1st Card Show Table - How to?

[sivjosh]

I was thinking about blowing $30 and half a Saturday and having a table at a small, local card show. Not to get rich, obviously. Just to do it.

I searched this forum (quickly) for threads about "how-to's" for people setting up their first table, but didn't find anything. Can we get some tips from the membership and make this thread the official site for advice with regards to setting up as a seller at a show? All input appreciated. Thanks.

[palantri]

Heres some advice, take it for what its worth. Ive never personally set up, but Im good friends with people who have, and this is what they do

1st of all, I advise pricing your stuff, that way, people have at least a decent idea of what you are looking to get.

2nd, I would not be too attached to those prices. With ebay and the internet community, people can usually buy stuff cheaper online than they can in person. If you arent willing to deal a little, they will pass you by and go buy from someone else, either on ebay or a different dealer

3rd, make a list of what you take with you and when you sell it, mark it off. That way, you dont end up missing stuff at the end of the show.

4- NEVER leave your table unattended, there are dishonest people out there. I also recommend keeping cash in your pocket, not in a cash box or anything like that- too easy for someone to grab it

5- organize your stuff. have the higher end stuff in one location and the cheaper stuff elsewhere. that way, people who cant afford bigger cards can still browse and look through stuff

6- take a variety of stuff- dont stick with all really valuable, or all really cheap stuff, mix it up. My friends generally sell smaller stuff at shows, because very few people take a ton of cash with them to smaller shows.

7- doing it for fun is great, but I would make sure you are fairly confident you can at least break even, or you are wasting money

hope that helps a bit...
Ed

[BlackDiam0nd66]

Hi Josh-

I used to set up at shows all the time years ago. Here are some tips:


#1 - Price your cards. Nothing worse than walking up to a table and seeing nothing priced. Me? I walk right on past if I see this. Personally the best thing to do is put BV/sell price.

#2 - Dollar box. Nothing does better than a dollar box filled with $10 inserts and mix a few GU and autos in. For some reason people have a hard time passing up this stuff for a buck. Also, .25 boxes, .10 boxes and also 3 cards for $5 (or $10) etc work well. It screams "bargain".

#3 - This is just a personal thing for me, but when someone walks up to the table...do NOT act too busy to acknowledge them. Say hi, ask how the show is for them, etc...this will give you a feel for the person. I HATE for a dealer to start firing questions at me though..."who do you collect, can I look for something for you, etc" It might just be me, but I like to go at my own pace and do my own thing. I like convo, but I hate to be pressured.

#4 - Free cards for kids. I used to take a box with low end inserts/GU/autos and let the little kids pick something. This one show I always did, guy used to bring his sons (little kids) all the time. One son was a big Ricky Henderson fan so I would always have a Henderson card for him at the show. I didn't do it so dad would buy from me, I did it because the hobby is for kids...but it didn't hurt sales either.

#5 - Do NOT...and I must emphasize this.....do NOT sit at your table eating a big old greasy nasty smelling burger with an onion half hanging down out of your mouth and spray out the word "hello." Please. You have no idea how many times I have seen this. It is not attractive and you will lose customers.

#6 - If at all possible take a friend with you to watch the table so you can have bathroom breaks and go walk around a bit.

#7 - Be ready to haggle. Don't set stuff in stone...offer better deals for larger amounts of cards bought...even if it is only a buck or two, that customer WILL remember you next time. Also, make SURE you bring enough change...like tons of ones and silver change.

#8 - Do NOT act like a know it all. One of my worst experiences came from a dealer who argued with me about who Cliff Floyd was (or rather, was not) and tried to tell me I meant William Floyd. No....I meant CLIFF Floyd, I mean hey, I had only been collecting the guys cards for years. Finally had to take a Cliff Floyd card out of my purchased stuff and plunk it down in front of him only to get the following response: "Oh, well I thought we were talking football" :\

#9 - Always take a look at peoples stuff they bring in to trade/sell. If they want to trade for a "Joe Common Player" autograph and he/she is trading a "Jim Common Player" Autograph that sells for the same $3 think about making the trade...it will make the customer happy and they will remember you next time when they have some cash.

#10 - Try to have some sort of showcase or something to put your higher end cards in...if you don't, even a fairly good size piece of plexiglass type something to set over your cards would be better than nothing. Also, watch for people who set their notebooks, trade boxes, etc on top of your table. They set it down, look around, and then when they pick their stuff back up, a card or two from your table will most likely grow legs. There is another way these people do this that works similar, but I am not going to broadcast it here. Just be careful of thieves.



Have fun, it's a great experience...I miss it so very much.


Peace~
Rima

[TurdFerguson]

I used to set up at shows quite a bit and I agree with what Ed & Rima have said except for 1 thing. I hate pricing my cards. The reason being is you take a lot of time doing this before the show and the vast majority of them will never even get a question about them. I've also seen too many times where a dealer has out dated prices on their cards because they have priced them and never checked to see if the values have changed. I mainly dealt with baseball, so I always had a baseball Beckett monthly or even a Beckett Plus (with all inserts listed).

