How to run a good card shop

[Snapolit1]

Good article by Rich Mueller.

I have a nice shop not far from me in NJ where the guy does all of this.

I particularly like the point about not complaining to every customer about how crappy things are. No one wants to feel like they are the last person left collecting cards.

http://www.sportscollectorsdaily.com...rts-card-shop/

[vintagesportscollector]

Where is the NJ Shop?

[Snapolit1]

Fair lawn, NJ. Only been there a couple of times but a cool place. America's Pastime.

[TistaT202]

I do wish there was a shop around me. I am getting sick of eBay! Anyone know of one near Fairfield, CT that sells more than just the shiny stuff?

Thanks
Mike

[Kco]

Originally Posted by TistaT202

I do wish there was a shop around me. I am getting sick of eBay! Anyone know of one near Fairfield, CT that sells more than just the shiny stuff?

Thanks
Mike

I'm also in Fairfield, CT! I'm originally from Westchester NY which had a few but all are basically gone now. Not much in the way of card shops that I've seen in the area. Only one I've heard is good is JB Sports Cards in Orange, CT (15 mins from Fairfield). I usually try to just wait until the White Plains show comes up at the Westchester County center and go to that, always know there will be tons of dealers and can usually find what I want. Hope that helps

[GrayGhost]

Berlin CT, Ken's Cards and Collectibles. Mill St.

Anyone ever in the area, check it out. GREAT clean store, w new, old, and e'thing in between and for Pro
Wrestling fans, a Great Wrestling room too.

[Cmount76]

American Legends on Central Avenue in Scarsdale, in Westchester County is great. Shiny Stuff, Vintage, and Pre-War coupled with cool people. If you ever go to the shows at County Center in White Plains; it's a 10 minute ride down the block.

Originally Posted by TistaT202

I do wish there was a shop around me. I am getting sick of eBay! Anyone know of one near Fairfield, CT that sells more than just the shiny stuff?

Thanks
Mike

[Kco]

Originally Posted by Cmount76

American Legends on Central Avenue in Scarsdale, in Westchester County is great. Shiny Stuff, Vintage, and Pre-War coupled with cool people. If you ever go to the shows at County Center in White Plains; it's a 10 minute ride down the block.

He is still open? Good to know

[Rich Klein]

Originally Posted by Cmount76

American Legends on Central Avenue in Scarsdale, in Westchester County is great. Shiny Stuff, Vintage, and Pre-War coupled with cool people. If you ever go to the shows at County Center in White Plains; it's a 10 minute ride down the block.

Mark, Donna and their staff are good people. I miss them

[I Only Smoke 4 the Cards]

Does anyone have any suggestions in the DC/Northern Virginia area?

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[Mark70Z]

Good article. I'm sure there would be more shops around if they followed some of the quality business practices mentioned. We have a pretty good card shop in Jacksonville, FL. While I typically just go for supplies it's a pretty nice environment.

[steve B]

That's all good advice for most any business.

The only one I don't totally agree with is number 3. A lot of the places I used to really like to go were way on the other end of things, not always clean, and pretty disorganized. Clean is better for cards and stuff, but a lot of the other stuff I collect can get a bit grubby.
It's more the hunt for something "interesting" for me. If a place is too well organized and for non-paper stuff, too clean I know there's no bargains hiding there.

Steve B

[glchen]

A while back, I chatted with a guy who owned a card shop in Florida, after I purchased some cards from him. Basically, he went to a local card shop when he was a kid, and always said to himself that someday, he was going to buy that place. After he grew up and worked for a while, he did buy that card shop, and he's really enjoyed owning it. What he tries to do is to try to make his card shop a place to hang out, and not just to purchase cards and memorabilia. For example, he will do events such as fantasy football drafts where people can just talk about sports, and not feel pressured to buy things because they are in this store. He also tries to price his stock very fairly, even under market, where if the buyer decides to resell, they can even make a small profit on his stuff. That is, he doesn't try to wring every last cent out of his sales, so that his customers will feel that they have been treated very fairly and enjoy the shopping experience with his store.

[KingFisk]

There is one card store near me in NJ, which I think is still open. When I got back into the hobby a few years ago I was excited to find out there was an active card store. When I went there it was empty, save for the owner. He sat there the entire time I was in his shop, just staring out the window. I tried to talk cards and about the hobby with him a few times in the 15 min I was there, but he was pretty terse. It was a disappointing contrast to what I had been used to in card shops back in the day. Different time I guess, and to each their own, but I never went back to this guy's place, despite it only being 15 min from my house. Made me realize how much the camaraderie makes this hobby so enjoyable for me and it was not to be found at that shop.

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