Wall-Crawler

So, interesting development a day before the show... Organizer contacted me just this morning and they had one vendor drop out this week and one more just the other day due to personal reasons. Result? They have space to fill as they don't want to the hall to seem "empty". The pro for me is that through the drop outs, I now have 2 extra tables for free. The con is that due to the set up, other vendor requests for their own set up, they have asked if they don't mind if the other two tables are across the aisle from me. Apparently if I didn't "go" for this, they would have had a major headache in rejigging the whole flow of the room. This is what I have ready: Assortment of Action Figures (I was only planning on bringing 10 Marvel Legends but now may bring an additional 5 for 15 total) Shortbox of assorted comic magazines 20 Longboxes of comics (most of my stock is Marvel) 5 Longboxes of prepackaged "sets", various publishers 4 Longboxes of $2 only priced comics - I will have a 'sliding scale' of say like buy 4 get 5th free or $8 for 5, $15 for 10, something like that. Note: As I do this on the side, with the large hoard I bought awhile ago, I first focused on getting the main titles and bigger books organized and it is only now that I have been working on getting the cheaper stuff organized. I plan on to keep working at getting my more economical books organized, re-bagged and boarded. "Wall Book" display and other key book selection What I am thinking with extra tables: For the tables "across the aisle" I was thinking of making that my "Toy Table" as the Marvel Legends figures would be harder to "grab and go" than say a comic book. I was also thinking of putting a He-Man lunch box I have available for sale and some "filler" goodies, maybe some prints and even super cheap DVD's. While not "ideal" set up, I didn't want to "turn down" the extra table and I wanted to help out the organizers "fill the room". If anyone reading, as always open to thoughts/suggestions/tips.

Budget doesn't exist anymore. Paying GPA high for a spec. Still spending triple-digit $$$ on a min-wage PT job. Can't even cosign himself to showering once a day because cleanliness apparently irritates his skin. So, yeah. Apparently he is actively looking for the 1:25 variant all over Facebook. "WTB: Darth Vader 3 1:25 Variant I prefer a graded copy but will buy raw as well Pm me with scans and prices" Man, I guess when his buddy said Aphra is going to be huge he went ALL IN! AND he is buying more "games" and "toys"such at the Thrift Shop... What Gabe says at the 1:58 - 2:06 mark pretty much says it all for this thread... Those games and toys are from four months ago I just never got around to making the video. If that junk is from 4 months ago why bother posting it now? Do you still have all of it?

Budget doesn't exist anymore. Paying GPA high for a spec. Still spending triple-digit $$$ on a min-wage PT job. Can't even cosign himself to showering once a day because cleanliness apparently irritates his skin. So, yeah. True story. When I was a Resident Advisor, I had to provide advice for all sorts of common sense stuff, like how to do laundry, where the library was, how to cook (even a can of peas once) and for one individual, tell him he needed to bathe more. It got so bad, people could not stand to sit in the common TV room with this guy. People would crack the windows in the middle of winter and he would not get the hint. His roommate stopped staying in their room. I had to have "a talk" with this guy, to tell him he needed to shower every single day. I was later told his shower consisted of him stepping into the shower and getting out with his hair still dry. I then had to explain he needed to WASH and provided him with free soap and shampoo. I also had to teach him how to do laundry as that was part of the problem and get him some laundry soap and fabric softener. This guy was in his early 20's at the time (as was I). So Gabe, I leave you with this advice: Shower every freaking day. Don't be the smelly guy in the TV or any room. If you have that much of a problem (which I doubt), see a dermatologist about your skin. In the meantime, try: I'll try it but those things are lying most of the time, I used the acne treatment that said the same thing and my skin was red and irritated for three days and I do know how to do the laundry I did it in college. Do you do your own laundry now or does mommy do it for you? Did you consult a dermatologist for your skin issue or did you just try one product and give up as per usual? My mom does the laundry now and I've already consulted with a dermatologist but after their consultation they want money which I don't have. For products I've tried at least five or 6 but it seems every product has "Stearic acid" Why don't you do your own laundry? If you do actually get severe itching from certain products, like soap, which makes bathing difficult, if you get referred to a dermatologist from your family doctor, that would be covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) so it should be "free". The product/prescription (if required) they recommend won't be free but depending on OHIP rules for your particular ailment your 'treatment' may or may not be covered, so what did they want money for exactly? Just imagine if you were working FULL TIME and not dinking around with comics and toys you could afford to take care of yourself.

