Ticked off LCS?

I haggle at car dealerships, antique stores, second hand stores, pawn shops, wal mart, gun shows, lowes and every other place that sells something if I don't agree with the price. I'm not disrespectful about it, but I also don't always have the time to drive to the next store/shop/venue in hopes that they priced the item right.

My time is also valuable and as such if we aren't too far off from a realistic price then I will always shoot a reasonable counter offer over the bow, as it saves my valuable time scouting out another item that fits my need.

Well FWIW, what I said from your perspective may not be what you wrote, but it's the general idea I garnered from it.

I still feel that I am right about the haggling though, as you've admitted that folks who think like you and have that inside knowledge are few and far between just as 'good dealers' are sparse.

So until a good dealer proves he is a good dealer I would rather treat him with respect and carry on with my business as I see fit, which includes haggling if the price isn't fair to both parties.

And I am also right about not needing dealers, especially now in the digital age. As a collector it is our duty to know what we are buying and scout it out. We will go to wherever the coins are. However without a buyer the dealer has nothing. It's just that simple.

Sure we can fudge the line between collectors who sell and straight out dealers, but I'm positive the hobby would be fine without dealers. They make things easier, but it wouldn't be impossible to acquire coins if they didn't exist.

The only thing you need for any collection is somebody issuing something and another person willing to hoard it. Dealers are just a by product of so much demand that they filled a void.

Here's an example of collecting coins without a dealer. Buying from the mint. They issued it and we are willing to collect it. Anything they have produced can be found through purchasing from a collector (how else does a dealer get coins but by buying from collectors or the issuer) or by purchasing it when it came out.

I'm not against dealers by the way, just saying the hobby could exist just fine without them, although it's a hypothetical as we both know that will never happen.

 

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I think this is a great way to ask...if you want to haggle. This is the way I always ask. I very politely ask "if they would accept $X for a piece." Normally if they won't, they will kindly decline and then I say, "OK, thank you." I think if you are polite and respectful, you get a long way. But, I don't haggle very often either.

 

I was a dealer for 12 years and just shelved the business because I am doing strictly auctions now. Just about every dealer I know expects haggling. They hate it, but pricing of coins is subjective. (I dont care what blue sheet says) Granted, I specialize in ancients but at 90% of shows I set up at I was always right by world and US dealers. Dealers even haggle with each other!

The problem is that the lines have gotten blurry between what a professional dealer is and a collector that thinks of himself as a dealer but actually has a fulltime job and really does "dealing" as a hobby. A dealer is a salesman in addition to being a numismatist. Unless you are dealing in commoditized products prices are not set in stone. When you go to Best Buy they are working on sometimes 2% margin. A coin dealer would go out of business working on anything less than 30% and it gets much higher the cheaper the coin because it basically takes the same amount of work and money to sell a $50 coin as it does to sell a $5,000 coin.

Alfred

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The opposite meaning that it is expected that a dealer is much more knowledgable concerning value than a collector.

Look at older issues of the Numismatist from the past few years. I am pretty sure they used this as a hypothetical of a ANA arbitration.

Alfred


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50% of my business at shows came from customers that haggled on everything. Usually it was a simple "is this the best you can do?".

Think of it this way. You are a dealer with 100K of your money tied up in inventory. You have bills due and at least 20% of your inventory has been in your inventory for at least 6 months. Wouldnt you rather have someone ask if you are willing to give a discount and make $25 on a coin marked $100? Or would you rather sit on it another 6 months to get the full $100? (Making you an extra $15-25 but not really, because the longer you hold inventory the more it actually costs you and the less you have to buy fresh inventory which makes your customers happy and draws more lookers, etc.)

Alfred


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It really comes down to who wants/needs the sale more. The customer wanting the coin or the dealer wanting the sale. A dealer with a great customer base doesn't put up with a few problem customers because he doesn't need them. A customer with a lot of options for buying coins isn't going to put up with poor customer service.

