GA COMIC BOOK Collecting in the Financial crisis of 2020 3 3

[szav]

1 minute ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

I think I covered it in my edit.  Refresh and read it again...

Meh... just call me and tell me which GA books of yours you're selling for 1-10$ now please...

[lou_fine]

On 3/20/2020 at 11:57 AM, Mmehdy said:

It is in China's best interest to have a weak America in a long term business strategy `and China thinks long term. This 90% statistic I do not trust it, I do not trust anything that China says especially since they claimed that we brought the Virus to them via US Military.

 

On 3/20/2020 at 1:00 PM, comicjack said:

On 3/20/2020 at 12:49 PM, fifties said:

Right, and we can believe everything that comes out of their "news" propaganda.  

I can't believe anything that comes from them 

I would most definitely take anything I see on the internet with respect to the origins of the Coronavirus with a whole ton of skepticism.  Especially since I have heard everything from Chinese spies stealing it from a Canadian lab, bio-engineered virus brought into Wuhan by American operatives acting as participants in the World Military Games, bio-engineered virus accidentally leaked from a Wuhan lab which just happens to be the only BSL-4 virlogy lab in all of China, virus came from a burning meteorite which landed in China, etc.       

From a comic book point of view though, the only conspiracy theory that I would subscribe to is that it came from a Thanos wannabe who's actually doing a very bad job at right-sizing the world's population.  

I actually live right next door to a family that came back from China about a month ago and they simply can't believe how lackadaisical the North American approach is to containing the virus as it is compared to China.  They said it was like the diffference between night and day with most of the general population over here still not really taking it that seriously.  Especially when they say that people can still go out to go jogging or to walk their dogs, and then you see the younger generation celebrating Spring Break with beach parties or younger people not caring about their elders by doing stupid things like licking subway car pole handles, door knobs for doors to public places, etc.   

No matter how inaccurate the numbers might possibly be, I woud still much rather be in the position of the country that is reporting only 39 new cases during the previous 24-hour time period, as opposed to the country that is reporting 9,339 cases for the previous 24-hour reporting time period.  Although large number's of China's own general populaton don't believe all the numbers emanating from their own government talking heads, it appears to have still been good enough for Apple to reopen all of their brick and mortar retail stores in China, while at the same time, closing every single one of their retail stores outside China on a now declared indefinite basis.  

Not sure how much more faith I would put in any type of administration that boasts they knew the virus was a pandemic right from the get go and the first one to call it as such.  Sad to say that this is probably actually true since Military Intelligence had apparently already informed them as such way back in January.  And then to state right the next day that nothing could have been done about it because nobody knew anything about the virus as it had snuck up on everybody.  And then to top it off, to counter with the boast that they were actually early to the game and ahead of the virus when questioned the other day as to whether their response to the virus situation was late or not.  I am sure that I see a Pinocchio nose growing longer and longer here, and yet it seems that most people would believe almost anything in this day and age of so-called "fake news" and media hoaxes.    

Edited March 23, 2020 by lou_fine

[lou_fine]

3 hours ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

The great sell off is here...Action #10 thru #50 are going for $10 each on ebay.  Rumor has it that ComicConnect is going to have a $1 golden age sale any day now.  We live in exciting times... 

 

2 hours ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

Of course, and my statement was just a joke.  I do not see a large-scale panic sell off in this hobby.  We have been thru downturns in the economy before that did not affect our hobby.  The only thing that seems to affect us is supply and demand...

Now you tell me.  

Especially right after I gave a call into Dave to see if his Church run of Action Comics and Allentown copy of 'Tec 27 was now available at full cover price, for what really amounts to nothing more than some used and now worthless old comic books.    

[lou_fine]

24 minutes ago, GreatCaesarsGhost said:

“I don’t take any responsibility at all”

Not sure who you are referring to since I was actually talking in my post about the Carl Barks Donald Duck story which i was reading last night?  

Hopefully, you are not referring to an actual real person because the Mods will be sure to slap you with a big warning once they get back into the office from their imposed lockdown.  

