blazingbob

Highgradecomics.com will be at booths 608/610 this year. If anybody is looking for anything specific that I have in inventory please let me know and I'll bring it to the show.

Here is the wake up call to Promoters out there. The exhibitor as well as the promoter better be careful of the current convention model. If dealers price their merchandise to the moon what they do is keep the serious buyers away. And once a buyer gets an "Impression" of a show or exhibitors they think everybody prices their books to the moon. Which then drives the collector to the internet where they may or may not get the books cheaper. Which is one of the major problems of the convention model. Not only do the promoters have to be conscious of the pricing of the show, table costs but the exhibitors can price themselves out of business if collectors feel they get better deals on the internet. One of these days promoters, CGC and even the other grading company may actually embrace a industry forum where promoters, sellers and customers actually meet and discuss what they would like to see happen in the marketplace. Until then I will spew words into the internet void.

Are you referring to Derek's show?

So what show are you going to? Seems that for the collector and dealer to both get to the right shows we need to know where everybody is going.

This is my last Wizard Philly show. Sales were terrible. Next year the show dates compete with Motor City and I assure you I won't be setting up at Wizard Philly over Detroit. Nothing to buy, very few customers to sell to. I've thrown in the towel on Wizard shows. Their attendance may be up but frankly they are not comic book collectors. Customers walk into a entertainment stage and companies pitching insurance, Cars, cell phone companies using blow up tents/diesel truck mobile outlets, Headphones/speakers with pushy salesman, blood donations, banking, home improvements, and aisles of complete garbage. If you were a marketing major you could observe the cringing and diverting of traffic to avoid the hordes of salesman pitching you their product. I thought I was in a Mall with a maze of Perfume sales people trying to spray me as I walked by. I was at the Sunday meeting and dealers across multiple merchandise categories were complaining about lower sales. Bad cover bands are not "entertainment value". If you are a comic dealer and think that you will fill the "void" of other dealers leaving think again. I have really tried and defended Wizard management in their constant direction changes but I'm not sure the comic dealer is who they want in their retailer mix. I had an awesome wall display, I basically sat and twiddled my thumbs most of the time. They are now basically a Music/Autograph festival and should be marketed as such. The bigger problem that I see is the idea that people are paying premium prices to basically shop. Ok, the band is free but the vendors are charging for their merchandise, so are the actors, etc. If you want to create "entertainment value" how about lowering the ticket prices? I've said this about Carbo shows. You cannot charge San Diego ticket prices if you don't provide a venue or experience that reflects the cost of the ticket. Parking costs are not the promoters fault, the high cost of a one day ticket is. Promoters, you want a quick view of how the exhibitors did at your show. Check how many signed up for next year and the payments leading up to the show. Believe me I know a lot of dealers looking for Wizard show alternatives. Granted there is alway the guy who doesn't want to pay upfront but the shows I want to do have down payments and in some cases full payment a year in advance. When is the last time you saw a dealer run to pay a Wizard show in advance? Every customer going through the turnstile has expectations of what they just paid for. Comic collectors expect comic dealers, original art collectors, toy collectors, dollar book etc all have "expectations". Retailers expect customers to have money to buy merchandise. If most of the customers money is sucked up by the promoter I'm not exactly sure why retailers want to set up at the shows. I would be very surprised if there are any Vintage Comic dealers at next year's Philly show. Now some of you are going to say that I'm a Wine and cheese type of dealer. Ok, yes I am but when I pay for Wine and cheese booth prices I don't expect Kool aid and Cheese Whiz.

Check already had cleared and it was a week since I was promised the books would ship out. I've given him plenty of time to ship or respond to my emails before I started this thread.

Don't think I haven't thought of diverting my trip back from Florida.

Well, there has to be a level of trust for "Boardies", no? They expect me to send a check or pay right away when I buy something. I don't tell them to send me the book and when I get it pay them. There are some sellers who I've done business with that will send me the book as I'm mailing the check and I greatly appreciate that. But I never expect that.

As always didn't think of that. Thank you, I will speak to my buddies at the post office.

Not sure if I'm doing this right but please add or modify Matthew Glaspie (sslim66@aol.com) Have done business with this person before but am not having a warm fuzzy feeling on our latest transaction. Mailed him a check for $975 for a AS #101 CGC 9.2 Offwhite pages, AUG 24 1971 stamped on front cover/Silver Surfer #4 CGC 9.0 offwhite pages on 5/3/17 to Matthew Glaspie 166 Hiawassee ave apt 108 Knoxville TN 37917 Check has been cashed. Had the following email correspondence with him up until 5/11/17. Last email was this. Am home from Detroit and have no books and no tracking number. Any help with this would be appreciated.

To those who are concerned about his personal information being posted. Sorry, but clearly if you don't respond then all bets are off. I was nice enough to not post his phone number. If he chooses to respond I will gladly have this thread deleted. I had done 2 previous transactions with him. My mistake was sending him a business check. Should have used paypal or cc.

Anybody know Matthew Glaspie Have done business with this person before but am not having a warm fuzzy feeling on our latest transaction. Mailed him a check for $975 for a AS #101 CGC 9.2 Offwhite pages, AUG 24 1971 stamped on front cover/Silver Surfer #4 CGC 9.0 offwhite pages on 5/3/17 to Matthew Glaspie 166 Hiawassee ave apt 108 Knoxville TN 37917 Check has been cashed. Had the following email correspondence with him up until 5/11/17. Last email was this. Am home from Detroit and have no books and no tracking number. Any help with this would be appreciated. They be out this weekend sir. Work thru tomorrow and don't trust the wife to pack them Ty Sent from my iPhone On May 11, 2017, at 11:53 AM, rcsblazing@aol.com wrote:

Hmmmm, I'm not sure if you should sell at this time. Are the prices on a uptrend? They might be hard to replace so make sure you have copies lined up to replace the ones you sell. Make sure there is a buyer/seller remorse clause on the invoice in case the market slips a little.

Well at least Gator knows where 6-8 are plus his copies in the "holding out for the right price" bin. I'll watch those copies to see if the prices come down if the market pullbacks. I'll also watch/listen for the "Gator alert" across the wires if the market uptrend is confirmed. That being said if people are looking for copies I have 3 low grades currently up for sale. I don't need my ego stroked from how many copies of a book I currently have in stock. All that tells me is that the book has slowed down, I'm overpriced or need to brush up on my selling skills.

You can really tell the poker players on this thread. So basically when Rick shows up with a bunch of AF #15's for sale those "smart" buyers are going to rush right out and buy them. Versus knowing that he has been holding out all this time for the "right price". Yup, I like that business model. Hope You Pay Enough.

I like Don't Mail me better. Peter isn't the only person on the boards who speaks fluent Sarcasm

Not sure what a DM is? Don't Mail me. Ok. We won't.

Everybody needs an "out/excuse" for not stepping up to buy a book. GPA is the new "out/excuse". Nobody wants to be "that guy" who paid too much. We all want to be that guy who gets the pat on the back and the attaboys. "WOW, YOU GOT A GREAT DEAL". Everybody wants instant gratification. If you aren't up 10% on your purchase you aren't happy. If the sell the book and leave a sliver of profit on the table you aren't happy. Let somebody else go first so that I don't look stupid buying or selling.

I never consider this when buying on the boards. If the price is right I buy it. If a price is right I sell it. I don't need GPA to tell me that.

Per PM I will take the X-Men #1

Per PM I'll take it

Yeah Baby, this thread needs a video -

I'll take the HOM #210

I'll take the AS #76 9.2

Hmmm, that response might be better answer by the Oracle in February on Valentines day.