Yes... a Dealer & his thoughts about the National (for future dealers)

[TWard]

Originally Posted by 6celtics33

@bigherp, it's "designerjewelrybykarina" I think. Either way, we've already blocked each other from a past deal so hearing that doesn't surprise me at all.

Ooooooh, I remember that guy from the National last year. Dude was waaaay overpriced last year, I didn't even go to his booth this time around. I know there were a couple cards they had last year that I was interested in that had historically gone for $150-250 and they wanted $400-500 for them so I had to pass obviously.

[Sets2]

What sells better: higher end higher graded or $1/.10/.25 cards or how ever you price the low end stuff?

I am thinking about setting up next year in Cleveland; Should I be calling for booth space now?

Excellent recap, I enjoyed reading it and will probably do so several more times.

[bigherp]

I'm not sure if you covered the panini redemption program but I would also like to hear about that it looked like you made out pretty well...

[AlabamaSlamma]

Excellent write up. Your tables were always humming when I walked by, which speaks volumes to the quality of your approach, service, and inventory.

Having set up for 6 years now, it's important to remember that both buyers and sellers have varying goals when attending the National. Often times, these goals differ from person to person. Can it be annoying/frustrating? Of course, and that will certainly happen at some point in the week. However, the "little things" such as general courtesy and politeness from each side of the table go a long way.

To those who had particularly poor experiences, that's really a bummer to hear.

[meelypops]

Getting to page 2 or responses...

-packman80: $1000 is just table fees, they prob spent a lot more. I agree with ya
-POKTRITON: thanks bud! we should meet sometime? you doing any future nationals? Sometimes its just a little courtesy and talking with someone, nothing else.
-7nohitter: agree with ya man, I think a simple 'Pass' is better than laughing at a customer, always. I know I am open to seeing last comparable sale values, wondered what his price really was?
-mathbowler: kind words man thanks! If you dont have passion for the hobby and the people involved in it, then why do it right?
-Canesfan2011: thanks a lot bud, glad you had a good time at our booth. Shoot me a PM and remind me of any deals we made? Looking forward to next year for sure
-PensFan29: thanks! bummer we didn't meet, sorry about that. Don't want to complain about being busy though. Glad you found some stuff in the deal boxes, I try to make those worth it for sure
-Rickey: thx brother, pleasure working with ya! Hope we can help eachother more out in years to come! Ish made sure to get some ice cream! lol
-ryanvas: I think the stuff in that $20-$150 range was our sweet spot, of course deal boxes. I dont want to say anything exceeded expectations, but definitely no complaints. I was surprised not as much of my super high end sold, $1000+ cards, but I did move some.
-kukocitb: was a pleasure bro. Ready for those 2 kukocs now lol! Hit me up with a PM. I gotta watch out for those imposters
-ThoseBackPages: thx for reminding me, after this post I will add them to the original post
-ldsports: down here in Florida, so local shows are VERY different than ones in other parts of the country. I will attend a few here and there in Jax and other parts of the state. Mainly look to do national and a few other big ones. How about yourself?
-Thaiboy5829: your a good dude yourself, thanks man, see you in less than a year!
-sonnyday: that's funny. Why are they so opposed? Even if you don't use ebay as your pricing, why cant t be a guide? strange, I meet too many dealers who are opposed to real markets value
-PoPCulture: awesome, sounds good. hit me up with questions you might have. also networking before hand can be great for the both of us!

[meelypops]

-RobP343: not sure how that happened man! would have been great to meet ya? So no M116s at all? Bummer. Did you ever ask those dealers how they came up with those prices? Would be interesting to hear. Will shoot you a PM
-Indy Tim: glad to do so man. I am so glad you were receptive as well. I think explaining my perspective to a seller can be helpful for both parties. Everyone does it slightly differently as well of course.
-celtics: so good to be set up next to you. You really hit it on the head there bro. You and I both had quite a few people helping us, even with that, it can be hard to get away and take some things in. Did you walk the show? I prob did about 75% of it, maybe less, wish I had made more time honestly. Made a few buys but nothing huge. You have a successful show? (for everyone reading this, if you dont know celtics, 100% quality dude here. good people)

[notsublime]

Originally Posted by tdbaseballcards

Nice write-up.

I would have to agree with the organization and customer service aspect. I cannot believe how many booths I stood in front of a showcase wanting a price on a card and was completely ignored. Some dealers were more interested in having conversations amongst themselves instead of acknowledging me and helping me.

