White Plains NY Card show this weekend

[Leon]

The last show I went to was the Philly show, a few months ago. While I had a great time visiting with Teddy Z and got to meet his even lovelier wife, I couldn't buy anything at the show. There was 1 card I wanted pretty bad. I walked around the table....went to a few other tables and came back. I finally got the nerve to ask the guy his price (and this is a big PSA dealer but is a friend too, so I won't mention his name). I know the card was a $400-$500 card....maybe a bit more. He told me it was $1450. I couldn't even make a counteroffer I felt was legitimate since his price was so over the top and just walked away shaking my head. There will be another of those cards for sure. I really don't get some of the pricing strategies. I am sure that dealer must have had a 3x-5x markup on that card. What happened to being happy with 20%-30% profit, or at least a reasonable street price (if they happened to get a great buy)?..regards

Leon is absolutely correct

It is remarkable how out of touch most the card show dealers are.

Except for the National and one or two other shows, we rarely find a high quality card worth purchasing.

Even in sets like Delongs, 34 Goudeys or 41 Playballs the dealers tend to be at least 2x the SMR.

What amazes us is that we have seen some cards at the same dealer's table
or the same E Bay BIN listing for over two years.

Leon is right- it seems that only private treaty with other collectors or auctionsare the only way to obtain rare cards at market prices


Bruce Dorskind
America's Toughest Want List
bdorskind@dorskindgroup.com

[JasonL]

This conversation confirms some things for me, which is comforting. But it doesn't help explain to me how it is that I can't seem to re-sell any of my own cards for anything more than a 50% discount to what I paid...Do I always overpay by this much? perhaps.
Regardless of the reason, the card karma never seems to go my way.
At least I know not to buy at shows.
That much I do know.

The shows seem to be simply social occasions for the dealers, because with pricing strategies like that, I don't imagine they sell anything whatsoever.

[calvindog]

Originally Posted by JasonL

This conversation confirms some things for me, which is comforting. But it doesn't help explain to me how it is that I can't seem to re-sell any of my own cards for anything more than a 50% discount to what I paid...Do I always overpay by this much?

Solutions:

More bidding parties.

More consignments to great guys (presuming they don't get indicted first).

[batsballsbases]

Originally Posted by calvindog

Solutions:

More bidding parties.

More consignments to great guys (presuming they don't get indicted first).

Jeff,
I hope yournot talking about Brockelman + Luckey Those guys are True Blue

[bigfish]

I bought 40 cards at the show. Mostly t206 commons, a few rare backs , and a 34 Gehrig. Prices were fair. I liked other cards but prices were high and I just walked away. No big deal.

Jeff,

I happen to be at the table when you asked about the Cobb PC. The price was on the high side of fair. Maybe a 150 card. You did not seem to be a happy camper and I thought to myself. I guess that guy is not having fun at the show. I wish you would have identified yourself. My friend and I had some nice stuff behind the table that you might have wanted to take a look at.

I seem to do most of my deals with people I know who are walking around with cards. The prices at the shows are high. The dealers pay alot for the tables so I kind of understand the prices. I just ask for the price. If I do not like it, walking away is not an issue. You can always find something else to buy.

Happy Collecting!

Toby

[calvindog]

Well, let's see: the card which had an incredible amount of damage to it had a price tag on it for $950. When I laughed at the price -- yes, I laughed -- I was told that the price was actually $450. When I indicated that the card was ridiculously overpriced, I was told that the reason the card was priced so high was that it was "Cobb's rookie card" -- which of course it wasn't. When I ticked off a list of cards that were actually closer to being Cobb's rookie card than that, I was met with a shrug and told that the price was $250. At that point I walked away, not unhappy, just amused at the ridiculousness of what I had just seen. For what it's worth, I have been offered that same card, in better shape, for $150 from someone on this board.

I understand that it was my fault, Toby, for not being a better sport about the blatant attempt to rip me off. And I apologize for not responding to such attempt by asking to see more of the cards of the seller. At that point, unfortunately, I felt pretty strongly that I was dealing with some dishonest guys and I felt it probably made better sense to walk away.