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How to be an Expat Comic Collector in EU

Started by miraclemet,

15 posts in this topic

miraclemet

miraclemet

Posted
Posted

So it looks like I may become an expat in a few months (US citizen living abroad)... Brussels, Belgium would be the locale.

 

I have no idea what to expect in terms of ongoing hobbying with this new address.

 

I know every place in Europe is not the same, but I know there's a decent international group here on the boards so I thought I'd ask...

 

1. What do I need to know as a comic collector? New issue-wise, Trades-wise, back issues-wise, "foreign variants"-wise. What's it like being a collector abroad? Do you live off the online markets?

 

2. I know shipping with be a huge pain in the backside, but what else makes collecting across the pond more difficult?

 

3. What are the market inequalities between here in the US and in the EU in terms of the hobby (in other words, what has high demand in the EU that is far easier to come across in the US?)

 

The company doing the hiring is going to pay for relocation so I have a chance to move my collection in whole to the EU or to leave it here in storage. I'm leaning towards storage near my brother so there's someone nearby to keep an eye on things...

 

but anyway, what's the 411 on being a collector in the EU?

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gaz973

gaz973

Posted
Posted
Comic collecting in Belgium is Chromium.

 

am I required to read the Smurfs?

 

;)

I believe a diet of Cadburys Creme Eggs is the norm. :ohnoez:

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chromium

chromium

Posted
Posted

Feel fee to PM me with any and all questions.

Just to get you going, there is no back issue market, none lol

It took me 5 years of having an online presence, going to cons, writing for comic websites, maintaining a (then) active blog and having a pretty popular comic book channel on YouTube (1000 subscribers) to actually meet another Belgian BA/SA/GA collector. And he only had a handful of books. Today I know of 5 other collectors in Belgium, and all of them get their issues from me lol

 

Comics are very popular over here, all ages and all walks of life, just not US comics.p, and certainly not superhero comics :(

 

But you'll love the food and drink, the fact that everything is close and all the holidays we get :banana:

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chromium

chromium

Posted
Posted
Comic collecting in Belgium is Chromium.

 

am I required to read the Smurfs?

 

;)

I believe a diet of Cadburys Creme Eggs is the norm. :ohnoez:

 

I finished my last Cadbury Scream Egg ( special Halloween edition) yesterday, of course while reading a comic ( XO-Manowar)

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vaillant

vaillant

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Posted

If I had to relocate in Belgium the first thing I would do would be getting acquainted with their country’s great own production. :)

 

I think each European market is different: in Italy there is a small amount of people collecting comic books in their original edition (and even CGC ones) but it’s a minority.

The interest in foreign variants also varies country by country. For example, I recall that already in the 1980s there were a minority of italian collectors looking for Tex or Zagor issue in other language/country editions, and of course Disney collecting is more "transversal", but as far as comic books go, I think most people prefer them in their own language: those reading and collecting them in original form are a minority.

 

As far as your third point: high demand in Italy right now is mostly for 1950-70 publications, be them editions of foreign books or native italian comics. The pre-war and Golden-Age "equivalent" period is less sought after but nonetheless the price remain consistent, as the material has an objective qualitative value, it is just less collected.

 

Hope this helps a bit on Italy’s part… (thumbs u

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gaz973

gaz973

Posted
Posted
Comic collecting in Belgium is Chromium.

 

am I required to read the Smurfs?

 

;)

I believe a diet of Cadburys Creme Eggs is the norm. :ohnoez:

 

I finished my last Cadbury Scream Egg ( special Halloween edition) yesterday, of course while reading a comic ( XO-Manowar)

 

I haven't had a CCE in ages, I'm in withdrawal. :(

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gaz973

gaz973

Posted
Posted
So it looks like I may become an expat in a few months (US citizen living abroad)... Brussels, Belgium would be the locale.

 

I have no idea what to expect in terms of ongoing hobbying with this new address.

 

I know every place in Europe is not the same, but I know there's a decent international group here on the boards so I thought I'd ask...

 

1. What do I need to know as a comic collector? New issue-wise, Trades-wise, back issues-wise, "foreign variants"-wise. What's it like being a collector abroad? Do you live off the online markets?

 

2. I know shipping with be a huge pain in the backside, but what else makes collecting across the pond more difficult?

 

3. What are the market inequalities between here in the US and in the EU in terms of the hobby (in other words, what has high demand in the EU that is far easier to come across in the US?)

 

The company doing the hiring is going to pay for relocation so I have a chance to move my collection in whole to the EU or to leave it here in storage. I'm leaning towards storage near my brother so there's someone nearby to keep an eye on things...

 

but anyway, what's the 411 on being a collector in the EU?

London SuperCon is in March. It's not far away from Belgium. hm

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