Dealing at shows...

[steve B]

Yep, you did way better than the two shows I did. I split a table with an acquaintance who did autographs. Total take on the day for me - 10 cents.

The other one I had a table to myself. I think I might have almost made back the table price.

At one I heard the stuff was too old, at the other that it was too new.

I have done well at flea markets I've done with family, especially if I leave the table and let mom sell the cards She's tougher on price, and a certain sort of customer likes to think they're geting a bargain of the little old lady while her son is browsing other tables.


I did do some work for a stamp dealer, who did well at stamp shows. He had quite a few regualar customers, but made most of the money before the show. The dealers did lots of business during setup. They all have specialties, and buy collections through their shops. Then they resell the collections largely intact to someone else. Eventually it ends up with a regualr that goes to a dealer for that particular sort of thing.

My favorite sale ever was to a young kid, maybe 4-5. He had a handful of change, probably about 37cents and wanted cards from the commons boxes. And asked how many he could get. I told him if it was ok with his mom he could have as many as he could hold in two handfuls. I think he ended up picking around a hundred or so and I bagged them so he could carry them. I also added a pretty big handful beyond that and a couple better cards. Watching him pickout the ones he wanted and seeing the huge smile was worth way more than the cards could ever be.

Steve B