Hi Everyone,
We're as excited as all of you for the National to begin this week, but we're even a bit more excited than usual because we're able to make some important announcements in advance of the show.
We'll be accepting consignments and displaying Fall Auction highlights at booths 1425/1429 all week. On display will be highlights from two significant collections that we are thrilled to have been chosen to present. Be sure to stop by and see some of these items in person!
We're offering special consignor incentives for items consigned at the show, including generous cash advances and discounted onsite grading and authentication for cards and autographs. Key pieces will also go right into our display for added exposure.
Now, on to the announcements:
1) We're excited to welcome hobby veteran Calvin Arnold to the REA team. Calvin joins REA as Consignment Director and brings over thirty years of hobby experience as a collector and professional, including nearly two decades of experience working for both SCP Auctions and Heritage Auctions. Calvin will be based out of Las Vegas, NV, which will allow REA to service the West Coast in a more robust fashion moving forward. Calvin will travel throughout the US on behalf of REA and will begin providing a show presence for REA at the Long Beach Expo in Long Beach, CA as well as the TriStar Collectors Shows in Houston, TX and San Francisco, CA.
2) With the addition of another team member, REA will be adding a THIRD auction to the calendar in 2019. This has been the single most requested change from collectors, and as we celebrate five years since the addition of the Fall Auction, we're thrilled to offer another opportunity for collectors to deal with REA each year. The tentative 2019 auction calendar will have events in March, August, and December. More details on dates and deadlines will be announced as they get closer.
3) We've also finalized the option to submit offers online on any of the more than 35,000 lots that we've auctioned since 2004. Our auction archive is one of the largest and most diverse online, and this new system will allow collectors the opportunity to browse, identify items of interest, and submit offers for consideration outside of the auction venue. The offer is submitted to REA, we’ll contact the owner on your behalf (preserving anonymity), and if the offer is accepted, we’ll facilitate payments and shipping. There is a 10% fee for this service, which is withheld from the buyer’s “all-in” offer. This has been something that collectors have wanted to see as an option on our site for several years, and we're pleased to make it a reality and hope that it leads to some great connections. You can visit
our website to begin browsing the archives.
4) There is one more day to participate in our collector survey for a chance to win a free Apple iPad or hobby reference books. Entries completed and submitted by 11:59 PM EST on Tuesday, July 31 will be eligible for the drawing on August 1. To participate, visit
our survey page.
5) Beginning with the Fall Auction, we'll be rolling out a flat rate shipping program that applies to all domestic buyer invoices except for those with oversized items included. In an effort to counter major carrier shipping rates that have continued to rise over the last five years and to recognize bidders' appreciation for simple, clearly-state shipping and handling costs, REA will be charging a flat $10 for shipping, handling, and insurance on invoices of $2000 or under and a flat $20 for shipping, handling, and insurance on invoices over $2000. We will continue to process all shipments as we have in the past, with the highest level of care and quality with respect to packing and the quickest turnaround upon payment of any auction house in the business. Shipping, handling, and insurance has never been a profit center at REA, and we continue our commitment to ensuring a fair and pleasant experience for all buyers!
As always, we appreciate the longstanding support shown to REA, and we promise to continue to deliver the highest-quality material and to conduct our auctions with the highest levels of integrity and professionalism.
We look forward to seeing many of you in Cleveland!
Brian