What was the worst time you have had in a coin shop

Oh guys...my story is still sad.

Several years ago I visited my favourite coin shop.
In the queue before me stood an elderly man with several Double Eagles, all Liberty Heads.
He asked for a price to sell them.
Standing behind him I saw that two of them had a cc mintmark and were in circulated condition.
The man in the coin shop gave him the price of gold for all gold coins and negotiated the speciality of the Carson Coins.
Several days later the coin dealer sold the Carsons for big money

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

That sucks. I'd almost want to step in and act as agent for the elderly man. Since it wasn't my transaction, I'd also think to keep out of it. It's tough to say unless I was there at the time.

One thing is for sure, I would not be frequenting that coin shop. That dealer would have lost all credibility with me.

 

I went in one and haven't been the same since

 

Given that coin shops are not common, you would think the successful ones would be the ones who coddled customers. Ok, its a business, but its not a fungible "product" like a loaf of bread.
My worst experience was when I wanted to sell some of my collection and went to a local dealer who advertises heavily. Not only did he make me wait forever, while trying to control a bored toddler, but his offer was insulting! I think he thought I had stolen them, and would be impressed. That, added on to the insulting offer, left a bad taste in my mouth.
I heard that years later, they have become like the dealer in the above post. A couple of slippery guys behind a counter, no coins whatsoever, who primarily make a living low-balling the recently widowed.

 

I guess my worst coin shop experience (and I'll generalize here, because I had similar experiences at more than a few coin shops in the Chicago area) was this:

1) Walk into coin shop.
2) See lots of proof and mint sets everywhere...on shelves, in safes, in the DISPLAY CASES.
3) Ask to look at proof and mint sets.
4) Be told "We don't have any for sale."
5) Say, "What about these right here, or those over there?"
6) We don't let people look at them.

WHO DOES BUSINESS LIKE THAT?

It's sad to say that's not the worst Chicago area coin shop experience. By far it was this:

1) Walk into coin shop with my ex-girlfriend, who was really hot (but a jerk, using a polite word to adhere to forum rules.)
2) Coin shop owner is super cool, shows me some coins, I buy a few, we talk coins, I say I'll come back on Monday with more money to buy some more coins.
3) I go back on Monday without my ex. Coin shop owner from the start treats me like I just shot his favorite pet and then pooped in his bowl of Wheaties. Shows me one tray filled with those "Coins of the wild west" sets - you know the ones with the ugliest possible coins in them.
4) Owner tells me I am going to buy them for about three times over what they'd bring even at an auction with two idiot buyers in a bidding war against each other over it.
5) I am perfectly honest with him that I am very interested in the coins I was looking at during the previous visit, that I have brought money with me to spend, and that the coins he wants me to buy have a realistic value of around 20 cents each. On a good day. But I say it politely.
6) Owner again states that I am going to buy those coins or nothing at all.
7) Before I even answer, owner states that he is a multi-millionaire and doesn't have time to sell one coin at a time to someone who won't buy the coins he wants to sell (keep in mind I brought about $3k with me, since he'd showed me the bags and bags of coins he had in the safe. He'd also said he'd let me look at them (when my ex was there.)
8) I politely decline to buy the set he had in hand.
9) Owner begins cursing me out (screaming every curse word in the book) and tells me to get out of his store. Keep in mind I have been perfectly polite to him, and all I did was say I wouldn't pay $50 for a set with two cleaned/damaged dateless Buffalo nickels in it.
10) I leave, never to return.
11) Chicago is a pit of despair wrapped in a gas station burrito.
12) Still, I would be okay with the Cubs winning the World Series if only for the cool factor that Back To The Future said they would do it this year.
13) Chicago coin dealers can go (WE ARE EXPERIENCING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES, PLEASE STAND BY.)

I'd like to state that there was ONE dealer in the Chicago area I visited that was perfectly polite, professional, and I'm sad I can't remember their name, because they specialized in world coins. ONE.

 

I was in a shop and "Ma/Pa Kettle"(hayseeds) come in with their inherited coins,the owner(hope he gets cancer) sends me out while he fleeces the poor people behind a locked door.God bless you for keeping the kid from being robbed!

 

I have to wonder how many collectors have decided to cash it in because of dealings with dealers.....

 

Both jerks.

I'm glad that I don't live there.

I would NOT have been polite, just showed my cash and told he where to go.

 

Well, at that point, I wouldn't have been surprised to see him lock the door and shoot me. I don't hang around crazy people any more than I have to.

 

agreed, good move.

