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Does it make any sense to pay retail?
291fifth
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Governments can print currency. Only the people can print faith in it — and they’re running low on ink.
number was not accurate. My one and only PCGS MS65 seated dollar purchase occurred that way at a smaller regional show. And ironically it was purchased from one
of the most well thought of high end/boutique type coin dealers in the country. And it wasn't really a much better date or variety, just a type coin. A year later that coin was
worth 50% more than I paid. Sometimes retail is wholesale...or lower. But much more often, retail is just a plain old burial. Another purchase from that same dealer included a
MS63 no drapery half at around CDN ask. That coin was worth about 50% more than that as bid/ask levels were totally inaccurate and there were few to no recent transactions to
figure that out.
I recall an exchange with a top PNG dealer at the 2003 ANA when I was trying to buy a seated coin from him. He was hesitant to provide a price knowing that maybe I knew
something about the coin he didn't. I told him I was willing to pay FULL retail for it. He then smiled at me and countered by saying he wanted "retail, retail." So I let it go at that.
That hit me as sort of strange since I just finished selling him a pair of nice coins that he chiseled the heck out of me on (PCGS MS67 Cincy and a PCGS MS66 seated half). It was
the last transaction I ever did with them. Hmmm, maybe "retail" and "chiseling" have something in common.
roadrunner
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
1) I want the coin
and
2) The price is fair (in my opinion)
then I
3) Buy the coin
Not real scientific but when dealing with collectible material, many times the concept of "retail" is relative anyway. One dealer's retail price may be close to another one's wholesale number. We don't see this as much in numismatics but it's very common in other hobby areas where pricing is less mainstream and more based on individual opinion, say antiques for example.
Bottom line...I don't care what you call the price....wholesale, retail, over retail etc if I #1 and think #2 then I do #3
<< <i>I guess it depends how you define retail. When you buy a coin from a dealer it is a retail purchase, so you are paying retail. >>
At large shows, I've sometimes bought a coin from a dealer and then sold it to another dealer for a small profit. Was this a retail purchase?
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
<< <i>Sometimes retail is wholesale...or lower. But much more often, retail is just a plain old burial. >>
There is one possible exception here. The one coin I've ever seen for which I was willing to write a blank check will probably never be available again during my lifetime. OTOH, I don't think there is a "gringo price" for said coin because of its scarcity.
"Seu cabra da peste,
"Sou Mangueira......."
Fellas, leave the tight pants to the ladies. If I can count the coins in your pockets you better use them to call a tailor. Stay thirsty my friends......
I gladly pay retail to firms I enjoy doing business with.
After all, I have an interest in keeping them in business.
I know some folks can't enjoy their purchases unless they get a 'deal' but I'm not wired that way.
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
Buy coins you want at prices you can justify, whatever the source.
Are you really asking about grey sheet pricing?
Price Guide Pricing?
Dealers BM Store Pricing?
Dealers Coin Show Pricing?
What?
The name is LEE!
<< <i>It's a sin to pay retail for anything... >>
If you're serious, you're the buyer I was referring to in my post.
To each his own.
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
For some items I don't have I'd happily pay "retail," and I would not be looking to flip it. I want it as a collector and have had no luck at finding it at all.
Buy coins you want at prices you can justify, whatever the source."
Practice makes perfect & nobody is perfect. So, practice being nobody and be perfect !
<< <i>
<< <i>I guess it depends how you define retail. When you buy a coin from a dealer it is a retail purchase, so you are paying retail. >>
At large shows, I've sometimes bought a coin from a dealer and then sold it to another dealer for a small profit. Was this a retail purchase? >>
Yes. However, sometimes a low retail price is more than a high wholesale price.
The wider definitions are dealer to dealer trades are wholesale, as are big bulk deals bought by dealers. A collector buying from a dealer is retail, though the collector might get a discount for buying bulk, or being a good customer. The lines do blur, but the terms still make sense.
Like another reply said, most of the time I don't have a choice. I only know a few collectors that sell, and rarely am I interested in what they are selling. All the rest comes from U.S. Mint or dealers.
Not really looking for much these days but if I were, it might be a toner.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
<< <i>Do coin dealers ever pay retail? >>
Yes, when they have a buyer in mind that they know would happily pay 20% more than retail just for the opportunity to get the coin. Very rare but it does happen.
Not really looking for much these days but if I were, it might be a toner.
I like to comment about the line between wholesale and retail being blurred more are more lately. I think the internet has a lot to do with that. But the bottomline (IMHO) is that a coin is worth what you are willing to pay for it (be it a dealer or a collector) and there really is not always a clear line between what is wholesale and what is retail. having said that, by definition wholesale is what a dealer pays for a coin, and retail is what a collector pays for a coin.
<< <i>Do coin dealers ever pay retail? >>
Yes, if it is for their personal collection. Otherwise, by definition, no. By definition, a dealer buying for resale is paying a wholesale price. Again, that price might be higher than some other dealers charge to their retail customers. Again there is a grey area where there is overlap and low retail prices might below some wholesale prices.
Again, coins are an unregulated market. There are no set prices, for retail or for wholesale, only guides. A single coin will often trade for a wide range of prices in a short time period. The range might be 300% or 400% from the low wholesale dealer offer in a bulk deal at a local shop, to the full boat retail price paid by a collector buying from a dealer. During that journey, a bunch of other dealers each make a cut on the coin. Again, the concept of a food chain is apt. The price a person pays depends on where that person is on the food chain. For most collectors, they don't have much choice, they pay retail because they are not high enough on the food chain. If the collector gets better access, they might pay low retail, which again, might be a better price than some dealers get their inventory for. If a collector buys from another collector that is in a grey area, as are some auction results.
But yes, I do if my sense of 'retail' is still within the concept of 'I like the coin enough to pay that'. I think we are in a hobby that has obvious 'end benefits' financially for the astute hobbyist, but in the end, if I like the coin (or holder), I will evaluate it as such and I don't care too much where it rests on the wholesale / retail spectrum.
Drunner
(Still a Doily Slut)
Given that definition, it only makes sense to pay retail if I plan to own the coin for a long time.
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
<< <i>Buy coins you want at prices you can justify, whatever the source. >>
<< <i>pay what the coin is worth to you- I don't get caught up in this retail wholesale stuff- Just not worth it >>
- Jim
<< <i>To my mind, "retail" means I can't get out of the coin immediately without taking a "meaningful" loss.
Given that definition, it only makes sense to pay retail if I plan to own the coin for a long time. >>
What he said...
NGC registry V-Nickel proof #6!!!!
working on proof shield nickels # 8 with a bullet!!!!
RIP "BEAR"