• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

anyone hit the boston show?

21 posts in this topic

Now George, Before you post a statement that I had a lousy show because my prices were too high. Let me state that the Boston show could have had every dealer selling their books for $1 a book and it would have still been a dismal show.

 

This show is quickly going the way of Pittsburgh Comicon, My sales yesterday were $350 for which I drove 5 hours up and 5 hours back. Now, I got to see Ted but honestly I can talk to him on the phone and be just as satisfied.

 

To make matters worse I couldn't buy myself out of a bad show. Normally, dealers when they have a bad show can take comfort in the purchases that they can make money on further down the road.

 

To take comfort in the day I came home to a huge order and the wrapping up of another. This is why many dealers no longer do shows. You stay home, you don't burn out driving and you can actually enjoy life without giving your books away because promoters can't or won't spend the money to bring people to the show.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i don't think i ever said your prices are too high....they are your books, you price them as you want.

 

I have found with the last few shows at the Radisson that attendance was off. Anytime you can walk thorugh that place without delay or bumping into someone, you know people are not showing up....

 

He also raised the price for early admisson to $12. Not a big deal but a sign of tough times maybe?

 

With Christmas around the corner, maybe peeps are spending $ at the malls instead of on books.

 

And you are right about the monkeyass guy....tom defalco ain't going to bring in the crowds.

 

You going to keep setting up there?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was offered a "prime" location if I paid for the year. Turned it down because I am not sure that it matters where in the hall I am.

 

Grumbles amongst the dealers was that the show has been dying a slow death for years. Attendance keeps dwindling and fewer and fewer buyers come to the show. Toys and pirate video seem to make up more of the dealers. From speaking to a couple of other dealers they were complaining that there seems to be a comic show every weekend. So clearly there are smaller shows sucking up money from Dave's. I really never know what the motivation of a show promoter is. Sometimes I get the impression that I am funding a store or other "project" with my table payment. I don't really see a postcard as "advertising". I am also not sure how aggressive many promoters are in getting mailing lists of buyers. Or working with Store owners for that matter.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A note:

 

I visit a lot of different LCSs around town (two NECs, MYP, Comicopia, two Newbury Comics locations) and I never see any mention of the upcoming shows. Maybe I'm just not looking in the right places... 893scratchchin-thumb.gif

 

Case in point: I missed the last one before this because I was in Washington. Therefore, I didn't know this one was going to happen until Friday when one of my artist friends said he was setting up and that I should swing by. 893whatthe.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

gotcha....man back in the day that place used to be packed and lots of $ was being made. tonofbricks.gif

 

Yeah, the show used to be great. More books than I could afford to buy, and I usually came away with between 30 - 50 pre-codes and pre-hero Marvels every show. Haven;t been since I moved in 1999 but would still like to go back, at least to see Dave, Ted and some other folk.

 

Does Harley still have a table there?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was reading your Boston show reports and as a promoter of Comic Book Shows down here in Texas, I know hard it is to promote shows on a limited budget.

 

I am curious to know though how much does the promoter charge you for a table ?

 

Does he make you pay weeks in advance or does he allow you to pay the day of the show?

 

Do you send out postcards to your regular customers in that area to let them know that you are coming to set up at the upcoming show ?

 

As far as flyers in comic book shops go these days,most shops do not find it in their interests to promote competition for their back issues.As one shop owner told me once "Why would I want to support a bunch of weekend warrrior comic dealers selling the same back issues that I can hardly sell in my shop during the week?" Also which shows do you set up that are a sucess for you ?

 

I would like to hear about your positive experiences,too many dealers seem only to have negative comments about shows.Remember your sales approach to collectors effects your sales.Nobody is going to spend lots of money with a dealer who comes across as grouchy or indifferent.

 

At our recent "Central Texas Comic Book Show" on December 5,2004 I had a dealer of mostly Gold and Silver age come down from Dallas,Tx with about 25 long boxes.

 

He arrived at 8:10am (the show starts at 10am)he sat in the lobby till 9:45am (the show starts at 10am)he finally comes in the dealer room to look around at the other dealers inventories then gets a call on his cell phone from a collector in the area who saw a local newspaper ad saying he would be in town to buy comic book collections.

 

Rather than have the collector come to the show and bring his collection, the dealer decided to go to the collectors house to because the collector told him that his collection was worth $10,000.

 

I told the dealer that it was not wise to go because the collectors address was in a rough part of town near the interstate plus it would take about 20 minutes to get there from the hotel.

 

Add in the return time and haggiling time over the comic price it could be another hour.My main concern was that the dealer had contacted me 3 days prior to the show and needed 4 wall tables but since it was so close to the show that he could not mail me the money but would pay cash at the door when he set up.

 

So despite my warnings he goes out to see the collection and told me he would pay when he got back.So now I have 4 glaring empty tables.Its 11:35am the collector was living in a old double wide trailer with a bunch unbagged comics from the mid 80's and early 90's stacked in old cardboard boxes.No sale there.

