Golden Memories

  Most dealers are happy to make trades 

  If you bringing Bronze age, and if  you have limited space focus on Keys, Such ad She Hulk 1, Or eternals 1 

  Common bronze unless High Grade and slabbed probably would not be worth your time to Bring

Golden memories 

Booth 2428

bump

I would appreciate the opinions of anyone Buyer or Seller who attended, or heard about  WW Pittsburgh last week

Thanks in Advance 

Keystone (reed)  will be at the same location aug 23-25 
https://www.keystonecomiccon.com/home/

I'll be there as well and cgc is doing onsite 

https://www.pointswithacrew.com/cheapest-best-way-from-newark-airport-to-manhattan/

 If you are unfamiliar with NY,  staying in or flying into NJ, which is only a few miles away SEEMS  on paper to be a viable option 

However, Take it from someone who lives here, ITS NOT  Traffic into NY is miserable and during rush hour its nightmarish 

The NJ busses have dedicated lanes including the tunnels, but that is meaningless most of the time , Newark is a terrible airport, and LGA is currently undergoing major construction JFK airtrain to Jamacia LIRR station to Lirr to  Penn station is your option 

The Lincoln Tunnel from NY to NJ may be the single most congested traffic spot I have ever seen 

 By Far your best Choice is JFK

 JFK has an Airtrain clean and fast,  for $5 you are dropped at Jamaica Station

Its a MAJOR hub with trains leaving frequently and fairly easy to navigate, even for a 1st timer 

 From There for $8-$12 You can catch a train directly into Penn Station 34th and 7th / 8th 

Pretty much the center of Manhatten 

 an easy 15-20 minute walk to the Javits

 The LIRR is not like the regular subways, it clean fast and there is plenty of room on all but rush hour trains 

 I assume you Have no more then a wheeled luggage bag, it would be no problem, 

 As far as hotels, NY is insanely expensive, Unless you have virtually unlimited means, 

Hotels close to the show rent for $300 a day and up 

I looked on hotwire and there as some Decent options still in the $150-$200 range from 1/2 to  2 miles away,

The NYC train system is pretty good, and you will be able to get back and forth

Keep in Mind during show days the uber rates go way up 

I would book early as the Hotel rates go up significantly the closer the show gets

I checked Hotwire and there are still some decent prices including a 4 star near times square for $210 

Jim Lee and Todd McFarlane are both doing expo Canada 

Probably one of those 2 

I Remember doing a Show with McFarlane years ago the line was longest I had ever seen 

 For those of you unaware and are still making plans 

CGC will be doing Onsite grading at Reed Philly AKA keystone 

8/23-8/25

https://www.keystonecomiccon.com/

Hope to see see some of you there 

The largest show in the country for Sport and Non Sport cards is the NSCC  http://nsccshow.com/

There is no fusion, but it is the best venue for a card collector 

 Too many shows that same weekend 

   I conflicted out, and will miss the show for the 1st time in 10 years 

           and Expo Canada looks like a monster show 

    Even Mamoa  split his appearance 

   between WW and fan expo 

  Also Expo has an AMAZING  Creators list I wish WW would have focused more on the creator guests, 

Great Comic Guest list and A very impressive lineup of Comic related Entertainment persona

I will be there at Booth 301 (front row, to the left of the entrance  With My Friends Rob and Patrick , I've got Some new Golden age, A new Spidey run from 2up (mid grade) And some Art from the Triumphant comics line . Rob's Got some great new books from a recently acquired collection, and Patrick will be fresh from SDCC no doubt with fantastic finds.  Come on over! 

I doubt its going to end.   It's Just this year WW conflicts with Reed Philly, so a lot of dealers had to make a hard choice,

     Myself included 

 Next year, Hopefully there will be less conflict, Personally. I had to skip the two best WW shows phlly and Chicago due to conflicts 

 Big Comic Shows are to sell Big Books  The Big 6 are where the serious buyers go looking for the Better books 

And where the dealers go looking to fill customer wants. 

 The "NEWER" shows such as East Coast and Terrificon"  Have not hti the MUST attends yet, But Both are close 

   Both are Extremelly comic Oriented and draw great crowds and a little of everything sells 

 Local shows, around here are Mainly to sell $1 books  with the occasional serious buyer 

as stephenshamus12 said,  the Entertainment  / Autograph shows are for selling Merchandise or Graphic Novels 

 and are not targeted at the serious collector and therefore the Dealers with higher value books,  tend to stay away 

They Hybrids such as Boston Seem to have a good Mix and are HI energy shows 

Of course then there's REED  c2e2 , NY Comicon and keystone this year has Onsite from cgc so that should be a HUGE draw 

of course C2e2 and NY comicon are Major shows, and NY is as close to San Diego as you can get on the east coast 

 My schedule choice  is Based on Booth Price, Other expenses, Artist List, Entertainment  Guests, Admission Charge, Exhibitor list, Past experience and willingness to Gamble. 