Budget doesn't exist anymore. Paying GPA high for a spec. Still spending triple-digit $$$ on a min-wage PT job. Can't even cosign himself to showering once a day because cleanliness apparently irritates his skin. So, yeah. True story. When I was a Resident Advisor, I had to provide advice for all sorts of common sense stuff, like how to do laundry, where the library was, how to cook (even a can of peas once) and for one individual, tell him he needed to bathe more. It got so bad, people could not stand to sit in the common TV room with this guy. People would crack the windows in the middle of winter and he would not get the hint. His roommate stopped staying in their room. I had to have "a talk" with this guy, to tell him he needed to shower every single day. I was later told his shower consisted of him stepping into the shower and getting out with his hair still dry. I then had to explain he needed to WASH and provided him with free soap and shampoo. I also had to teach him how to do laundry as that was part of the problem and get him some laundry soap and fabric softener. This guy was in his early 20's at the time (as was I). So Gabe, I leave you with this advice: Shower every freaking day. Don't be the smelly guy in the TV or any room. If you have that much of a problem (which I doubt), see a dermatologist about your skin. In the meantime, try: I'll try it but those things are lying most of the time, I used the acne treatment that said the same thing and my skin was red and irritated for three days and I do know how to do the laundry I did it in college. Do you do your own laundry now or does mommy do it for you? Did you consult a dermatologist for your skin issue or did you just try one product and give up as per usual?

Budget doesn't exist anymore. Paying GPA high for a spec. Still spending triple-digit $$$ on a min-wage PT job. Can't even cosign himself to showering once a day because cleanliness apparently irritates his skin. So, yeah. Apparently he is actively looking for the 1:25 variant all over Facebook. "WTB: Darth Vader 3 1:25 Variant I prefer a graded copy but will buy raw as well Pm me with scans and prices" Man, I guess when his buddy said Aphra is going to be huge he went ALL IN! AND he is buying more "games" and "toys"such at the Thrift Shop... What Gabe says at the 1:58 - 2:06 mark pretty much says it all for this thread...

Budget doesn't exist anymore. Paying GPA high for a spec. Still spending triple-digit $$$ on a min-wage PT job. Can't even cosign himself to showering once a day because cleanliness apparently irritates his skin. So, yeah. True story. When I was a Resident Advisor, I had to provide advice for all sorts of common sense stuff, like how to do laundry, where the library was, how to cook (even a can of peas once) and for one individual, tell him he needed to bathe more. It got so bad, people could not stand to sit in the common TV room with this guy. People would crack the windows in the middle of winter and he would not get the hint. His roommate stopped staying in their room. I had to have "a talk" with this guy, to tell him he needed to shower every single day. I was later told his shower consisted of him stepping into the shower and getting out with his hair still dry. I then had to explain he needed to WASH and provided him with free soap and shampoo. I also had to teach him how to do laundry as that was part of the problem and get him some laundry soap and fabric softener. This guy was in his early 20's at the time (as was I). So Gabe, I leave you with this advice: Shower every freaking day. Don't be the smelly guy in the TV or any room. If you have that much of a problem (which I doubt), see a dermatologist about your skin. In the meantime, try:

Been away from the boards for a few days..So where are we at? Two steps forward, three steps back?

How long is he willing to sit on a book to maybe make $50? $50 is an OK profit on a single book if you're dealing in volume which Gabe obviously isn't. $50 IMHO is not worth it to sit on something for a year waiting for it to pop. I can think of 10 books off the top of my head that would be a cheaper investment and have as much or better potential to make more than a $50 bump. I'd love to know who this friend is who has all this inside info. George Lucas.

Gabe the comic landscape is littered with books that were going to be huge then not. The time to buy this book was at cover price when it came out. Yes this is at least within the Star Wars franchise but is Aphra going to be the next Luke or Han or Leia or Rey? Who knows. A new movie character could appear on screen and they get the green light or Aphra may just be "meh" and all the talk of solo movies and/or series go poof. Then what? How long are you willing to sit on yet ANOTHER book?

