CGC Acquires Classics Inc - Response to your Questions

[InvstmntComcSuply]

A book that would be labeled as "Pressed" may lose value over an unpressed book for many reasons including:

1. Buyers who don't like flat books would likely not want it

2. Buyers who are interested in upgrade potential (or "value" in general) would assume that there was less likelihood of a bump

3. If only CI books are labeled as pressed, there may be a contingent who believe that CI books are graded leniently and will bid accordingly

 

#2 has not really been addressed but would be a substantial hit

 

 

CGC will not be putting any more label notes on CI "potentialized" books than they do for any other book.

 

[Chespirito]

This whole scenario reminds of what happenned at church yesterday. Some schtupid Immbecil decided to light a cigarrette while inside the church!! I was so freakin' mad, that I almost threw my beer at him

 

 

(edit...might offend some)

 

I thought it was funny and it also would have saved the beer!

 

Then the guy had the Odasity to tell me that he too, drinks Stella Artois..some people man..no respect

[namisgr]

 

Which one will then prevail: profit maximization or transparency ?

 

It seems that whatever CGC decides to do, they will lose. They just did open a pandora's box they should have left closed.

 

I think we all know the answer to this question. Of course they'll argue pressing isn't restoration and doesn't require disclosure.

 

But then there's those nagging hobby standards to the contrary that existed before CGC came along, including those from Overstreet.

 

Patrick's suggestion that CI pressing become part of the grader's notes is an excellent compromise. Now that CGC charges for these notes, they will make money as the demand for notes will increase. It would also be the right decision for the hobby, by making the disclosure of CI pressing available to the significant number of slab collectors who would rather own unpressed books and so want to know about it.

 

I've yet to buy grader's notes, but I definitely would if this policy were instituted.

[TupennyConan]

Patrick's suggestion that CI pressing become part of the grader's notes is an excellent compromise.

 

This is rather creative. Pay to play. If you want disclosure, pay for it. CGC can make a little jingle & folks can have greater transparency.

 

It would be interesting to see how the market absorbs the data & the impact, if any, on prices.

 

 

[Theagenes]

We need some fundraiser ST's so we can fly all 10 + sha & POV to Vegas for a youtube broadcast summit.

 

DrWatson will be the special guest of honor.

 

Now we're talkin'.

[Underground44]

I'm confused. The OP signs his post at the bottom as the CEO of CCG but in THIS EARLIER POST in July he indicates that he was working for Classics Inc.

Could this indicate a possible conflict in the future?

[namisgr]

I'm confused. The OP signs his post at the bottom as the CEO of CCG but in THIS EARLIER POST in July he indicates that he was working for Classics Inc.

Could this indicate a possible conflict in the future?

 

No, it indicates that Steve Eichenbaum used this employee's Board account to post information.

[namisgr]

We need some fundraiser ST's so we can fly all 10 + sha & POV to Vegas for a youtube broadcast summit.

 

Now we're talkin'.

 

Vegas? Bedrock, Blazing, and I would be no-shows at the 'summit', I'm afraid.

[comicwiz]

I think it's just a marketing handle used to market services on these boards. It is interesting that they were promoting Classics on these boards, whether it was an inconsequential partnership at that point, a seed planted for a merger,or a perk for an advertiser is anyone's guess.

[comicwiz]

I'm confused. The OP signs his post at the bottom as the CEO of CCG but in THIS EARLIER POST in July he indicates that he was working for Classics Inc.

Could this indicate a possible conflict in the future?

 

No, it indicates that Steve Eichenbaum used this employee's Board account to post information.

 

I think it's just a generic handle used to post corporate communication on these message boards on behalf of the parent. The OP reads like a PR/FAQ so it was prepped and then handed to someone else to post. I seriously doubt any of the corporate guys would ever post on here, and instead would sooner hide under a desk than deal with this community or any social media critic.

[Theagenes]

It would make no sense for CGC to label CI books as pressed for one very important reason: They don't consider pressing to be restoration.

 

Whether they are correct in that stance is a matter of opinion, but this is their official position. It doesn't matter who submitted it. It doesn't matter if they can detect it or not. It doesn't matter if they know for a fact that a book has been pressed because they saw it with their own eyes down the hall.

 

If their position is that it is not restoration then they don't need to note it.

 

Acquiring CI has not changed this basic fact so there is reason they should change their labeling policy.

 

Remember it's not just pressing. Their official position is that disassembly and reassembly is not restoration (though many would disagree) and they don't note that on the label either.

