Mile High Chuck's place in the hobby

[shadroch]

I don't see what he did for the industry or why he is considered legendary. Because he bought some comics through a newspaper ad? Because he has lots of comics?

 

You know who is legendary in the automotive industry? People who design, engineer, and manufacture automobiles. Not a single used car salesman is significant to the auto industry. Not even the biggest used car salesman.

 

Yep, no retailer has ever become famous or legendary None. not Macy, Not Woolworth,

Not Sears, Not JC Penny, not Bloomingdale, Not Fortunoff, not Strauss, nor Carvel, nor McDonalds, nor Kroc. ,ect,ect,ect.

[RCheli]

Droooollll. Carvel....

[VintageComics]

I don't see what he did for the industry or why he is considered legendary. Because he bought some comics through a newspaper ad? Because he has lots of comics?

 

You know who is legendary in the automotive industry? People who design, engineer, and manufacture automobiles. Not a single used car salesman is significant to the auto industry. Not even the biggest used car salesman.

 

Yep, no retailer has ever become famous or legendary None. not Macy, Not Woolworth,

Not Sears, Not JC Penny, not Bloomingdale, Not Fortunoff, not Strauss, nor Carvel, nor McDonalds, nor Kroc. ,ect,ect,ect.

 

I think the real point that he is making here is that Chuck bought the greatest stash of comics ever to come to market and then parlayed it into a large business operation that has more or less remained unchanged for decades. Has really done anything noteworthy since finding that stash and making a killing from it?

 

 

[shadroch]

So his career peaked with the discovery of the greatest collection ever. What did you want him to do to top it? All he did with it was turn it into an empire. What an underachiever.

[mikenyc]

Didn't he basically jack the family up to build his empire? I'm all for capitalism but ripping off the family and then claiming he saved the collection is a bit much.

 

What's more impressive is he still is in business charging three times market value and then running 50% off sales.

 

Just to clarify I was referring to the Church family.

 

[dupont2005]

I don't see what he did for the industry or why he is considered legendary. Because he bought some comics through a newspaper ad? Because he has lots of comics?

 

You know who is legendary in the automotive industry? People who design, engineer, and manufacture automobiles. Not a single used car salesman is significant to the auto industry. Not even the biggest used car salesman.

 

Yep, no retailer has ever become famous or legendary None. not Macy, Not Woolworth,

Not Sears, Not JC Penny, not Bloomingdale, Not Fortunoff, not Strauss, nor Carvel, nor McDonalds, nor Kroc. ,ect,ect,ect.

McDonalds actually manufactures those McNuggets. You can't buy McDonalds McNuggets at Burger King. You can buy every single one of Chuck's comics at pretty much any other comics retailer, anywhere online or off.

 

Pretty sure Sears owns a lot of brands sold in their store as well. And plenty more they don't own are actually Sears exclusive. Beyond that, when talking about modern fashion, Sears is somewhere below the bottom of the list of "important" figures.

 

And they all rely 100% on new product. Chuck is a used comics salesman. I'm comparing him to used car salesmen. Not a single one remembered as "pivotal" to the automotive industry.

[dupont2005]

What did you want him to do to top it?

Manage to turn a profit at Comicon like every other dealer there?

 

I didn't say he should top anything. I also didn't call him a genius, a master businessman, a "legend," or a pivotal figure in the comic book industry. You'd think such an important man could stay in the green even on years when he doesn't win the comic book lottery by buying ten million dollars worth of comics for fifty grand.

[dupont2005]

Didn't he basically jack the family up to build his empire? I'm all for capitalism but ripping off the family and then claiming he saved the collection is a bit much.

 

What's more impressive is he still is in business charging three times market value and then running 50% off sales.

 

As far as his business genius in successful comic shop franchises, he was in his early 20's, possibly late teens. How much of that capital came from his dad? Doesn't take a genius to do that.

 

He had five stores when I was born. How many does he have today?

[PBK78]

I've bought books from him and was never overwhelmed but happy with the quality. His customer service is great in my opinion and very helpful. Site is old though. He comes to nycc but never seems to have much at that show. Overall respect him and his business.

[ChrisInBaltimore]

Didn't he basically jack the family up to build his empire? I'm all for capitalism but ripping off the family and then claiming he saved the collection is a bit much.