Was the Darth Vader #3 only $11, or has that gone out the window already? I haven't been hanging on every post lately, so maybe that has changed... Nope that's the one I bought for 75 dollars but I sold my star wars 1 for the exact price. The most you can pay for a slabbed 9.8 book with a GPA average of around $65...is about half of that i.e. cover price + slabbing fees. Even then, putting that $30+ into slabbing a book that is worth $100 or more is much more worthwhile. I would have paid $35 for that book, already in a CGC 9.8 slab.No more. Your logic of your friend advising you on the the 1st X-23 and 1st Alpha is just not comparable.The Vader book was a hot book about 6+ months ago. SW books are cold and will stay cold intil the next SW movie comes out. When will Alpha ever be tied into a SW movie? This Christmas or the following SW movie in 2018? If the character is used in a movie, at all. If the character is used in a movie, you'll have to wait intil this Christmas or for the 2018 SW movie, to sell the book for a dollar to make any profit whatsoever on it. Let me reinterate that X-23 will be in Wolverine 3 and Alpha...maybe never. DV 3 is a decent book to buy, but only if you can get a solid 9.8 raw at cover price. And in order to take a ridiculous gamble on paying $75 (+ shipping) for a common as Hell modern, you sold a SW 1, which will just about certainly see an increase in price as the SW movie in 2 months comes out. How sharp was the SW that you sold for $75? Odds are that putting $35 (grading/fast tracked fees) into the SW 1 that you sold for $75 would have grossed you $200.....so, theoretically, you lost about $100 from dumping your SW 1 raw at $75...and then you compounded that loss by putting about $100 (shipped) into a pretty cold/common modern that routinely sells for about $65. So you are at -$100 from the SW 1 transaction aaaaaand, tack on another -$100 for the CV 3 CGC 9.8 transaction. Last 2 comic transactions = $200 in the hole. If you insist on "trying" to be a comic dealer, this is what I'd suggest. Do not buy anymore comics for a good while. Sell some books ASAP. Take those proceeds and buy some dry cleaning supplies and a Jumbo Seal 210. Learn how to dry clean & press books, that is the best advice I can give to anyone who wants to make money selling books, who does not have a large bankroll to use as capital. Dry cleaning & pressing does require a metric ton of patience, but learning a trade like this will do you a lot of good. If you had known how to press books, you could have had pressed the SW 1 yourself (while saving $40+ on fast tracked pressing fees and cut out the 1 month pressing service lag time...slabbed the SW 1 and then you may have had a $300+ book in your hands, instead of a $75 raw copy. Instead..............you sold a raw bronze age key in order to buy, what is arguably a waste of money, a $75 ($100 shipped) CGC 9.8 run of the mill modern. Next journal title: "My Road to Success: To Make A Million Dollars Pressing"

I don't have a lot of pure TPB's but I do have a good number of sets (organized alphabetically) of storylines, mini-series, runs, etc. that I have put together and while I have had those in boxes in the past and seemed to sell well maybe they will sell better out on the table. What the heck, can't hurt to try!

Great advice as per usual! A) I will have more pure $1 and $2 boxes this year and I will have a nice selection of cheap books for youngsters and casual buyer. I gave a few freebies last show but probably could have done better. The last show had a total of 600 people through the doors and not all were comic collectors as it is a mixed show so I don't think I will get the "sell through" (I would love to move 5 boxes). Maybe a silly question, but for $0.50 books do you bother to bag and board them? B) That is an interesting tidbit about laying books flat. I will see what I can do to incorporate that idea as well. I am going to bring a bit more than I have table space for so I can switch it up if need be and/or maybe try a few things under the table. I also have a display board that can hold regular comics and CGC books again...CGC books were a non-starter past two shows and while it generated interest, not a lot of big key buyers...I think biggest single issue sale from last time was like $50...I am definitely having the display board but I was thinking of putting books in the $10 - $50 range this time instead of the $50 + range or maybe a mix of both? I haven't completely decided...