 

Now if you want to argue that they should change their stance on whether or not pressing should be considered restoration, that fine. But it's a different argument.

[Underground44]

I'm confused. The OP signs his post at the bottom as the CEO of CCG but in THIS EARLIER POST in July he indicates that he was working for Classics Inc.

Could this indicate a possible conflict in the future?

 

No, it indicates that Steve Eichenbaum used this employee's Board account to post information.

 

I think it's just a generic handle used to post corporate communication on these message boards on behalf of the parent. The OP reads like a PR/FAQ so it was prepped and then handed to someone else to post. I seriously doubt any of the corporate guys would ever post on here, and instead would sooner hide under a desk than deal with this community or any social media critic.

 

Yeah I get that. I just found it unusual that the name would be used to promote Classics Inc. It was full of "we" and "us" at Classic etc.

[MCMiles]

A book that would be labeled as "Pressed" may lose value over an unpressed book for many reasons including:

1. Buyers who don't like flat books would likely not want it

2. Buyers who are interested in upgrade potential (or "value" in general) would assume that there was less likelihood of a bump

3. If only CI books are labeled as pressed, there may be a contingent who believe that CI books are graded leniently and will bid accordingly

 

#2 has not really been addressed but would be a substantial hit

 

 

CGC will not be putting any more label notes on CI "potentialized" books than they do for any other book.

 

Your post is Dead on.

 

 

 

3. If only CI books are labeled as pressed, there may be a contingent who believe that CI books are graded leniently and will bid accordingly

 

It's even possible this line of thinking by the public would actually help sales of the in house pressing service. A lot of submitters are going to ask themselves - "what do I do to insure odds of getting the best possible grade are in my favor?"

[Theagenes]

A book that would be labeled as "Pressed" may lose value over an unpressed book for many reasons including:

1. Buyers who don't like flat books would likely not want it

2. Buyers who are interested in upgrade potential (or "value" in general) would assume that there was less likelihood of a bump

3. If only CI books are labeled as pressed, there may be a contingent who believe that CI books are graded leniently and will bid accordingly

 

#2 has not really been addressed but would be a substantial hit

 

 

CGC will not be putting any more label notes on CI "potentialized" books than they do for any other book.

 

Your post is Dead on.

 

 

 

3. If only CI books are labeled as pressed, there may be a contingent who believe that CI books are graded leniently and will bid accordingly

 

It's even possible this line of thinking by the public would actually help sales of the in house pressing service. A lot of submitters are going to ask themselves - "what do I do to insure odds of getting the best possible grade are in my favor?"

 

It's also possible though, that the reality could be the opposite. That is, if they graders knew the books in front of them were from CI there might be a subconscious tendency to grade harsher to avoid the appearance of a bias. Kind of like when a teacher has their own kid in their class they tend to be tougher on them.

 

Again it just means that there needs to be a solid wall between the the resto folks and the graders.

 

Mike, you made a great point earlier in this thread about the resto detection people and how they will be need to be separated from the graders if the resto removal service is going free from a conflict of interest. I would even go further and have the resto detection branch essential work with CI. The idea of having Matt involved in resto detection would certainly create a higher confidence level. But the graders would need to be completely detached from this.

[pickycollector]

 

Which one will then prevail: profit maximization or transparency ?

 

It seems that whatever CGC decides to do, they will lose. They just did open a pandora's box they should have left closed.

 

I think we all know the answer to this question. Of course they'll argue pressing isn't restoration and doesn't require disclosure.

 

But then there's those nagging hobby standards to the contrary that existed before CGC came along, including those from Overstreet.

 

Patrick's suggestion that CI pressing become part of the grader's notes is an excellent compromise. Now that CGC charges for these notes, they will make money as the demand for notes will increase. It would also be the right decision for the hobby, by making the disclosure of CI pressing available to the significant number of slab collectors who would rather own unpressed books and so want to know about it.

 

I've yet to buy grader's notes, but I definitely would if this policy were instituted.

Exactly.

 

Using grader's notes to disclose pressing seems to be the only way CGC can be both transparent and still maximizing their profit.

 

Moreover, more people will now be willing to pay for grader's notes...

 

It's a win-win situation.

 

[pickycollector]

A book that would be labeled as "Pressed" may lose value over an unpressed book for many reasons including:

1. Buyers who don't like flat books would likely not want it

2. Buyers who are interested in upgrade potential (or "value" in general) would assume that there was less likelihood of a bump

In other words, what you are saying is that a pressed book has less value than an unpressed one. If that is the case, I think all people has the right then to know such information or otherwise you are hidding a fact that has a major impact on the market value of the product.