But, I probably would have crank called him.



[From a phone booth, if you can find one.]

 

The internet has done to the coin stores what it did the model railroading hobby shops. I drive about 70 miles round trip to get items for my railroad layout from a friendly, helpful expert with a large stock. There is a shop near me but I would rather gnaw off my left arm than have to deal with the owner, his less than stellar stock and his preoccupation with helping radio airplane customers.

With both coins and trains, a person's first experience is likely to be with a local dealer. A lot of them make "the hell with this" easy to say.

 

No horror story here. There is no LCS where I live in SoCal. But I do have a question:

What is it about numismatics that attracts such horrible people to become dealers?

If you read any of the popular forums (such as CoinTalk) 99% of those who participate are really great, kind, caring, helpful people who have a natural pride for the treasures they've gathered during their life. I guess it must be that collectors, like us, don't end up as dealers. Apparently they are two distinctly different and unrelated species. I had never considered that before. I always thought that dealers were collectors who are lucky enough to earn their living through the hobby. I guess that is not the case. Most of the dealers mentioned here have no love of collecting. You and I could (and do) spend hours talking about coins. The dealers mentioned here don't really enjoy talking about the hobby. Humph! Learn something new everyday. Jack

 

You will find some collectors who become dealers. My favorite one lives twenty miles from me. He loves talking with people about coins. Guess I am lucky.

 

That's actually really good to hear. And, I shouldn't be so quick to paint with a broad brush. The topic called for "worst cases", and so it really isn't fair for me to make any assumptions. You are the proof that there are great dealers out there and they probably don't get enough credit for the help that they give. It might be interesting if another thread were to discuss the wonderful dealers that have helped us all along on our collecting journey. I'm sure there are many great examples. Jack

 

I wonder what percentage of total profit the average dealer receives through trading in bullion. Is it just me or are numismatic coins just a side business for many of them? Trading in a high volume low margin commodity product requires someone with a lot of street smarts, a skill set that may not include a lot of happy, friendly people who thrive on serving customers. With the Internet taking so much margin away from numismatic material it's hard to imagine anyone making a living solely on that with a brick and mortar store.

 

I would think that the profit margin is pretty thin for coin shops when you consider the the expenses involved in running a brick and mortar store. Also the internet has probably taken its toll on B&M shops.
They probably have to make at least a 50% mark-up to stay in business. You can't pay retail and sell for retail.
This is the shop owners lively hood, this is just my hobby.

 

I'll go out on a limb and say that he accidentally put meth or bath salts on his Wheaties instead of sugar that morning. Sounds like he has some screws that need tightening...

 

I have had some very good experiences with my local coin shop owner; but lately that has changed drastically. He always gives me $1 lower than spot and rounds off purchases in my favor. I ask him to keep a look out for 90% and silver world coins; to include paper Euro (he gives me a 1:1 exchange). The problem lately has been that he is NEVER there. He has to do things for his wife; who is a crazy woman. She looks like a man and totally controls him.

I have witnessed her come in and take all the gold coins in the display and tell her husband that she is taking them for the kid’s college education. The guys in the shop believe that this is B.S. but really and truly this is none of our business. At times he leaves an incompetent individual in charge (when he is out for the afternoon or lunch) who has lost money for him in the past (he doesn't know how to count) by short changing a transaction in favor of the customer. He destroyed an entire binder of old silver $10 silver certificates. Plus, he is very rude to customers. The shop owner has recently fired him.

Well back to the OP question. I went into the shop and silver spot was at $15.38 and he had some 90% and I asked him that I would take $20 worth of it. He told me that he "bought" the silver at $16.25 at OKC and that was the price he would charge minus my $1 discount. I told him that it was not my fault that silver dropped and if he advertised silver at $15.83 then that should be the price he charges.

But here is the kicker. I called one day and asked for $10 worth of 90% and he told me that the current spot price was $14.83 and we agreed on that price. I told him I would come in the next day and pick it up. I came in the next day and silver rose to $15.25 and that he had to adjust the price. I told him to forget it and he asked me why.

I said to him that he is double dipping by charging a higher price (because he bought it at that price) when the current spot price is down; and then taking advantage of silver rising and charging me because it went up overnight. I think it is unethical as we had agreed on a price and then he changes it. He is losing money at his shop because he is never there and now he is trying to make it up by using his regular customers to make up the slack.

I know some of the shop owners here on these forums will probably defend his actions and that is their right. It is also my right to disagree and call it "unethical". I believe you can't have it both ways. That is JMHO.