Quote:
Originally Posted by John V
For never having attended a National, I'm surprised at the variety and amount of material.
Two questions:
Is everything displayed, for sale or is there a lot of "For Display Only" items?
Also, is there plenty of "negotiating" like typical card shows?
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John,
In general I would say that few dealers bring "display only" items with them. The exceptions are auction houses that will display items that will be in their upcoming auctions. (I suppose another example would be dealers who price items so high they have no chance of selling them, which in effect means they're "For Display Only.")
As for negotiating, I can't imagine anyone not trying to move a dealer off of his or her sticker price. Most times there is some room for movement. Some folks will tell you that Sundays are the best time to deal, but I really think it's a situation that's dictated by the dealer.
If a dealer has had a great show Wednesday through Saturday, he might not be as inclined to negotiate on Sunday. And the reverse is true, too.
Here's a first-hand example that I experienced Wednesday night, within 20 minutes after the show opened: A dealer had $900 on a basketball set I wanted. I offered $700, and he countered with an offer to "meet in the middle" at $800. Because the set needed some upgrades, I really felt that my offer was fair, so I stuck to it.
"Boy, if this were Sunday it would be an easy decision to make," the dealer said before finally accepting my offer.
There obviously were other factors (how much he had in the set, how long he had been taking it to shows, etc.), but I think it illustrates that buyers have to be ready to make offers and counteroffers.