 

 

3. If only CI books are labeled as pressed, there may be a contingent who believe that CI books are graded leniently and will bid accordingly

That is indeed the dilemma for CGC. Only way to solve this and keeps everybody happy seems to be disclosing the information not in the label but rather along with the grader's notes.

[thirdgreenham]

Thank you all for your feedback on our latest acquisition. While it is difficult to get into an ongoing dialogue with the many CGC users, we would like, at a minimum, to respond to some of the questions that have been raised.

 

We have every intention to continue to operate transparently and welcome both criticism and thoughts on how we can best serve the hobby.

 

While many of you are very critical about some of our business decisions and other operating issues, I will address the following:

 

Turnaround times

No one is more frustrated than all of us at CGC with how far behind we have fallen and we are doing everything in our power to get caught up. Grading is not a business that can be rushed for obvious reasons. Being a CGC grader is not as easy as some of you may think and hiring qualified people that want to grade all day versus working in the marketplace is not an easy hire. We are constantly looking for qualified graders and if any of you would like to apply, we will be happy to evaluate your skills.

 

Conflict of Interest

At the end of the day our credibility is the most integral component of CGC. We have worked for over a decade to build this company into what it has become today. We have no interest in assigning the wrong grade to any book and I can assure you, from the top down at CGC, we all feel the same way. We are not in this for any short-term gain and would like to remain your grading service of choice forever. We take our responsibility to the hobby very seriously and will never abuse your trust.

 

As all of this relates to the purchase of Classics Incorporated, I am happy to consult with an advisory group of your peers to make sure that we do this properly. We are here to make money but we are also here to be transparent and do what is best for the hobby. While it is hard to please everyone, we will certainly go out of our way to address as many of the legitimate concerns that you have. The following is a list of the most frequently asked questions and responses:

 

Can Matt still sell comics?

No, Matt cannot engage in selling comics just like the rest of the employees employed by the Certified Collectibles Group.

 

Is Matt still pressing right now?

Yes, Matt is still taking submissions as normal until the changeover on 2/1/13.

 

When is the cutoff for submitting to Classics before merging?

Any books not finished in Dallas right before 2/1/13 will be transferred to the new office, completed and submitted as usual. This transfer will occur seamlessly.

 

How will the submission process for pressing change?

Customers will still submit through the Classics site as usual. We will most likely streamline the submission form making it even easier.

 

Resto removal?

Classics will still offer this service. However, Classics can now work with CGC to ensure all removal is achieved before grading which will eliminate wasted CGC fees.

 

Will Classics still offer a screening service?

Yes, but only a prescreen service. The traditional proscreen service where Matt assigns a potential grade will end as of 2/1/13.

 

Will graders undergrade to help pressing business?

Absolutely not. CGC grading will not change from what it has always been.

 

If a book is pressed by Classics, will it get an automatic upgrade?

No, the grade of the book is the grade of the book. Not all books are upgraded because they have been pressed. All books from Classics will still be objectively graded, just like every other submission. This is not an upgrade service in any way and there is no assurance that the book will upgrade.

 

As an independent member of the Certified Collectibles Group (CCG) of companies, Classics will operate as a stand alone business separate from CGC.

 

Will CGC still accept books pressed by other companies/people?

Absolutely. The purpose of this acquisition is to offer a high end, streamlined service that our clients deserve. It is not to put anyone out of business.

 

Will Classics’s pressing fees change?

Pricing structure and new turnaround times will be announced shortly.

 

If there are any other questions regarding the merger, please email them to either Harshen Patel at hpatel@cgccomics.com or Matt Nelson at comics@classicsincorporated.com . We’ll release another email answering your additional questions. I want to thank all of you for your input and passion about the hobby and our business. We will continue to keep all of you in the loop as we make final decisions regarding logistics for the Classics integration.

 

Regards,

Steve Eichenbaum

CEO

Certified Collectibles Group

 

 

Thank you for starting the thread. We have now posted many questions for you to answer and hope that you come back here to actually answer them. Thanks in advance!

[Mark 1]

[Ogami]

at a minimum

 

 

Thank you for starting the thread. We have now posted many questions for you to answer and hope that you come back here to actually answer them. Thanks in advance!

[gyro-1]

:popcorn: