MIle HIgh Email

[nearmint]

Whoever picked up that Batman #251 9.6 on eBay yesterday for $635 with not-so-great QP must be a little bummed that Mile High has the same book in the same grade for $455 with perfect QP.

 

Someone buy it quick. I want it, but can't afford the darn thing at the moment.

[Zonker]

Whoever picked up that Batman #251 9.6 on eBay yesterday for $635

 

Sounds like jokersrevenge. He just posted about it in the Silver Age forum tonight. Also apparently has an impressive Batman run here in the Registry.

[cavecarson]

try ' THANKYOU! " to save 20% off prices. Might be over though

[nearmint]

Whoever picked up that Batman #251 9.6 on eBay yesterday for $635

 

Sounds like jokersrevenge. He just posted about it in the Silver Age forum tonight. Also apparently has an impressive Batman run here in the Registry.

 

Which thread in the Silver Age forum? I don't see it.

 

Someone did buy the copy on Mile High's site after my post. Good, now I don't have to think about it anymore.

[Silver]

There isn't any. It's a 65% off everything sale.

 

Jim

 

Thanks for the info, just ordered three slabbed books at a fair price, plus free shipping.

 

I never think to look at their website anymore.

[tay666]

6) Dont order NM/M books if you actually expect books in NM/M condition. We buy far too many comics to actually grade each and every fakking one accurately and just slap one of our NM/M stickers on the crappy used bags we bought them in. And dont complain either cause we'll cancel your account. Mint freaks are not welcome, or anyone else who expects accurately graded HG comics.

 

Sadly, this is true and a lesson I learned the hard way. I recently ordered four raw NM books (nothing pricey, mind you, and all heavily discounted anyway to mitigate any risk) and only one was actually NM (a decent 9.2). One was a 7.5, one a 8.5,and the last a 9.0.

 

However, I discovered that Mile High is an excellent source for CGC books during one of their sales, provided the discount structure is deep enough and the shipping is free. They also pack extremely well, and their service is prompt.

 

Really?

All my grading discrepancies have gone the other way.

I bought a SSOC #1 supposedly in G condition for a reading copy. When I got it, I couldn't find a flaw on it.

Granted, I don't buy much from them, and only when they are having a sale, but everything I get is always as good as, or better condition than what I order.

I haven't ordered anything since they added the VF grade, but used to always order stuff in F before and get stuff that was near mint.

FWIW their grading is still better than about 80% of the ebay sellers I have run across over the years.

[sterlingcomics]

I don't think anyone here denies that MH is great for filler/reader material. However since the launch of CGC the definition of near mint has been set-and MH fails to deliver on that standard on a consistent basis. This comes from people who have have made RECENT purchases. They do have a guarantee that a NM book will come back from CGC VF+ or better. That kinda tells you where the gap in the grading is.

[sterlingcomics]

There isn't any. It's a 65% off everything sale.

 

Jim

 

Thanks for the info, just ordered three slabbed books at a fair price, plus free shipping.

 

I never think to look at their website anymore.

 

I ordered 4 slabs as well--nice price--although they jack the prices up before the discount so it's more like a 35%-45% sale.

[OldGuy]

Really?

All my grading discrepancies have gone the other way.

I bought a SSOC #1 supposedly in G condition for a reading copy. When I got it, I couldn't find a flaw on it.

Granted, I don't buy much from them, and only when they are having a sale, but everything I get is always as good as, or better condition than what I order.

I haven't ordered anything since they added the VF grade, but used to always order stuff in F before and get stuff that was near mint.

FWIW their grading is still better than about 80% of the ebay sellers I have run across over the years.

 

Have you sent any of your "NM" MH books to CGC for grading?

[tay666]

Have you sent any of your "NM" MH books to CGC for grading?

 

No, never had anything slabbed.

Probably never will.

 

I like being able to read my comics. Or at least thumb through them to refresh my memory on books I've already read.

[Norrin_Radd]

I ordered 4 slabs as well--nice price--although they jack the prices up before the discount so it's more like a 35%-45% sale.

 

No ! I found a Marvel Premiere #1 CGC 9.6 that is marked down to $310 from $900. My reaction ranged from to to .

[tay666]

Actually that isn't them jacking prices up before a sale.

That is normal for their pricing

 

One of the reasons I don't order from there very often. The prices are outrageous unless there is a good sale going on.

 

Still use them for all my new comics though.

[Zombie-migration]

Have bought comics from Mile High many times and never a problem. Comics were always graded correctly. Mistakes are bound to happen with the daily volume Mile High deals with. They are my #1 Internet source for comics with prices lower than my comic shop. Much better service than mycomicshop.com.