Hopefully, you simply misquoted and really meant to say "With great power comes great responsibility" as said by good old Spidey in his famous line.   

So, by linking your comment to my post, if you don't see me around here for the next while, I guess I'll have you to blame for being given the bunt from the boards.    

Edited March 23, 2020 by lou_fine

[Cat-Man_America]

On 3/22/2020 at 11:21 PM, lou_fine said:

Not sure who you are referring to since I was actually talking in my post about the Carl Barks Donald Duck story which i was reading last night?  

Hopefully, you are not referring to an actual real person because the Mods will be sure to slap you with a big warning once they get back into the office from their imposed lockdown.  

Hopefully, you simply misquoted and really meant to say "With great power comes great responsibility" as said by good old Spidey in his famous line.   

So, by linking your comment to my post, if you don't see me around here for the next while, I guess I'll have you to blame for being given the bunt from the boards.    

I’d have gladly linked Great Caesars Ghost’s comment to my post if it were still in the thread, and been happy to have borne any critical brunt of agreeing with the truth.  I think it’s well past time for walking on egg shells around folks making life or death decisions impacting hundreds of thousands of good citizens based solely on personal whims and how the image looks to supporters.  That ship sailed with the pandemic.  We can parse the subject in safer terms of how these decisions effect convention travel and the economics of buying and selling comics in this new environment where personal health becomes a factor in buyer consideration.

Never used the “p” word or the “T” word and try my best to maintain a focus on comics during the pandemic. This is just a routine comics discussion thread full of hero’s, victims, scoundrels and criminal masterminds!

Edited March 24, 2020 by Cat-Man_America
My grammar made me do it. ;0)

[KCOComics]

While there is no doubt this is going to spell trouble for the global economy with an awful lot of people not working, it is extraordinary how technology is enabling life to move forward.

We are seeing an immediate shift to a population working at home, virtual school for my kids, a change to online classes for college kids, Telahealth and a rise in mail order services.

I have worked at home for many years, but today will be the first day I'm working, my wife is virtually teaching, and my 7 year old son is going to school all from the same room.....  And we have a 2 year old who will do his best to make sure none of us accomplish anything. 

From a collecting stand point, it will be interesting to see how technology changes the game.  You'll have a lot of shops unable to open and a lot of dealers unable to attend cons. While it's possible many collectors will hoard those big ticket books, I actually think we'll see tremendous buying opportunities from dealers who sell books to survive. 

The boards and online auctions will have allot of inventory. Then it's a question of if enough collectors have the job security to drive the demand. 

 

[Tri-Color Brian]

I just ordered 4 books today online...

[comicjack]

16 minutes ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

I just ordered 4 books today online...

You better wipe them down 

[Tri-Color Brian]

59 minutes ago, comicjack said:

You better wipe them down 

I wipe down the mailers and the comic bags...

[I am not Glenda]

Truth is.................... nobody here has a clue as to what is going to happen in terms of the hobby. However, I think most of us would agree it's rational to think that until we have a better idea of how long this crisis lasts on a global level will really dictate what the impact is on this and most hobbies for the next few cycles. Most people in my neck of the woods ( southern NJ) seem to still feel like this is just a few week pause and they will all be on the Jersey shore by June 15th with a Corona in hand  I personally suspect that this is not the case ( I hope I am wrong).  IMHO thus far we have seen really great leadership from some state governors while some still seem to be acting very slow to acknowledge this threat is very real & until we all get on the same page this is not going away anytime soon.  Just looking at the situation world wide I can not see some of the very poor nation in South American & Mexico etc being able to contain this virus for quite some time ( do we even have any solid data on what's happening in our back yard yet?) Regardless, does anyone here really think we will ever be able to keep everyone out ? So really until we have a vaccine ( best case 6-12 months) but more likely 14-16 months based on what I have read it's going to be a long haul for our hobby getting back to where it was just a few weeks/months ago. For example my neighbor lost 208k in 12 days in the market & is putting off his planned retirement ( he is currently selling his coin collection on evilbay)  So for the near future ( cash will be king ). Really right now we are all flying/buying in the dark as past data is not worth the site it's posted on. A great deal today may be a bad deal in 30 days or a super short term score! I would suggest keeping anything you love or that can not be easily replaced & then hold on because we are all going on a crazy ride in 2020/2021.  PS remember they are just funny books on cheap paper, be safe, be smart. LIVE LONG AND PROSPER.