I was surprised by the rudeness of some dealers. Put together a stack of cards, give them an offer for said stack, and they are 'offended' that you didn't just pay their asking price and then make rude comments about that fact right to you. It's very simple to be polite when declining people's offer.

I for one am all about pricing your cards out. It at least gives the buyer an idea right away if you are in the same ballpark. I bought far more from those dealers that had cards priced vs those who did not.

I understand that dealers cannot man their booth at all times, but when you leave someone to watch your booth that doesn't have prices you miss out on sales. A number of times I would ask someone for a price and they would tell me that the person isn't there right now. That was it. With how large the show is, unless I really want the card I'm not going back later to ask for the price again.

Originally Posted by DajuanWagner

I did get the feeling that, for some, it was a "card show". In other words, they were just sitting there to "show" their stuff. With a ton of overpriced stuff, the seller wouldn't even get out of the chair, talk to you, or even look in your direction. Not saying that for all dealers, of course, but for some, you could tell, it was too much effort to move or speak.


Maybe some small percentage of people who went to the show were just there to look and not buy. But, if a person is standing in front of you and looking at your stuff, is it really that difficult to say something???? #rantover

This and this. I couldn't have said it any better. I enjoyed reading this thread BTW.

[meelypops]

-Sets2: You need to jump on it for selling in Cleveland, if you need a good contact message me. Low end and the deal boxes will always sell the best, I mean, who goes to the National thinking "Ehhh, I'm not really looking for a deal." It was really spread this year in terms of sales, here is how I would break down how I did in terms of % of sales
Low end (.50 cards to $10 cards) - 40% of our sales
Mid end ($10-$150 cards) - 40% of our sales
High end ($150- $2000 cards) - 15% of sales
Memorabilia & wax (we brought very little) - 5% of our sales

AlabamaSlamma- thanks man, you bring up good points. I hope people understood my disclaimer in the Original Post. I think too many times buyers/customers see it as a good guy vs bad guy thing, I hate that. People make it a personal mission to 'get one over on a dealer' which sucks too. National Goals I feel vary immensely from seller to seller and I totally get that, and appreciate that. [Could write a lot more on this but can save that for another time]

UPDATE for everyone, added some pics to 1st original post and a bit more under grading

[dacaptain37]

Meely I gotta tell you brotha...your insight has been excellent...

People forget this is a hobby... now don't get me wrong, I set up at shows and try to make money on the side, but both buyers and sellers have to keep things in perspective. People who try to 'pull one over' on each other, as you mentioned, are the type of people that will never be pleasant to deal with. Im very honest with people both when I buy and when I sell. I always explain where my offer comes from, or where my price comes from. If you don't like it, and we don't get a deal done, we can still shake hands. I never hold any ill will. It's the people who get bent out of shape all the time that ruin it for everyone and leave a bad taste in people's mouths...and it's both buyers and sellers. You see it at the national, you see it at local shows, and you see it on Blowout. Bottom line...you see it everywhere. Just have to take the good with the bad as you would anything else in life.

[sportzking]

I commend the dealers who are nice and have cards they actually want to sell. I tried the selling thing a long time ago. While it was fun I'm not sure if I can do it on a daily basis, thank goodness for ebay. At least I have the option to ignore the crazies online.

But I think there is one very important thing to suggest to the buyers (show attendees)

Take a shower and brush your teeth the morning you are going to the show. Put on some clean clothes too. You don't have to do it everyday but on that particular day you should. No one wants to smell your BO.

[dacaptain37]

Originally Posted by sportzking

I commend the dealers who are nice and have cards they actually want to sell. I tried the selling thing a long time ago. While it was fun I'm not sure if I can do it on a daily basis, thank goodness for ebay. At least I have the option to ignore the crazies online.

But I think there is one very important thing to suggest to the buyers (show attendees)

Take a shower and brush your teeth the morning you are going to the show. Put on some clean clothes too. You don't have to do it everyday but on that particular day you should. No one wants to smell your BO.

my god amen... i always say, for every 1 cool person you meet in this hobby, there are a combo of 5 a$$holes or weirdos who still live in their mom's basement

[SleeperCards]

Nice job putting down your thoughts in an organized manner.

This National was strange for me as I actually sold more $$$ worth of items than I purchased. I rarely ever sell to dealers, as I'm not interested in selling something for less than I can get online, but was able to swing more than one deal while I was there. I guess it's good for both buyers and sellers to keep an open mind at these things, I didn't anticipate making any deals, but talked with some dealers and was able to work something out. This may only work with the harder to find items where the market isn't as simple as checking eBay though.