Keystone, AKA reed Philly is having a Mini Star Trek reunion , Burton, Dorn, Siritis, + 

None of the Captains posted yet. Key an eye on them

https://www.keystonecomiccon.com/

Thanks

I was set up at what I believe was your 1st event at Nassau Collisium, and yes, It was an eye opener 

I will be happy to take you up on your offer when  you return to the east coast 

Also to take your point, My wife freaked when she saw Kit Harrington was going to be in Chicago, So there's your new audience

BTW I am officially coining the term "Geezer-Con" 

   I am perfectly happy to admit to being an anachronism at best, and a lingering legacy at worst .  The reason I mentioned the pricing at all was to point a simple economic fact, a boom market does not occour without a strong influx of NEW participants. A lot of this comes from the Marvel Movies which have in fact inspired a lot of new blood to come in the collectors end of it .

    I am not sure I agree with you about "Legacy" shows, Comic buyers  attend shows that focus on comics, seems pretty obvious, The aforementioned shows survive because they are outstanding venues for comics, not because of  geezers locked into habit patterns. You also have to take into account Shows like East Coast, and Terrificon, Both of which are  fairly new, I believe both are about 6 years  old and they both get stronger every year. You Also have the "Split the baby" shows which try to do both Like Boston And Rhode Island  Which are OK, with reasonable booth prices and a good comic crowd 

  I do agree the Wizard model of having  a lot of MID-TIER celebs with one big hook , while simply assuming   the comic people will show up regardless, does not seem to work anymore (from what I have heard) Which is why I praised them for dropping their booth prices, $500 for a booth at a show like their upcoming Pittsburgh show will draw in a lot more comic dealers which in turn will bring in a lot more attendees 

  As I stated your Model Of  A listers obviously works so your point is well taken 

   For now, I am happy to be an aging soon to be fossil dancing in the tarpits with my fellow anachronisms 

    We seem to have existentially different ideas of what people are looking for. Or have completely different target audiences 

     You have made several statements which , while, in your experience are true, They are not what I see in the shows I do 

     It seems that The ecosystem  you are creating works for you as a business model, which I can see evidence of as Brie Larson autographs are Already 100% sold at between $200 and $600 per reservation, Now as too how many people are buying these autographs as part of an immersive experience and how many are simply engaging in a commercial transaction is another issue .

Now as far as Myself and almost every other comic dealer I speak to, They tend not to do as well at shows that are heavily media oriented, probably, because as you say your attendees do want to go through long boxes.  Okay, So the shows I want to set up at are the ones where the comic people do nothing all day long EXCEPT  go through long boxes . eg: Baltimore, Terrificon, Heroes, etc.  The people I want/need to see are not the cosplayers or autograph seekers, But rather serious comic people (not at all a dying breed, nor are we aging out)  

  You state the comic industry is aging out.  Meanwhile the comic back issue market has been experiencing an almost decade long boom,  like nothing I have seen in forty years doing this (way back to before you guys changed the industry with wizard price guide and actually started a boom)  The GPA on a Spider-man #1 in 3.0 went from $4k in 12/2015 to $8k  in 5/2019  Does that sound like a market that's dying out or one that should be disregarded? 

The most successful shows for me, and the ones that the people on these boards seem to gravitate toward are the ones which focus on comics and comic creators, For me, My 2 most successful shows this year were East coast and Heroes Con, Both have Huge attendance and both are 90%  or more comic oriented 

  And as far as Most popular artists , People wait 2 days for the chance to see Perez, Wolfman, and most of the even slightly known comic artists , In fact that's one of the big dealer complaints (Not me ) that attendees have to spend so much time on  with these guys they don't have time to shop the dealers room  . That is also an Immersive experience , For example at a recent show, a well known marvel artist did a remarked cover for a friend at 1/4 what some of these people charge for an auto, and took the time to speak with him. he was so happy he didn't come down for a week,  

 It seems to me that you agreeing with a number of people who post on these boards, That Autograph Shows and the comic Shows do not really compete with each other as you believe  its a different market

  I also speak to a LOT of people at these shows and consensus among the comic buyers is that they don't want to go a show where they have to pay $50 to get in  + travel + parking, Only to find the comic people few and far between . 

 If you read the posters on these boards it is clear that the Autograph shows are one world and the comic shows are another 

As far as $5 admission and $500 Booths, I never said anything like that. Baltimore is 25/35/30 or $65 for 3 days Heroes was 25/25/20 or $50 for 3 days,  which I think is dead on where tickets should be. As far a booths, Nobody charges $500 , except WW Just dropped their booth prices down to 500 I suspect because Like Myself, Too many comic dealers Were finding they could Not justify paying North of 1k and make the enterprise financially viable.   I find I do best where the booths are south of 1k, and frankly yes, I still do feel like I am subsidising people will make more signing autographs over a weekend, then I will clear in 2 years 

    It seems to me that your heavy focus on BIGGER AND more and better IS evidenced by your guest list, which are certainly impressive, But not condusive to the people I need to see when I participate is a dealer 

 One person on these boards actually had an interesting idea, Charge a reduced  booth price for Dealers who are defiantely going to bring the COMIC people people into the room, and  and a reduced admission price for attendees who have no interest in Media immersion. 