Edited March 23, 2020 by I am not Glenda

[rjpb]

I have no idea how things might change in the next couple of months, but if my ebay activity this weekend was any indication, GA buyers aren't slowing down.

[manofsteel]

16 hours ago, rjpb said:

I have no idea how things might change in the next couple of months, but if my ebay activity this weekend was any indication, GA buyers aren't slowing down.

I agree 100% with this. Nothing I've been watching on CL, HA or ebay have gone for any kind of a deal. 

Adding: In fact, most have gone for more than they were a few months ago. 

Edited March 24, 2020 by manofsteel

[Tri-Color Brian]

I just bought another GA book on ebay today...and the buyer accepted my offer of $40 for his $55 book...which was way underpriced to begin with.  I love sellers who don't know how to list a book so everyone can find it...

[Mmehdy]

1 hour ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

I just bought another GA book on ebay today...and the buyer accepted my offer of $40 for his $55 book...which was way underpriced to begin with.  I love sellers who don't know how to list a book so everyone can find it...

I think all GA/SA collectors should test the "waters" but not just on e-bay. You might want to be aggressive and contact dealers, especially ones that mainly sell at conventions as well as have a small presence of a website or none at all. A phone call is all it is and even if your offer is rejected...you might get a phone call down the road, especially if things take longer to recover than anticipated "saying you got a deal". If an offered is presented right, I do not think it would be considered an insult...it just depends how you frame it.  I would say that I am still the market and have limited funds and I am available to purchase items if you make the decision today or in the future. I would always leave the door open, especially on GA that you have been looking for a long time.

[Tri-Color Brian]

43 minutes ago, Mmehdy said:

I think all GA/SA collectors should test the "waters" but not just on e-bay. You might want to be aggressive and contact dealers, especially ones that mainly sell at conventions as well as have a small presence of a website or none at all. A phone call is all it is and even if your offer is rejected...you might get a phone call down the road, especially if things take longer to recover than anticipated "saying you got a deal". If an offered is presented right, I do not think it would be considered an insult...it just depends how you frame it.  I would say that I am still the market and have limited funds and I am available to purchase items if you make the decision today or in the future. I would always leave the door open, especially on GA that you have been looking for a long time.

Great advice Mitch...

[Mmehdy]

I read Mile High comics newsletter once in while..here is the headline

 NEW COMIC DISTRIBUTION ENDS

 TO highlight chuck's points.." our world of comics profoundly changed today, perhaps forever.....all shipping of new comics had ended as we received a letter from Diamond where this temporary publishing shutdown taking place in a healthy market I would have no concerns... 87 years of... Modern comics has been in failing health for years and even if 20% of the comic books shops cannot reopen after the pandemic restrictions are lifted and (have diamond resume shipments). Both ATT(DC) and Disney(marvel) are in dangerous financial stress right now and expecting them to allocate precious resources to restoring print publishings  is simply not logical. "

Then he claims to have anticipated this eventuality for over a decade...etc etc etc.

 My thoughts: I view the world as glass of wine half full and Chuck seems to view the wine as half empty. I do not have my head in the sand and will admit that projects will be canceled, books never published and stores that will never recover and reopen. Chuck seems to think we will never come back 100%..I disagree we have a chance.

 If every board member would buy one GA related book per week from Bud Plant or Amazon or most importantly from a local comic book store when they reopen we can make a difference. I see a LOT of great reprint material coming especially from Marvel/Timely and DC that I was looking forward to. Hopefully postponed not canceled.

 If you are like me and and buy GA/SA reprint volumes and read them, then we as those collectors should be concerned.

