Nightmares at the National

[Steve_NY]

No, I never lost a '52 Mantle but others have. At almost every National there are incidents. I have lost $300 - $500 items, but I relate every loss to what that item actually cost me, and what it will cost to replace.

By the way, I thought of another couple of ways to protect against thefts:

7-- Never give anyone, including other sellers, the permission to look through your showcases. They often say that they have an interest in lots of items in one specific showcase. Guess what happens? You wouldn't even know you are missing an expensive card -- they are that good.

8 -- The same goes for boxes that you have under the table. They want to see everything, and you will never even know that you have lost some valuable cards.

9 -- Don't help more than 2 customers personally at the same time; only one if they are on different sides of your display;. It's a common tactic to split you up on purpose.
If a customer really wants what you have on display, they will stick around or come back. If not, such is life. I would rather lose a sale than a stack of T205s or worse.

As you can see, I practice what I preach, but would sure love to hear what others do to protect themselves.

Steve