Final few days before the show this weekend. First time it being a two day show, so little curious to see if the extra day will make it worth it for the extra time and minor increase in table costs. Will be finalizing my boxes this week (as in what to bring)...One thing that stays constant is that I struggle with exactly what boxes to bring. I will be bringing some remaining Marvel Legends that I have from a large lot I purchased awhile ago (that has been generating profit for awhile now) and will allow me to 'change up' my central display area...Hasn't been the same in three shows so I guess that will be good. Here are my costs going into the show this year: 2 - Day two table rental (includes discounted third table): $230 Incidentals and supplies: $20 (extra table cloth) Total Investment: $250 (approximately) I still have left over supplies from other shows (pricing stickers,labels, bags, etc) so my costs are pretty much the cost of the vendor fees. As this is a small show, I am keeping my selling expectations low. If I could sell $800 worth of product for a $500 to $600 profit, I would be satisfied with that.

From a page back he said: "It was the regular version not the variant and I bought it because it was a good deal, I didn't listen to my friend when he told me I should have bought thor 133 CGC 9.8 X2 and 9.6 x3 and I lost lots of money by not doing that so I'm going to listen this time." Sooo apparently his "friend" told him to buy it? Or Gabe was worried about being 'left behind' all on his own and wants to 'cash in' when Aphra hits it 'big time'? I wonder if this was the same "friend" he is in a "competition" with to see who can make more money flipping comics...

He said he paid $75 for it...I really hope that included shipping. Not according to recent completed sales search on eBay... For the one sold today by hitcomics for $75 USD, shipping to Canada (I'm from Canada) is quoted at $29.81 USD via Global Ship Program. He gets the stuff shipped to a friend in the USA and then they send him a box at another time . Well, it is still going to cost him some $ for him to have it shipped to his buddy and then for his buddy to ship it to him...I can't see his "pal' doing all that for free...?

He said he paid $75 for it...I really hope that included shipping. Not according to recent completed sales search on eBay... For the one sold today by hitcomics for $75 USD, shipping to Canada (I'm from Canada) is quoted at $29.81 USD via Global Ship Program.

For the Vader #3, what is a "good price"? How much was the shipping?

That tells me you are running your coin business as well as your comic business. #1 priority? Consistency. Done and done. Gabe, you're very focused on buying and selling comics and coins despite your learning disabilities and clear lack of experience and aptitude; why? I can make money with it and with coins there are so many grades to learn, for each coin it's a separate grading process, and so many fakes you need to learn to identify I love the positive attitude. Shine on you crazy diamond. Thanks Roll the dice Gabe. Sell your sperm and your left lung and whatever else you can move and invest it all. Even though that's a joke I won't sell what I need but that's because you haven't seen results yet. ... you've made a profit?!?!?! No no, that's not it. Now that after being in the comic and coin flipping business for 2 1/2 years and showing a loss, he's getting his emotions in check and will turn things around. That's correct and if it wasn't brought to my attention I would have kept going down that path so I'm thankful. So who brought this to your attention? James and Revat, I know there was one more but I can't remember who. I thought you had a professional counselor? So they are not helping you with your emotions, etc.?

That tells me you are running your coin business as well as your comic business. #1 priority? Consistency. Done and done. Gabe, you're very focused on buying and selling comics and coins despite your learning disabilities and clear lack of experience and aptitude; why? I can make money with it and with coins there are so many grades to learn, for each coin it's a separate grading process, and so many fakes you need to learn to identify I love the positive attitude. Shine on you crazy diamond. Thanks Roll the dice Gabe. Sell your sperm and your left lung and whatever else you can move and invest it all. Even though that's a joke I won't sell what I need but that's because you haven't seen results yet. ... you've made a profit?!?!?! No no, that's not it. Now that after being in the comic and coin flipping business for 2 1/2 years and showing a loss, he's getting his emotions in check and will turn things around. That's correct and if it wasn't brought to my attention I would have kept going down that path so I'm thankful. So who brought this to your attention?

Well you've been asking for three days :sorry:I thought you were ignoring me

I'm just happy my board name made it into the title!

Let the villain speculation begin! Thoughts? I'm not too familiar on my Defenders villains...

still waiting for coin dealings profit/loss report..........

Something old and something new...

I agree and watch once my emotions and impulses get under control things will be better. How do you plan to do that? Four ways 1) Use a budget 2) Analyze comics before I buy them 3) Double check to make sure there are no hidden fees or I missed something 4) Check if I can buy it anywhere cheaper NONE of these methodologies, will address the root causes of your lack of emotional and impulse control. Hmmm maybe not but it will allow me to make smarter choices Putting the cart before the horse again... What is your loss on coin dealings?