Houston Tri-Star Show was small, and pretty disappointing today.
jamesryanbell
Posts: 1,115 ✭✭✭
It was like most of the people were there for the autographs (and they did have some very sought-after autograph guests).
I saw very, VERY few tables with any nice graded cards. TONS of raw stuff, but also lots of expensive raw stuff (why are you selling that Mantle/Ruth/etc for $3000 raw....can't even count how much stuff I saw like that today).
It was kind of sad. It just felt kind of dead in there. I remember back in the late 80's and early 90's when the environment was just totally different. "Well did you really expect that today?" Yeah, I really did. I guess it's because I haven't been to a show since the mid 90's.
I talked to several dealers there about the state of the market, and we always ended up at the same place.......eBay has destroyed face-to-face business.
Interesting.
I saw very, VERY few tables with any nice graded cards. TONS of raw stuff, but also lots of expensive raw stuff (why are you selling that Mantle/Ruth/etc for $3000 raw....can't even count how much stuff I saw like that today).
It was kind of sad. It just felt kind of dead in there. I remember back in the late 80's and early 90's when the environment was just totally different. "Well did you really expect that today?" Yeah, I really did. I guess it's because I haven't been to a show since the mid 90's.
I talked to several dealers there about the state of the market, and we always ended up at the same place.......eBay has destroyed face-to-face business.
Interesting.
-- Ryan Bell
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I've been trying to decide if I really want to make the drive tomorrow from San Antonio. About the only reason I have is to get autographs from Rose, Schmidt and Carlton, along with dropping some cards off with PSA and picking up some supplies. My card interests are mainly pre-WWII, so I don't expect to find any cards to buy, as the Houston show has always been a desert in that regard.
I've been leaning towards not going, as I can always mail in my cards and buy supplies on-line. I think your report pretty much seals the deal.
Steve
<< <i>Ebay has not destroyed face to face business. Ebay has simply brought more intelligent, dependable and hard working dealers into the market, and the guys who haven't been able to keep up with that have been left behind. I know plenty of dealers who can do between 4-10K in gross sales in a weekend at a show because they bust their asses to keep their material fresh and their prices competitive, and for guys like that Ebay is simply another-- but not the exclusive-- outlet for their product. >>
It's always easier to blame something else rather than looking in the mirror.
Agree with Boo here...you can't trot out the same raw crop of dusty, sunbleached EX cards at graded NM-MT prices and blame ebay for the demise of the market..
Collecting 1970s Topps baseball wax, rack and cello packs, as well as PCGS graded Half Cents, Large Cents, Two Cent pieces and Three Cent Silver pieces.
<< <i>Ebay has not destroyed face to face business. Ebay has simply brought more intelligent, dependable and hard working dealers into the market, and the guys who haven't been able to keep up with that have been left behind. I know plenty of dealers who can do between 4-10K in gross sales in a weekend at a show because they bust their asses to keep their material fresh and their prices competitive, and for guys like that Ebay is simply another-- but not the exclusive-- outlet for their product.
Agree with Boo here...you can't trot out the same raw crop of dusty, sunbleached EX cards at graded NM-MT prices and blame ebay for the demise of the market.. >>
Yup, when their cards and the sleeves they're in are yellower than the mustard on the sandwich they're eating at their table, dealers should blame something besides ebay for their troubles.
- John Wooden
In general, Boo is spot freaking on. Ebay didn't kill the shop and show business as much as it made people work harder. And whaddya know, a lot of dealers are lazy and find it easier to complain and stick to their same old failed business model and pricing schemes rather than adjust. No different than any other business, really.
To illustrate the laziness, I found some really nice 52 and 59 Topps at the show by digging thru a dealer's inventory who I had seen several times at this show but had never looked thru his stuff because it always looked like junk. Imagine my surprise when I stopped by his table out of boredom and after 30 minutes dug up some nice 52 Topps (scans later tonight). I asked him where he got it, and he said "I decided to break my personal set because I got tired of chasing the high numbers." So there's me and who knows how many other customers who would've scarfed the stuff, but never knew about it until I started digging. How much effort does it take to create a simple sign "52 Topps set break, many nice cards" and place it on his display? Five minutes maybe?
Honestly, some of these dealers should quit the hobby and go work for the automotive industry, they'd be perfect fits.
Buying Vintage, all sports.
Buying Woody Hayes, Les Horvath, Vic Janowicz, and Jesse Owens autographed items