I have often read discussions on these boards with regards to whether or not a seller should concern themselves with who buys their books.
There seems to be some sellers who don’t want to sell to some dealers or to certain people.
There are many on these boards who I have heard say it does not matter; that as long as the seller receives the price he is happy with then who the book goes to is not relevant.
At first glance I understand the point of those (who I believe are in the majority) who say that it should not matter. I mean if a seller wants to sell a book and someone is willing to buy it at a price that both seller and buyer are happy with, then why should it matter to the seller, who the buyer is? That is what I see at first glance. I hear stories of sellers who offer discounts to those who are “collectors” and not simply “dealers” and again, at first glance this does not seem to make sense.
Then I think of my own collection (which is NOT FOR SALE). If I ever did decide it was time to sell, what would I want? Would I simply want to maximize the amount of $$$$ I could receive for my collection OR would I want something more intrinsic.
To me, money is a cheap commodity, that can be replaced. The comics I have collected, throughout the years, are more than a simple “commodity” to me; they are almost a part of me. As such, IF and WHEN the time ever comes to liquidate, I believe that I would rather sell those treasures to another collector who would love and appreciate them, rather than to someone who would simply treat them as a way to gain a quick profit.
Given that dealing with individual collectors on a large collection might take more time than I have, it might be that I would opt to sell to a dealer, but even then, I would not be happy just selling to ANY dealer. I would rather do business with someone I trust and perhaps have done business with in the past.
Maybe this is just me being sentimental, and maybe in today’s world the old saying that “Cash is king” is the way people should think. I, however, am ok with being in that minority of collectors who see books as more than simple commodities to be traded like stock.
Those are my thoughts, however, I would like to hear yours……