[nearmint]

The two best stores in my area went out of business when Mile High opened their Anaheim store.

[JiveTurkeyMoFo]

he two best stores in my area went out of business when Mile High opened their Anaheim store.

 

I was working at a comic shop in Huntington Beach when they opened their Anaheim "Mega-Store". Needless to say, our shop closed a year later too. Of course, the collapse of the new issue market in 1995, following the Valiant speculator crash of 1994 probably had somthing to do with it too.

[Darthdiesel]

The two best stores in my area went out of business when Mile High opened their Anaheim store.

 

 

Couldn't you say that technically Mile High became THE best store in your area after they opened in Anaheim

 

 

But seriously, how long were those stores planning to stick around anyway and why couldn't they compete? How long were they open for after the Anaheim opening? Was it their prices? Their lack of back issue stock? Their unwillingness to diversify their merchandise? Just curious as to how much Mile High's success in Anaheim was responsible really for the two store closings you mentioned. It sounds like when small mom-and-pop stores close b/c Walmart just got a contract to set up in town.

[nearmint]

The two best stores in my area went out of business when Mile High opened their Anaheim store.

 

 

Couldn't you say that technically Mile High became THE best store in your area after they opened in Anaheim

 

 

But seriously, how long were those stores planning to stick around anyway and why couldn't they compete? How long were they open for after the Anaheim opening? Was it their prices? Their lack of back issue stock? Their unwillingness to diversify their merchandise? Just curious as to how much Mile High's success in Anaheim was responsible really for the two store closings you mentioned. It sounds like when small mom-and-pop stores close b/c Walmart just got a contract to set up in town.

 

Chuck bought the stock of both stores and closed them. The owners, feeling that they couldn't compete, didn't think they had any other viable choice.

[nearmint]

he two best stores in my area went out of business when Mile High opened their Anaheim store.

 

I was working at a comic shop in Huntington Beach when they opened their Anaheim "Mega-Store". Needless to say, our shop closed a year later too. Of course, the collapse of the new issue market in 1995, following the Valiant speculator crash of 1994 probably had somthing to do with it too.

 

Jive, were you at Comics Unlimited?

[Norrin_Radd]

The two best stores in my area went out of business when Mile High opened their Anaheim store.

 

 

Couldn't you say that technically Mile High became THE best store in your area after they opened in Anaheim

 

 

But seriously, how long were those stores planning to stick around anyway and why couldn't they compete? How long were they open for after the Anaheim opening? Was it their prices? Their lack of back issue stock? Their unwillingness to diversify their merchandise? Just curious as to how much Mile High's success in Anaheim was responsible really for the two store closings you mentioned. It sounds like when small mom-and-pop stores close b/c Walmart just got a contract to set up in town.

 

Chuck bought the stock of both stores and closed them. The owners, feeling that they couldn't compete, didn't think they had any other viable choice.

 

"You will be assimilated!"

 

[JiveTurkeyMoFo]

The two best stores in my area went out of business when Mile High opened their Anaheim store.

 

 

Couldn't you say that technically Mile High became THE best store in your area after they opened in Anaheim

 

 

But seriously, how long were those stores planning to stick around anyway and why couldn't they compete? How long were they open for after the Anaheim opening? Was it their prices? Their lack of back issue stock? Their unwillingness to diversify their merchandise? Just curious as to how much Mile High's success in Anaheim was responsible really for the two store closings you mentioned. It sounds like when small mom-and-pop stores close b/c Walmart just got a contract to set up in town.

 

Having to give a significant discount on new comics was a huge problem. Personally, I had never seen the practice done before...I always paid cover price and was stunned to find comic shops having to give 25% (or more) discounts just to retain customers. Of course, Mile High's NICE program wasn't solely responsible for this...the fact that there were SO many comics shops around at the time, and the constant problems with distributors, helped fuel this level of cut-throat competition.

 

Stocking back issues was also a problem....our shop had one of the best supplies of back issues in the area, but obtaining stuff on customer request was more difiicult. Mile High had the luxury of calling in to Colorado and getting virtually anything a customer was looking for.

 

And small shops had to diversify to compete in the mid 90s...especially with Mile High's Mega-Store. Carrying Manga, Anime, non-comic cards, sports cards, pogs, etc. should've been a sure sign to comics retailers that the comic business, as it had been, was changing. Laugh all you want too, Pogs for example generated enough extra revenue to help keep our shop in business during a very slow summer of 1994. Pumping all that extra revenue into ancillary items insured that comic shops were 'jacks of all trades' and masters of none. During the last year of business, it was this type of "fad" retailing, as well as poor management, that ultimately insured the demise of our shop.