One thing I can also add that might make you look more professional is a table cloth. Some shows do have table cloths for their tables but most do not. To me, if someone looks like he/she is willing to make a good appearance, they are someone I might want to deal with.

[pr0phet]

Hey Josh,

Amongst agreeing to a lot of the other comments I will add something of my own that has gotten people a lot of business up here..

Take some kind of "game" with you where people can win every time... 2 games used a lot up here.

#1
Somebody has a wheel made up where a number corresponds with a prize.. Majority has smaller prizes but if you put up a real nice prize on one or two spots you can charge a buck or two to spin the wheel.

#2
This one is easy to make and does speedy nick((he knows who he is on here)) wonders.. Bring two dice with you and a board to display some cards.
Person rolls the dice two times and adds up the total.. Obviously the values of 4-5-6 and 24-23-22 are going to have the nicer cards.. But the middle values with more options get lower end cards since they will be hit more... Again, make it cheap because you want to get there attention and have some fun at the same time.. 5 dollars a round is quite expensive and will drive people away.

Jay

[htwheelz01]

I agree to alot of things everyone has said so far. Mix it up forsure. Some higher stuff some cheap stuff. As fas as pricing goes I always try to have an idea of what I want on something. I never price anything. Always leaves you room to take less or get more. People like to try and offer they always do. And definately keep a list.

[BlackDiam0nd66]

Hey Josh,

Amongst agreeing to a lot of the other comments I will add something of my own that has gotten people a lot of business up here..

Take some kind of "game" with you where people can win every time... 2 games used a lot up here.

#1
Somebody has a wheel made up where a number corresponds with a prize.. Majority has smaller prizes but if you put up a real nice prize on one or two spots you can charge a buck or two to spin the wheel.

#2
This one is easy to make and does speedy nick((he knows who he is on here)) wonders.. Bring two dice with you and a board to display some cards.
Person rolls the dice two times and adds up the total.. Obviously the values of 4-5-6 and 24-23-22 are going to have the nicer cards.. But the middle values with more options get lower end cards since they will be hit more... Again, make it cheap because you want to get there attention and have some fun at the same time.. 5 dollars a round is quite expensive and will drive people away.

Jay

People at shows in CA used to do this and if I am not mistaken I believe a bunch of promoters got together and got this type of activity banned from shows. I know at the mall shows and at the show in Riverside and one in Pasadena they were forbidden. I didn't know anyone still did these. Also, grab bags were discontinued with this. It may have just been for a time though, it was back from 1990-1992 that I recall.

Peace~
Rima

[MarkForce]

People at shows in CA used to do this and if I am not mistaken I believe a bunch of promoters got together and got this type of activity banned from shows. I know at the mall shows and at the show in Riverside and one in Pasadena they were forbidden. I didn't know anyone still did these. Also, grab bags were discontinued with this. It may have just been for a time though, it was back from 1990-1992 that I recall.

Peace~
Rima

Yea, its a good idea, and a great way to make money if youre honest. I spun the wheel one time and landed on the MONEY card...he said he didnt see me spin. I had to spin again. No Michael Jordan 80$ Insert for me. Ha! What a joke! I mustve been 10 at the time, but Ill never forget that.

[BlackDiam0nd66]

Yea, its a good idea, and a great way to make money if youre honest. I spun the wheel one time and landed on the MONEY card...he said he didnt see me spin. I had to spin again. No Michael Jordan 80$ Insert for me. Ha! What a joke! I mustve been 10 at the time, but Ill never forget that.

I saw alot of jerk dealers when it came to this type of game.

I was at a show in Pasadena, CA one year (as a customer, not dealer). This was when those games were in full swing. Some guy had the dice game at his table...$2 a roll. The prize for snake eyes (2 ones for those of you who don't know dice :new_silly ) was a Michael Jordan 86 Fleer RC (At the time the BV I believe was around $300-$400). Some teenager walked up, paid his $2 and promptly rolled the ones...he whooped and hollered and carried on. The dealer was stunned...this is no lie...he literally called the guy an "mfer", picked up the card and zipped it to him the way one throws a frisbee, and carried on with the most pathetic tantrum I have ever seen a grown man throw. Seeing my opportunity to rub it in (I used to be such a jerk sometimes :icon_lol: ) I walked over and said "had you decided not to set up this rip off game of chance you would still have your Jordan rookie." He flipped out...LOL...I don't think I have heard some of the names he came up with for me. :icon_lol: The guy was reported I guess, because the promoter of the show went over to him and told him he needed to pack up his things and leave.


Peace~
Rima

[sivjosh]

Thanks for all the good ideas. Keep them coming.

I'll probably avoid the games of chance, but I'm definitely going to have a lot of greasy hamburgers at my table. I'm pretty sure that's in the contract. :)