Anybody else wish to chime in on this?

 

Edited March 24, 2020 by Mmehdy

[bluechip]

On 3/22/2020 at 8:28 PM, lou_fine said:

 

 

I actually live right next door to a family that came back from China about a month ago and they simply can't believe how lackadaisical the North American approach is to containing the virus as it is compared to China. 

The example they set was out in the open with videos on youtube of people wearings masks, having their temps taken before going into stores, etc.  I had a trip to Europe planned and was considering every day whether to cancel it.   Ultimately decided to go ahead but first I stocked up with N95 masks, hand sanitizer, gloves, even goggles (in case they discovered it was airborne).  Kept a mask on during an entire trans-continental flight because a guy behind me was coughing.  Went to events, parties, and the like packed with people from all over the world (except China) and wore no masks but washed my hands constantly.  Didn't catch anything, and now that I'm back home everyplace I went is on lockdown, including my home.   Wearing masks all the time here when I shop or whatever, and seeing hardly anyone else is wearing them mostly because they're unavailable.   If I hadn't obsessed about the virus a month before most people here, I wouldn't have the stash of masks, sanitizer etc. but feeling bad wondering whether some health professionals might have gotten the stuff if I hadn't bought it.

 

Edited March 24, 2020 by bluechip

[batman_fan]

Looking at prices on the current Clink auction, prices don't appear to be tanking.

[Mmehdy]

2 hours ago, batman_fan said:

Looking at prices on the current Clink auction, prices don't appear to be tanking.

I do not see a "flash" crash in GA/SA market more of gradual decline of unknown time and depth. But if experts are right, and here in Calif today all homeowners were given 90 days "holiday"( with BA 30 but unlimited as crisis continued) on their mortages. This means that the time period for the beginning of the  recovery is projected out for about 3 months from now not years. I don't think you will see an immediate "tank" of the GA/SA market, real estate etc.

Of course if this crisis continues  beyond the three months banks will increase that "holiday". Where I see the crumbing is especially on this HA/CC/CL auctions were people might have the ability to pay up and we can hope they will be flexible with those buyers and allow time payment, which means a lot potential resubmissions added to the mile high pile of persons needing to sell. GA prices are a combination of supply/demand..when we have a potential oversupply then prices will decline Also comic book stores who were on the edge of profitiablty being the most likely not to return. There are unfortunately of a number of GA/more SA collectors who lives or collections could be lost/sold whole or part to this economic/virus  crisis. I do not see anything near a total collapse of the GA/SA market or a sudden 30% overnight drop in all GA/SA value in day or week. Things are gonna happen slowly and over time in this circumstance.

The weakest link is the comic book store owner who has a whole host of expenses just keeping the door open. If you know a comic book store in your area, you might want to contact the owners directly and let me know1-if any GA walks in the door give a call and I will give you a 10/20% finder fee, so there is no carrying costs or risk for an already overstretched store owner. Second, you can contact the store and with great care let the owner know that you would be in the market for any GA if priced right, meaning any existing inventory especially when they just reopen or possible sale of existing stock if they do not intend to reopen.The second, would be the "circuit" comic book dealer who relies on shows, old customers etc. They might need some start up money to get back on the convention train again.

 I am hopeful that some of these comic con ticket prices will come down to earth, and that these conventions will get less "side show"  and more actual comic book dealers and get the shows back to comics not showbiz.

 So, this could turn out OK..for everybody...Lower GA prices, more customer appreciation from your local store, lower new comic book cover prices, cheaper comic book cons costs and accommodations for hotels, food etc, and a tighter more focused comic book collector.

 

Edited March 26, 2020 by Mmehdy

[szav]

2 hours ago, batman_fan said:

Looking at prices on the current Clink auction, prices don't appear to be tanking.

I put a dozen or so garbage GA books into the auction...mailed them in like 3 months ago so way before this started.  They're at about half what I initially considered the low end of my expectation with 4-5 days to go.  I'm actually somewhat relieved, thought I might get totally hosed but I'm close to break even on them now.