[meelypops]

Sleeper- sounds like the tables have turned huh? That's pretty funny. Selling cards is at an all time high and people are always buying to mak a quick buck. If you got the rare stuff it will sell. Congrats man!


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[Gmrson]

This thread is a subject on the go GTS web show tonight. Hopefully your guest Meelypops.


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[meelypops]

Man...humbled that so many people have read this. Was cool to hear GTS mention this post and give it a little live time on the show tonight. Props to Ivan & Rob.

I think everyone can access here. Starts at 3:45 to like 11:00, then again on 16:15 for a bit...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTL-WcLDQXI

[Morgoth]

I just don't get the dealer to dealer instant discount mentality. I price to sell usually but when I set up at shows I get the constant I am a dealer and need more margine whine. Yeah so am I, I am not in this to allow you to make 100% of the profit.

Also the pricing at these shows is always atrocious compared to eBay. Card Country and 707 have been the worst for years. However on the vintage side you can actually see the card before buying and truly overpay for the nicest example if you wanted too. I did that on my Clemente RC but felt it was a really nice copy.

[meelypops]

Morgoth- I hear ya, but typically a dealer to dealer mentality should be wholesale. You know another dealer will buy a substantial amount of items or may even help you get out of a large qty set of stuff you may not really want anymore. Everyone is different.

Where were you at the National for me? All of my pricing on the low/mid/high end was comparable to ebay, sometimes a little less

[tribefan]

Originally Posted by meelypops

You know another dealer will buy a substantial amount of items or may even help you get out of a large qty set of stuff you may not really want anymore.

This is the key - quantity! Some guys expect a wholesale price on 1 or 2 items, that's probably not going to happen. But on a big group...

[Morgoth]

Originally Posted by tribefan

This is the key - quantity! Some guys expect a wholesale price on 1 or 2 items, that's probably not going to happen. But on a big group...

Yes I have had dealers looking at single cards like a PSA 8 Bradshaw RC and expecting 50% VCP pricing because they are a dealer.

Also any dealer wanting 50% margins on graded vintage better be buying 10k plus collections as I don't know why anyone would sell that cheaply

[meelypops]

tribefan and morgoth you have some good points. In my experience, most dealers are cool when you simply say "nah" or "I can't do that". Don't take it personal, but at the same time don't miss the opportunity to move one or maybe a ton of cards that you have been sitting on...

Which makes me think about local card shows. You know who typically does the best at local card shows? Dealers who have new inventory and not the same stuff on repeat. Biggest turn off to a collector is seeing the same stuff not move, price not change, nothing sell. I wish there was more dealer to dealer sells honestly b/c it moves inventory to different hands, and that is always a good thing for the hobby - new eyes and new customers from this guy to that guy. Think about it.

[dacaptain37]

Originally Posted by meelypops

tribefan and morgoth you have some good points. In my experience, most dealers are cool when you simply say "nah" or "I can't do that". Don't take it personal, but at the same time don't miss the opportunity to move one or maybe a ton of cards that you have been sitting on...

Which makes me think about local card shows. You know who typically does the best at local card shows? Dealers who have new inventory and not the same stuff on repeat. Biggest turn off to a collector is seeing the same stuff not move, price not change, nothing sell. I wish there was more dealer to dealer sells honestly b/c it moves inventory to different hands, and that is always a good thing for the hobby - new eyes and new customers from this guy to that guy. Think about it.

this x100...

that's one of the biggest things my customers tell me at the local show I do... "you're one of the only ones in the room with new stuff"

There are literally guys there who have had the same cards for years...

[byronscott4ever]

Originally Posted by dacaptain37

this x100...

that's one of the biggest things my customers tell me at the local show I do... "you're one of the only ones in the room with new stuff"

There are literally guys there who have had the same cards for years...

It seems that if you have enough inventory to do a show, you probably have more stuff than that too--dealers could refresh just by rotating stock even.

[meelypops]

dacaptain & bryon scott, you two are so right. I think at the national things are a little different b/c its a once/year show, but definitely some advice to share with the local card shows and what not.

[daxwills]

I will reiterate that all dealers should have nicer stuff under locked glass. For years I worked show security and still occasionally do and you'd be amazed how sophisticated the tactics are. Some people lose major coin that way. If you're a huge dealer higher security, and I don't mean your buddy bob, qualified security. It can save you a fortune in the long haul.

[meelypops]

daxwills, I hear that, but the allure for many true deal finders is box searching ya know? please would love to hear these tactics through DM. I would love to pick your brain on what the best set up should be as well in terms of having the best eye on my stuff