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tips for getting a table in card shows?
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7 posts in this topic

have some slabs slowly trickling in from PSA, BGS and hopefully soon from CSG.  have tons of raw cards too from mid ends to high ends. Gone to three card shows so far, twice with Dallas Card SHow and once with a smaller fort worth card show. been consistently building a profile in IG, talking with people and making deals locally, IG and in shows. am enjoying this card shows a lot and am debating on getting a table in a small show like fort worth, irving, frisco, etc with plans of once a lot more experienced trying out the dallas card show. planning to start next year. any tips for those who have done it? what to watch out for, how to comp, price stuff (I use 130point.com, ebay and sports card investor)? cards to stay away from? I usually stick to what I know which is basketball.

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If you are looking to set up at your first show you should contact the promoter. Most if not all flyers/FB posts/etc. will have the promoters contact information, just call and ask how much for a spot. As far as pricing goes, I always used ebay/auction houses as a barometer of FMV. Remember that having accurate pricing and grading is the key to return customers, a good display with desired items is the way to get people to stop. People will ALWAYS want to negotiate, do not be rude when someone tries to lowball you (they will) simply realize that for every 15 times they ask, 1 person will say "Sure". Hope this helps you, and good luck.

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5 hours ago, Old Fashion PB and J said:

If you are looking to set up at your first show you should contact the promoter. Most if not all flyers/FB posts/etc. will have the promoters contact information, just call and ask how much for a spot. As far as pricing goes, I always used ebay/auction houses as a barometer of FMV. Remember that having accurate pricing and grading is the key to return customers, a good display with desired items is the way to get people to stop. People will ALWAYS want to negotiate, do not be rude when someone tries to lowball you (they will) simply realize that for every 15 times they ask, 1 person will say "Sure". Hope this helps you, and good luck.

appreciate the advice. I've gone to a few shows and have enjoyed them and was thinking of trying out the experience of being on the other end. I enjoyed seeing so many nice cards and talking with other collectors and learning from others.

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20 hours ago, jdmtdcollector said:

appreciate the advice. I've gone to a few shows and have enjoyed them and was thinking of trying out the experience of being on the other end. I enjoyed seeing so many nice cards and talking with other collectors and learning from others.

I have been buying and selling comics at all size shows for the past 12 years. It is a fun experience, and is great to meet and interact with others with the same interests as you. Good luck and don't get discouraged if it takes awhile to start building a following.

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I do a monthly card show in Tampa and I've done shows as far back as to Mid 1980s.

Best advice I could give you his be organized before the show have your prices marked have some decent showcases don't have stuff just laying around on the table haphazardly I've seen many people set up as shows that quite frankly shouldn't be set up. 

It makes a world of difference if you have a nice display & have a good idea what you want for your cards.

And get ready for the new breed the show attendees each walking around with their black hard case of slab cards to trade or sell ! Lol

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8 hours ago, Picklepete said:

I do a monthly card show in Tampa and I've done shows as far back as to Mid 1980s.

Best advice I could give you his be organized before the show have your prices marked have some decent showcases don't have stuff just laying around on the table haphazardly I've seen many people set up as shows that quite frankly shouldn't be set up. 

It makes a world of difference if you have a nice display & have a good idea what you want for your cards.

And get ready for the new breed the show attendees each walking around with their black hard case of slab cards to trade or sell ! Lol

appreciate the advice. I'm not hurrying it as I want to do this right so I plan to do get a table maybe late fall or even next year. I love the hobby and have collected since 97 but has just recently gotten active again, so am blessed with a lot of card capital including high ends. What do you guys do for pricing? What I lately am doing is just observing market patterns at ebay and by visiting LCS and watching how they price. Ive been constantly building contacts during cardshows and love to talk hobby with some of the dealers. I love that each of them have so many experiences and tidbits about the hobby. I also am using 130point.com but sometimes I find depending on venue, wifi can be real slow. I downloaded sports card investor and card ladder and have been learning to use those too. The challenging part is finding comps for the SSPs or cards you rarely see as I have cards pre panini that rarely pop out, some I intend to move. What I did last time was in the Dallas Card show was to just walk around and see if I can find similar cards and see how much they go for. Sometimes, I just cant find any, i.e. Tim Duncan 99-00 Fleer Tradition supreme court parallel /20 ( a very hard to find card and parallel). Someone suggested to post it at ebay with a high asking price and see what kind of offers I get to see a kind of valuation for it. I also want to start with something I know which would be basketball pre panini and maybe familiarize myself from there and slowly diversify. I do have a PC and would like to make this like a collector/investor goal. Thank you all for the great advice!

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85% of my pricing is through ebay comps.

Price it a little higher so when they ask for a deal you have wiggle room.

More they buy the more willing I am to work with customers. You WILL get the hustlers saying.. but you'll save ebay fee's.. counter with..you will save shipping & get to see card now & don't have to take chance on lost or damaged. AND I have my table $ cost.

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