Can you be a collector and successful seller also?

[x2drich2000]

Whenever I see a question like this, I always tell people to look at 707's registered sets compared to what they have listed for sale. IMO no reason you can't be a collector and a big time seller.

[hockeyhockey]

i don't know if this answers the exact question, but i'd consider myself someone that sells cards to support my collection. sometimes you get lucky and land a PSA 10 or whatever that's way more valuable than you need...ship it out and use the profit to fill the other holes.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by hockeyhockey

i don't know if this answers the exact question, but i'd consider myself someone that sells cards to support my collection. sometimes you get lucky and land a PSA 10 or whatever that's way more valuable than you need...ship it out and use the profit to fill the other holes.

I think that describes a lot of us.

On the extreme end when I got into collecting in the 80s I had a bunch of 60s cards I had been given as a little kid just sitting in a drawer untuched. I own and have owned some amazing cards and have never spent a penny out of pocket for any baseball collectable I own.

[mintacular]

Of course, in fact, I would venture to say that most successful sellers are also collectors. In most cases, the best way to gain knowledge and pricing insights is by collecting yourself. That said, I know a local dealer who seems pretty successful who admitted to me that he has never collected and has no emotional attachment to the cards he sells. In that sense, he has an advantage b/c he doesn't hold back inventory to fill his own collecting needs. On the flip side, the seller who reflects an inherent interest/ passion for the card they are selling will likely be able to sell said card(s) to a true collector who wants to support that guy, not to mention, that seller can hold to a higher price with the knowledge of "if it doesn't sell, I can keep this in the PC".

[Exhibitman]

I'd call myself a collector-investor at this point. I would like to make cards a component of my retirement income, so I collect with an eye towards what I think will appreciate in the next 5-10 years and become the inventory of a part-time retail enterprise. Some stuff is just for s**ts and giggles though, like my boxing type set. I know that a $5 South African cheese-maker's card of a local club fighter isn't going to turn a profit unless I sell it to the guy's mom, but it is fun to have it in the African section of my album. What's crazy-fun to me is when the two worlds intersect, like when a card I bought years ago as a fun item I just wanted to have skyrockets in value.