 

The dealer finally set up.He did have mostly Gold and Silver age comics,however most of them were in beat up shape,with no price tags and the heavy smell of moth balls because he said that keeps out bugs in his comics.

 

Collectors were checking out his books but most were looking for high grade key marvel comics.His prices were for mint books but for poor condition obscure comics.He told us how the big comic book shows in Texas sucked and said he does most of his business on the internet.By 2:30pm (the show closed at 4:00pm) He decided to close up citing low sales and a long drive back to Dallas.

 

After some arguing he did pay for his tables. makepoint.gif

 

Anyway I look forward to hearing from dealers from the "East" on how to promote the perfect show.

 

Check out our website at www.jmventertainment.com yay.gifyay.gifyay.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to the boards

 

First off I think many of the "collectors" who have stopped by my booth know my inventory and presentation. My company is www.highgradecomics.com, I deal in high end bringing both high grade Raw as well as CGC graded books. The boston promoter charges $85 per table. He runs a number of local shows in the New England Area. I pay in advance for my booths, never the day of.

 

I have every one of the shows I attend on my website. No reciprocal links from these promoters. I do it to bring customers to the show. You are absolutely right that a store owner doesn't want to expose his buyers to the "weekend warriors". So, how do you convince a store owner to do the show. Offer him some free tables maybe? A cheaper setup cost so maybe he might capture some new back issue buyers. Make it a Win/Win vs a No-Win situation. And if every dealer took the same approach as the store owner by not notifying my customers that I was at a show than basically nobody would be coming except video buyers and new book guys.

 

Great shows

San Diego Comicon

Wizard Chicago

Wizard Philly

Wizard LA

New York Big Applie

Baltimore Comicon

 

I'm sure there are a number of well run local shows, however I find that most of the local promoters think small and run a show with very little knowledge on what a PROMOTER is supposed to do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For whatever reasons, small shows everywhere are in the decline and it's not just Boston.

 

I'll give some experience from a show that I know Bob once upon a time set up at, and I go to frequently, the local Philly show:

 

The issue from the buyer side about attending a show is that the shows are generally not promoted by the local comic stores, and the people who set up are generally the same every time. It's rare to see somebody new there (and in the Philly show's case, they actually seem like they keep new dealers out) with a new stock and new inventory. I go to that show to see two people: Al Stoltz and Gary Platt. If you had a show with those two guys, and maybe Jeff Weaver, I'd be happy.

 

In Boston, I saw very few guys with quality 50 cent/Dollar stock, but I'm sure there must have been some. Although these are not the "Bob Storms or BSD" buyer, I think they are important for foot traffic through the show. At least in Philly, there are three or four of those. It's hard to get serious buyers to go to a show where the dealers are the same you see all the time. Sometimes they have new inventory, but many dealers are online, and you can just either surf their site or call them about what you are looking for.

 

Local shows used to be a spot where you could get a deal or find some nice stuff or mid grade stuff for a real bargain. That seems to be dwindling.

 

The buyers have the same mentality that many dealers are getting, why waste time on the weekend going to small shows and setting up, when I can get what I want from home. Yes, there's a joy to seeing the books first hand, but I almost prefer the social aspect of shows now to the buying aspect. Quite honestly, as one of my friends once said, I'm starting to measure the success of shows by how little I buy.

 

As I'm starting to buy more mid grades, I'm looking to spend money in chunks with particular dealers since I know most dealers have mid/high-mid stuff they would like to move... and it decreases how hard I have to look for everything.

 