 Thanks for posting, I was enlightened to see your perspective 

The website claims 30,000 attendees last year 

No Exhibitor application 

The media guests seem to be geared toward kids, The power rangers, Cartoon voice overs, etc 

Events are geared toward cosplay, anime and gaming 

No link at all to exhibitors or comic artists 

Nothing on the site even mentions comics 

$65 for the weekend, $50 for Saturday, $40 for Sunday 

Seems like the whole event is geared toward tween and teen cosplayers 

I'd be surprised to find a serious comic in the room 

 I'm a die hard capitalist , I do not deny their right To charge whatever the market will bear, I'm Just saying, Honestly, I think a little appreciation might be in order for their hardcore base, And you are correct, It is certainly a buyers choice, and they can always refuse, Brie Larson Is already sold out, and I can't imagine what Kit Harington  will be  charging.  

 This is the Constant conversation I am having with promoters 

A superstar who charges $200 per autograph or $600 for a VIP package leaves attendees with little or no money for the vendors who like myself spend a Average if $2,000 just to set up 

 Why should I set up at a Superstar show where my break even is 5K.  And after admission, travel, and signing fees  a huge percentage of the attendees are lucky to pay for a 7$ hot dog (actual price at eternal con for a skinny nathans Hot dog, 2 for $13) 

 The answer from Most is that these people Bring in Lots more attendees who help subsidize the booth prices and make the show possible, Meanwhile I can't think of a single media Guest who were  at East Coast or Heroes this year , and Both were and Are Spectacular shows by any measure. Plus the HUGE guest shows Tend to charge Higher booth fees, so it seems to me I am subsidizing the Superstars, Not the other way around 

 Also, does it kind of tick anyone else off that the Comic Movie Superstars who have become wealthy Icons, In large part due the comic fan audience,  charge so much for a signature, I mean geez man, You just signed an $8 million dollar deal for your next Movie, MAYBE give your core audience a break and charge a price that's less then the Daily 8 hour shift pay for most Americans for a three second signature?  Why do you think ENDGAME  broke records? I read where One guy alone was trying to see  the move 200 times!

Robotman  & Zosocane , I agree Completely ,  Whenever I see an overemphasis on cosplay including a long list of cosplayers as guests, its seems that's a weak show for buying selling, Understand I absolutely do not have anything against cosplayers, They add lots of color and flavor to the show, Also the attendees Love the cosplayers, They are a free added attraction and people love to watch and pose with them.  However from From a dealers standpoint, they tend not to be buyers. But they also do not Take Huge amounts of Money out of the dealers room, as to the big Stars...   From My Standpoint My favorites are the Parents who dress up their Kids, For Some Reason Morristown Just past had a Lot of these, and at one Point I had a Toddler Justice League reunion in front of My booth which was so Cute I actually took a picture. 

I remember One show last year where a particularly lets use the word "effective" Harley Quinn Couldn't walk 2 feet without some guy or group wanting to pose with her, and she was very nice about it, meanwhile I've also been at shows where D list actresses charge $20-40$ for the same Privlage 

punksdropdirtysrh  I have a few questions, Like what,s  reasonable for a celebrity autograph?  At WW Chicago Jason Momoa is Charging $80 +$15 ww authentication , I looked online and PSA authenticated autos are selling in the 50-$60 range, non authenticated are numerous in the $10 range . AT Ace Chicago Brie Larson Is charging $200 for a single signature What are you thoughts on the pricing for these ? And if I understand you correctly, That's your priority... Autos first and comics Second ? 

T

 As both a seller and a buyer , The one thing I look for immediately is the exhibitor list 

 If the exhibitor list is weak like a few assorted local dealers , with no major players and LOTS of assorted merchandise 

I assume the show is a weak comic show, I will generally also look at the artist list, If I see the event has a good number of Artists 

I know this will probably be a comic-centric show 

Lots of Movie/Tv  people including the now Mandatory for (For Event shows) "Big Name" tells me the show

is an autograph show with a lesser emphasis on comics and the crowd focused on Autographs , It also tells me I am going to pay an

Increased booth fee to subsidize the "names"

What are some thoughts from a buyers Perspective as to how you decide which show to attend? 

This is going to be a MONSTER show 

My wife who saw this flipped out 

for the 1st time in 20 years she actually wants to go to show

Ace Just announced Jon Snow,  Possibly the THE hottest pop culture star of the Moment. (Not to mention Captain marvel) 

Ace show is in the same venue 60 days away , 

That highlights my previous premise that celebrities provide a dubious benefit to comic shows 

The comic Buyers are going to Chicago, gaurenteed 

BUT the autograph people now have a choice, WW , Ace, or both 

Considering the admission and signing fees I am guessing a good percentage are going to have to make a choice 

IF Chicago was the Chicago of 10 years ago, It wouldn't have made a difference, But the new emphasis on POP culture stars

has now led to the Battle of the autographs 

WW Chicago : Jason Mamoa  (auto $80.00) + enough other talent to insure the auto peoples charge cards are going to be maxed out 

Ace Chicago 2 months Later : Brie Larson -captain marvel (auto tickets already sold out at $200, Photo ops at $200 nearly sold out ) & Jon snow (so far)