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im done!

Started by bug33fouf,

47 posts in this topic

Prince Namor

Prince Namor

Posted
Posted

A great pull and hold system is essential. This is your bread and butter.

These are the people who come in like clockwork every week and pick up their books.

If you manage it correctly, it will pay for your basic expenses every week.

 

Keep a want list for customers. This is key when buying collections and back stock, as you can sell books from it ASAP to cover the cost of your expense and have inventory left over for the store.

 

 

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asteroid-comix

asteroid-comix

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Location, location, location! The day's of having a shop near a neighborhood or mall are long gone. Find a location near as many big office buildings as possible. You want the 25-55 male customer that has some cash in their bank account. They are more likely to be collectors (thumbs u

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nocutename

nocutename

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Posted
Location, location, location! The day's of having a shop near a neighborhood or mall are long gone. Find a location near as many big office buildings as possible. You want the 25-55 male customer that has some cash in their bank account. They are more likely to be collectors (thumbs u

 

Very true. There is a shop in a downtown city by me. During lunch hour they get the suits. But if you are not in a high traffic area, you should advertise. There is a local shop my me on a hidden road. They advertise on the internet but nowhere else. Most local collectors have no idea that there is a comic shop there.

 

Good luck!

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the blob

the blob

Posted
Posted
Location, location, location! The day's of having a shop near a neighborhood or mall are long gone. Find a location near as many big office buildings as possible. You want the 25-55 male customer that has some cash in their bank account. They are more likely to be collectors (thumbs u

 

this has a good theoretical underpinning (and indeed, i see it at a number of shops i frequent in manhattan), but on the flip side, rent on such a location will likely be huge. OTOH, if you're in a mall you will be twidling your thumbs during the week. i think if there's an urban residential area in san antonio with a high population density/young professionals you could have the best of both worlds. i don't know if this exists in san antonio though.

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Stronguy

Stronguy

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san antonio

 

San Antonio, with all the ebb and flow of military people is a pretty unique market. As you well know, there are a lot of shops in town so you need to set yourself apart from them. SA is really hurting for a true comic shop that stocks decent back issues and is knowledgeable about them.

 

Two words of advise (in addition to what Bedrock said)...

1) Get with someone who knows he SA market and all its quirks. Bubbagump is a great resource for the as are a couple of other boardies.

2) Advertise that you buy comics. You would not believe the amount of merchandise that will come in the door with a 1/4 page yellow page ad and/or weekly ads in the Thrifty Nickle.

 

Whenever you get set up let me know and I'll be sure to stop by when I'm in town.

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bug33fouf

bug33fouf

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san antonio has 5 comic shops.

but,none in my area.

3 of the shops have no good back stock. the other two have no back stock at all.

only one has key issues(but way over priced)

none have no clue about cgc comics.

 

i think its time to bring cgc to the locals.....

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Ted Knight

Ted Knight

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Put a Lonestar Hottie behind the counter. :whistle:

 

+1. Staff it with lots of hot Texas women and you'll draw business like you never saw. It's an identity thing.

 

Also, location, location, location. It's the difference between life and death.

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jaydog

jaydog

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I have freinds that opened a shop and didnt understand that when they ordered from previews it would take 2 months to get the shipment. They ended up buying overstock from another dealer for two months until their first shipment arrived. Funny story but a good lesson. Yes they are still in business and are doing great.

 

Things i have learned from them:

 

Have racks that display the full comic covers (especially new books) it helps with sales, many people reach for the cover they like even if they dont know the title.

 

Subscription service is extremely important but dont let people sit with tons of books in their "holds bin" for too long.

 

Your website doesnt have to have every bell and whistle but should have a picture of the outside of the store, an address (with link to mapping site) , phone number, email contact and hours. Suprising how many stores do not have this basic info.

 

Magic and games/ w a game room are a valuable part of inventory.

 

CGC books can always be found on Ebay cheaper . Original art is one of a kind so you cant be under cut on pricing.

 

Good LUCK !!

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the blob

the blob

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CGC books can always be found on Ebay cheaper.

-----------

 

I agree. While it isn't going to kill you to have CGC books around and I wouldn't turn them down if offered to you for sale at the right price, I do not think they will add much to the bottom-line at your store. It is just as easy to buy them on ebay --- they were practically designed for internet commerce. Maybe at the margins where shipping costs make a difference (like with your typical $15-$30 slab that would cost $10 to ship and thus has limited liquidity). And, of course, like anything else in the market, CGC will make your expensive stuff more liquid to avoid grading/resto concerns, but I would be extremely hesitant to tie up a lot of money in CGC inventory for store purposes only, the same books should be listed on line for sale as well.

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the blob

the blob

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I have freinds that opened a shop and didnt understand that when they ordered from previews it would take 2 months to get the shipment. They ended up buying overstock from another dealer for two months until their first shipment arrived. Funny story but a good lesson. Yes they are still in business and are doing great.

------------

 

it amazes me that people would make such a commitment to a business without doing the basis research like our OP is at least trying to do. then again, if you are talking about the 80's or early 90's it was harder to figure this stuff out without the interweb, so it's more excusable, though this is pretty basic stuff (though if diamond will only let you open an account with a physical B&M address, I can see the problem...you don't want to pay rent on an empty store while waiting those two months). of course, back then you could actually open a comic shop, put out your personal collection (if it was big enough) and sell back issues for a while.

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