probably some truth in that but only to the extent that there are actually many underpriced books available at a con, which isn't often the case.

I gave up on buying books at cons many years ago because of the pre show skim.  I understand it, if someone wants to buy your books early sell them to that person (I would).  WIth that said I spend ~$15,000 year on comic books and zero of those dollars are spent at the handful of comic cons I go to each year.  The price to effort ratio just isn't there for me to spend the time looking and I rarely if ever see something I can't get elsewhere.  I just diverted that money to artist row.  But from the looks of it Vendors still seem to do well which is great and I probably buy from a few of them with an online presence regularly.  

Smaller vendors looking to grow a following would  absolutely be better off giving those deals to common people and not the big dealers. 

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Even if there are dealers who are snagging all the best deals at comic conventions before the con starts, they're also paying hundreds (or thousands) of dollars just to get in the building.  If any convention goers want the same privilege, they can pay the same amount... get in early, snag the deals, and have a couple of folding chairs with a table all to themselves for all the days of the con.

Complaining that dealers get special treatment is like complaining that a $5 burger doesn't taste like filet mignon.  Those who pay more... sometimes... get more.  (shrug)

<==== not a dealer... just a regular guy who goes to conventions and doesn't get in early.

Edited by valiantman
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On 8/13/2018 at 4:16 PM, RCheli said:

That's true, but you tend to sell a lot more of those books than you do the big ones. Look at your standard one-day comic show -- not these 3/4-day behemoths. In those one-day shows, you may sell only one big book ($250+), a couple between $100 and $250, and a handful between $30 and $100. I can sell a couple of long boxes of $1, $3, and $5 comics. Plus, I'm not carrying around a lot of money in wall books. 

It depends on the market. At the local shows in Alberta keys and $100+ books sell steadily, while dollar bins are slowing due to oversaturation. Everyone has dollar bins at shows, filled with similar books. They may pay for the table at the cheaper shows, but the keys/better books are where the money is made. At the small one day shows the past couple of years, 70 - 80% of my sales have come from wall and $20+ bin books. $1/$3/$5 books are slower due to everyone else having them. At the 3 and 4 day shows, I would say 80 - 90% of sales are wall and $20+ box books, if not higher. 

The key is buying the big books properly. There are certain times of the year that it is better to buy than others. That being said, if you can continuously turn over $1000 books for a 10% profit weekend after weekend, it adds up fast. 

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18 hours ago, 01TheDude said:

don't some sellers do some random seeding in the boxes to get buyers to search through them?

Absolutely.  I even overheard it in a conversation at one particular table, that the vendor said he does. 

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