 

What's more impressive is he still is in business charging three times market value and then running 50% off sales.

 

As far as his business genius in successful comic shop franchises, he was in his early 20's, possibly late teens. How much of that capital came from his dad? Doesn't take a genius to do that.

 

He had five stores when I was born. How many does he have today?

 

How many comic stores do you have?

 

And it looks like he has 6.

 

Oh maybe it is only 4… Hmmm…

[dupont2005]

Didn't he basically jack the family up to build his empire? I'm all for capitalism but ripping off the family and then claiming he saved the collection is a bit much.

 

What's more impressive is he still is in business charging three times market value and then running 50% off sales.

 

As far as his business genius in successful comic shop franchises, he was in his early 20's, possibly late teens. How much of that capital came from his dad? Doesn't take a genius to do that.

 

He had five stores when I was born. How many does he have today?

 

How many comic stores do you have?

 

And it looks like he has 6.

In thirty years he's expanded his franchise by 20%

 

I don't have any comic shops. I don't have a rich daddy.

 

I'll tell you what though, I earn $2500 a week, and I'm a 9th grade dropout felon who at one time was homeless, and I didn't actually enter the workforce until 2006. I'd say not bad considering I was raised by a junkie and had a semi absent fugitive coke dealer father.

 

People who have daddy write them big fat checks and then brag about being genius businessmen trying to talk down on me for earning everything I have

[dupont2005]

Oh maybe it is only 4… Hmmm…

So he actually decreased his franchise by 20%.

 

I wonder how much of his high end stock that is not for sale has been used as collateral? I wonder what kind of debt he's racked up?

 

 

[shadroch]

Why do you think he had a rich father? I don't believe that was the case at all.

[dupont2005]

Why do you think he had a rich father? I don't believe that was the case at all.

I don't know for a fact he did. but if he's been a big time comic dealer since he was in middle school, as some people say, I'm wondering where his startup capital came from. If he had a multi-store comic shop chain before comic shops were a thing, when he was barely old enough to buy a pack of cigarettes, who was loaning him the money? Maybe banks operated differently back then, but if a 20 year old wanted to open five locations today selling something that 95% of the population thought was literal garbage, would they get a loan? Say they were specializing in selling year old copies of the New York Times.

[shadroch]

From wiki

 

In 1969, when Rozanski was 13, he began working out of his parents' Colorado basement, selling back issues of comic books by running mail order ads in the magazine Rocket's Blast Comicollector. The following year, he began promoting comics as the youngest seller ever to exhibit at the Colorado Springs Antiques Market. In 1971, he founded the Colorado Springs Comics Club. The following year, he attended his first national comics convention, Multicon in Oklahoma City, where he sold $1,800 USD in comics in three days. It was this point that he realized comics retailing could be a career. He opened his first store in Boulder, Colorado in 1974 with $800 in cash and 10,000 comics. By 1977, he had expanded to four stores in the greater Denver area. In December of that year, he purchased the Edgar Church Collection, the largest and highest-quality Golden Age comics collection ever discovered. The cache had been preserved due to the unvarying 60 degree temperature and minimal humidity, and consisted of 16,000 comic books dating from 1937 to 1955, including the first Superman comic and the first Marvel Comic. The purchase of the Church Collection helped Mile High Comics expand its influence nationally, and helped bring a geometric rise to the price of rare comic books, which became a legitimate investment. Rozanski once sold a batch of comics from the Church Collection and used the profits to put a down payment on a 22,000 square-foot warehouse.[2][3]

 

 

So he had four stores at the time he bought the Church collection. I didn't know that.

[mintcollector]

Been following the thread about Chuck's moaning newsletter with some interest, which raised a question I've had before.

 

What is his importance to the hobby, in the history of collecting? How much is legitimate and how much is self-inflated?

 

Full disclosure: Never met the guy or ever had a need to do business with him!

 

That being said he is a great self promoter and discovered one of the most prominent collections in the business. Love him or hate him he does have relevance.

 

One must also consider his relevance just be how many threads are started about him or the company he founded.

 

 

[mysterio]

Didn't he basically jack the family up to build his empire? I'm all for capitalism but ripping off the family and then claiming he saved the collection is a bit much.