Philly is an up and down show, and I will continue to go as long as Gary and Al set up... but recently Al stated he may not continue setting up because of the god awful turnout lately -- so this is not just one show going down, but several of them not doing a good job bringing in new fans.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was reading your Boston show reports and as a promoter of Comic Book Shows down here in Texas, I know hard it is to promote shows on a limited budget.I am curious to know though how much does the promoter charge you for a table ? Does he make you pay weeks in advance or does he allow you to pay the day of the show.Do you send out postcards to your regular customers in that area to let them know that you are coming to set up at the upcoming show ? As far as flyers in comic book shops go these days,most shops do not find it in their interests to promote competition for their back issues.As one shop owner told me once "Why would I want to support a bunch of weekend warrrior comic dealers selling the same back issues that I can hardly sell in my shop during the week?" Also which shows do you set up that are a sucess for you ? I would like to hear about your positive experiences,too many dealers seem only to have negative comments about shows.Remember your sales approach to collectors effects your sales.Nobody is going to spend lots of money with a dealer who comes across as grouchy or indifferent.At our recent "Central Texas Comic Book Show" on December 5,2004 I had a dealer of mostly Gold and Silver age come down from Dallas,Tx with about 25 long boxes.He arrived at 8:10am (the show starts at 10am)he sat in the lobby till 9:45am (the show starts at 10am)he finally comes in the dealer room to look around at the other dealers inventories then gets a call on his cell phone from a collector in the area who saw a local newspaper ad saying he would be in town to buy comic book collections.Rather than have the collector come to the show and bring his collection, the dealer decided to go to the collectors house to because the collector told him that his collection was worth $10,000.I told the dealer that it was not wise to go because the collectors address was in a rough part of town near the interstate plus it would take about 20 minutes to get there from the hotel.Add in the return time and haggiling time over the comic price it could be another hour.My main concern was that the dealer had contacted me 3 days prior to the show and needed 4 wall tables but since it was so close to the show that he could not mail me the money but would pay cash at the door when he set up.So despite my warnings he goes out to see the collection and told me he would pay when he got back.So now I have 4 glaring empty tables.Its 11:35am the collector was living in a old double wide trailer with a bunch unbagged comics from the mid 80's and early 90's stacked in old cardboard boxes.No sale there.The dealer finally set up.He did have mostly Gold and Silver age comics,however most of them were in beat up shape,with no price tags and the heavy smell of moth balls because he said that keeps out bugs in his comics.Collectors were checking out his books but most were looking for high grade key marvel comics.His prices were for mint books but for poor condition obscure comics.He told us how the big comic book shows in Texas sucked and said he does most of his business on the internet.By 2:30pm (the show closed at 4:00pm) He decided to close up citing low sales and a long drive back to Dallas.After some arguing he did pay for his tables. makepoint.gif Anyway I look forward to hearing from dealers from the "East" on how to promote the perfect show.Check out our website at www.jmventertainment.com yay.gifyay.gifyay.gif

 

Please consider using paragraph breaks in the future! Spaces between sentences might be helpful too. 893scratchchin-thumb.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lighten up, Francis! It looked like you actually had some interesting things to say and questions that you were asking, but it was almost impossible to read in that big block of words. All you have to do is hit the "enter" key every now and then to break it up and make it readable. That's not so hard, is it?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lighten up, Francis! It looked like you actually had some interesting things to say and questions that you were asking, but it was almost impossible to read in that big block of words. All you have to do is hit the "enter" key every now and then to break it up and make it readable. That's not so hard, is it?

 

Here ya go, tth! I agree, too. If you are going to WRITE something intended to be READ, then make it READABLE.. smile.gif

 

"I was reading your Boston show reports and as a promoter of Comic Book Shows down here in Texas, I know hard it is to promote shows on a limited budget. I am curious to know though how much does the promoter charge you for a table? Does he make you pay weeks in advance or does he allow you to pay the day of the show. Do you send out postcards to your regular customers in that area to let them know that you are coming to set up at the upcoming show?

 

As far as flyers in comic book shops go these days, most shops do not find it in their interests to promote competition for their back issues. As one shop owner told me once "Why would I want to support a bunch of weekend warrrior comic dealers selling the same back issues that I can hardly sell in my shop during the week?"

 

Also which shows do you set up that are a sucess for you? I would like to hear about your positive experiences,. Too many dealers seem only to have negative comments about shows. Remember your sales approach to collectors effects your sales. Nobody is going to spend lots of money with a dealer who comes across as grouchy or indifferent.

 

At our recent "Central Texas Comic Book Show" on December 5,2004 I had a dealer of mostly Gold and Silver age come down from Dallas,Tx with about 25 long boxes. He arrived at 8:10am (the show starts at 10am) he sat in the lobby till 9:45am (the show starts at 10am) he finally comes in the dealer room to look around at the other dealers inventories then gets a call on his cell phone from a collector in the area who saw a local newspaper ad saying he would be in town to buy comic book collections. Rather than have the collector come to the show and bring his collection, the dealer decided to go to the collectors house to because the collector told him that his collection was worth $10,000. I told the dealer that it was not wise to go because the collectors address was in a rough part of town near the interstate plus it would take about 20 minutes to get there from the hotel. Add in the return time and haggiling time over the comic price it could be another hour. My main concern was that the dealer had contacted me 3 days prior to the show and needed 4 wall tables but since it was so close to the show that he could not mail me the money but would pay cash at the door when he set up. So despite my warnings he goes out to see the collection and told me he would pay when he got back. So now I have 4 glaring empty tables. Its 11:35am the collector was living in a old double wide trailer with a bunch unbagged comics from the mid 80's and early 90's stacked in old cardboard boxes. No sale there. The dealer finally set up. He did have mostly Gold and Silver age comics,however most of them were in beat up shape,with no price tags and the heavy smell of moth balls because he said that keeps out bugs in his comics. Collectors were checking out his books but most were looking for high grade key marvel comics. His prices were for mint books but for poor condition obscure comics. He told us how the big comic book shows in Texas sucked and said he does most of his business on the internet. By 2:30pm (the show closed at 4:00pm) he decided to close up citing low sales and a long drive back to Dallas. After some arguing he did pay for his tables.

 

Anyway I look forward to hearing from dealers from the "East" on how to promote the perfect show. Check out our website at www.jmventertainment.com"

Link to comment
Share on other sites