Who needs Ebay?

metalmike

Set up at the local flea market today, I bought nothing as nobody tried selling me anything. I was the ONLY seller of cards! I had a lot of fun. One thing I noticed was a lot of people USED to collect and still like the players from the Boom years. I sold over 100 cards from my dollar box and almost a whole box worth of wrasslin packs. It was a fun time and a great way to contact with people. Some observations- I need to buy some Nascar cards for resale- all of mine are from 1988-1991 and people want the new drivers. Reds are a easy sell, but it is easier fo sell a .25 cent Adam Dunn card for a dollar than it is to sell a Adam Dunn rare numbered insert card "worth" 20 for 5 bucks. All of my graded cards went unsold. Anyone know a good source for team sets in bulk? I am talking recent modern. Not a bad way to kill a afternoon. Ebay wants to get rid of the small sellers which is fine by me as I will continue to buy cheap and resell in person! NOT drumk. Mike

storm888

Good for you.

It is ALOT of fun.

BobaFett72

congrats on a fun day at the flea market!

I set up for 3 years at a local flea market. I did fine when I was one of 3 dealers...then the owners renegged on their promise to limit the competition. Ended up with 9 new card dealers (they took anyone to fill the empty spaces) who love to undercut and underprice their merchandise. Cant compete against folks who are selling stuff and losing money doing it.

Stone193

Very cool Mike.

Were you set up outside or inside a building?

How much did they charge you?

I set up at a flea market back in the early 90s - too much competition.

Congratulations on a nice day - ya made some money and more importantly? Ya had fun!

mike

metalmike

I was set up inside a small local flea market that used to be grocery. When it gets a bit warmer I plan to go outside. It is first come f/s for 13 bucks a day. My plan is to set up 3-4 x per month. It is open FSS and I am doing Sats for now. Next step is advertisng -craiglsist- flyers and ?. I am not looking to become the next Mr. Mint, maybe the next Mr. Good or better . The hardest part is telling people that their "rare" Babe Ruth is a reprint or that their box of 1981 Topps commons are not worth even a penny each. Mostly I am doing this is to get outside for some fresh air, meet other collectors and ex collectors and new collectors. I used to do this before the strike. I feel sorry for the sellers on ebay trying to sell a 1991 fleer football box for a .99 min bid with 8 bucks shipping when I can buy them wholesale around here for 5 a box & flip it for 10 and everyone is pleased. And maybe some old timer may ask me "would you be interested in these old cards my grandpa had?" This should be fun.

nightcrawler

Sure does sound like fun.

Do you just use a regular table, and just set up a display the best you can? Or do you have your own card stand???

obusek99

NOT drumk?......giving up the sauce?? Say it ain't so.....

metalmike

Due to my health problems I had to slow down a bit. I switched from whiskey to Sparks which was a bad idea. Npw I am down to a six pack or 2 of Miller High life per week. Wth the money I am saving I may give Ashley a call.

SportsItUpCards

Congrats, it sounds like a lot of fun!

I'm sorry, but I can't live without ebay

I never did a flea market, but I did do a couple of card shows back in 1999 and 2000, when I could sell Elton Brand and Lamar Odom Topps Chrome rookies for 50 bucks each and today they would sell for a buck or two???

Flea market sounds fun and would love to do it myself too one day.

Giovanni

Stingray

<< <i>Due to my health problems I had to slow down a bit. I switched from whiskey to Sparks which was a bad idea. Npw I am down to a six pack or 2 of Miller High life per week. Wth the money I am saving I may give Ashley a call. >>



Your health comes first if it mean giving up the booze, then do it!! Glad to hear that it went well for you at the flea market.

Smoksta

I was thinking of hitting a flea market in the next few weeks. And was looking for some advice on
displaying merchandise. I have strolled threw a few recently and the card sellers i seen basically just had stuff
in card box's 500-800 counts and over stuffed binders, and imo from a buyers standpoint makes it rather hard to shop.
I have a few ideas on how to setup to limit my merchandise from getting damaged while basically peddling it off, But
getting a few pointers couldn't hurt. Any imput from someone with a little experience would be much appreciated!
Thanks

larryallen73

Sounds fun!

I will stick with Ebay myself as I love watching the auctions and I love trying to figure out why bidding patters are so substantially different from week to week.

Thanks for sharing your story.

AlmostPerfect

<< <i>Due to my health problems I had to slow down a bit. I switched from whiskey to Sparks which was a bad idea. Npw I am down to a six pack or 2 of Miller High life per week. Wth the money I am saving I may give Ashley a call. >>



spitzer'd?????

metalmike

One tip for flea market and card show sellers, if you have a dollar box or boxes of cards that buyers can go thru bring 1 or 2 chairs for people to sit on while searching! Trust me it works!

alifaxwa2

when I need the occasional team set i buy from www.chuckscards.com

Not sure if he will more than 1 or 2 of each though.