 

What's more impressive is he still is in business charging three times market value and then running 50% off sales.

 

As far as his business genius in successful comic shop franchises, he was in his early 20's, possibly late teens. How much of that capital came from his dad? Doesn't take a genius to do that.

 

He had five stores when I was born. How many does he have today?

 

How many comic stores do you have?

 

And it looks like he has 6.

In thirty years he's expanded his franchise by 20%

 

I don't have any comic shops. I don't have a rich daddy.

 

I'll tell you what though, I earn $2500 a week, and I'm a 9th grade dropout felon who at one time was homeless, and I didn't actually enter the workforce until 2006. I'd say not bad considering I was raised by a junkie and had a semi absent fugitive coke dealer father.

 

People who have daddy write them big fat checks and then brag about being genius businessmen trying to talk down on me for earning everything I have

 

How many comic shops that were open 30, or even 20, years ago are still open, let alone 20% larger?

[dupont2005]

Didn't he basically jack the family up to build his empire? I'm all for capitalism but ripping off the family and then claiming he saved the collection is a bit much.

 

What's more impressive is he still is in business charging three times market value and then running 50% off sales.

 

As far as his business genius in successful comic shop franchises, he was in his early 20's, possibly late teens. How much of that capital came from his dad? Doesn't take a genius to do that.

 

He had five stores when I was born. How many does he have today?

 

How many comic stores do you have?

 

And it looks like he has 6.

In thirty years he's expanded his franchise by 20%

 

I don't have any comic shops. I don't have a rich daddy.

 

I'll tell you what though, I earn $2500 a week, and I'm a 9th grade dropout felon who at one time was homeless, and I didn't actually enter the workforce until 2006. I'd say not bad considering I was raised by a junkie and had a semi absent fugitive coke dealer father.

 

People who have daddy write them big fat checks and then brag about being genius businessmen trying to talk down on me for earning everything I have

 

How many comic shops that were open 30, or even 20, years ago are still open, let alone 20% larger?

20% smaller.

 

And how many of those comic shops that failed during the bust had the capital of two of the most valuable comic collections to ever be found behind them?

 

I've already stated I think the money he made of the Milehigh collection (which was a stroke of luck, not business savvy) allowed him to survive without adjusting his business model to make him more competitive. The guys who didn't have a Milehigh find had to actually be smart businessmen to survive. And you're right. Not all of them were. Doesn't mean Chuck is either though.

 

And I really don't have anything against the guy. I just don't think placing ads in the paper and hitting the jackpot twice make him a pioneer of innovation. There's someone out there who buys a Mega Millions ticket every week and will eventually win. Is he a business genius as well? Is he smarter than the lotto players who buy tickets and don't win?

 

I don't claim to be a great businessman either. I prefer to not work for myself. It's a lot to handle. But I like to think if I had what Chuck had at his peak, today I'd be in publishing, I'd have more than exclusive covers, I'd have exclusive comics distributed solely through my website, my dealer booths, and my brick and mortars. Good stuff too. I'd find some quality indy title, or have some renown Euro comics translated or something. Chuck can afford it right this second if he actually sold his comics. Instead, like other said, he's going to let them sit, paying for an unnecessarily large warehouse to store drek that should be turned over as quickly as possible. The half million dollar comic, yeah, sit on that until you get a great price. It might be worth a million at auction, maybe two million in a decade. The rest of that stuff on the website, get rid of it and get that cash flowing and then probably instead of reinvesting in more drek get that money earning interest or use it to hoard something likely to appreciate in value and/or actually sell.

 

Do you think that giant warehouse is temperature controlled? How much do you think it costs to keep those X-Men and Youngblood #1's at a perfect room temperature in the middle of the desert?

[ChrisInBaltimore]

Denver isn't a desert...

[RCheli]

Dupont, you continue to rely on faulty information in your criticisms, including how he got his money, what he did with the Church collection, and what he has done since. Maybe you should read up on him a little more before you continue. It's not difficult; it's all over the web.

 

Also, I'd say that his current gigantic store is about ten times more impressive than any of the shops that he's owned in his forty years in business. Add in likely the largest (or one of the two largest) online stores, he's doing very well for himself.