 

how do you haggle at walmart?

 

I was thinking the same thing...and Lowe's.

 

Show 'em documentation that you can buy it somewhere else cheaper..........

 

Ah green...not what I had in mind. I was imagining someone at the checkout saying, "I'll give you $45 for these, cash now."

It's just funnier.

 

yeah thats using a coupon or price matching, not haggling

 

Whatever works..........

 

This is what I do...it works.

 

maybe in the past however with online venue's this is no longer the case. ebay is the biggest coin dealer in the would and they only charge a 13% ish charge. much less then any dealer will. I have never seen a dealer who only charges 12% or less. every dealer could go out of business today, with trades still occurring in an online manner.

my experience in my own field is people are very resistant to change and moving to utilize and incorporate new techniques into use. especially when they have multiple decades in the field. they continue to quote the old gems that really are no longer valid. you can say anything you want, but with 500,000 us coin lots and 120,000 us only pcgs and ngc lots ebay is already taking over. it is just a matter of time until online business takes the rest. who wants to give a dealer 20% or more when ebay only takes 13%. ill agree to your statement that dealers are needed when you can show me a dealer with even just 10% of ebays coins.

 

I don't consider ebay a dealer. It would be like saying the FUN Show is the biggest dealer in Fla.

I think if there were no dealers the supply of coins would dry up.

 

Here are some scenarios I have seen at coin shows when asking a dealer for a price:

1. The dealer gives a price off the top of his head without even looking too closely at the coin. It is usually fair, and if I like/want it, I will typically buy it with no haggling.

2. The dealer either looks at the price on a sheet of paper behind the table or at a code or perhaps a price on the back of the 2x2 and gives you a number. I typically find these prices high and negotiable. They now know exactly how much they are into a coin, and you can haggle to get a better deal.

3. The coins are all not marked with a code/price. You ask the dealer for a price even for his/her best price. They then pull out the Red Book. I say thanks, have a nice day, and move on.

Doug is right. You have to do your homework before the show or bring some resources with you to know what a fair price is for you at that moment. Fair price is going to vary from dealer to dealer. TC

 

Most of the decent stuff on ebay is sold by dealers.

When you have a problem with a coin on ebay who are you going to return it to?

Alfred

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By maybe purchasing something that isn't selling. It's not often, and it sure isn't everything (most times their items are priced fair) but it can and has been done (also keep in mind Wally World has to subsist on high turnover rates, so not much sits around) Same as Lowes. I actually worked for lowes so I saw it happen first hand.

My point, aside from all the bickering, is I am going to question anyone who tries to separate me from my money if I don't agree on the price.

For the record I've purchased not one, but two guns off the shelves at wal-mart for an offer price. They stayed there too long (much like some coins) and were reduced or priced accordingly. I went in, seen the guns and asked if they would take $XXX.XX for it. I now have a Henry .22 Lever Action rifle for a fair price, other gun was Winchester .300 magnum rifle. Completely separate occasions.

Again, not every situation is like that, but the point is it can be done. Same as in Lowes. Next time you are in one check out their scratch and dent aisle for appliances. MAKE A REASONABLE OFFER, they will take it. Also, if you buy quite a bit from them fairly often, you can ask and likely get a discount. Also applies to items that are generally for contractors but if you buy enough they can work with you too.

I guess my biggest fault is that I manage my money and try to retain every hard earned dollar that I receive. I smartly shop as much as I can.

And let me say this again, I do NOT disrespect store owners or dealers and just lowball everything I see. I purchase many things for whatever the asking price is. However if I see an opportunity to save a few bucks or I think the deal is lopsided I am not afraid to speak up.

"A fool and his money are soon parted". I like to think that I am no fool, and don't rightly care if someone gets offended by my preference and methods. I look after what's best for me and mine. Until you enter that circle, I don't owe you anything but common courtesy and mutual respect.

Doug, a dealer only sells to other dealers so that they can then sell to collectors. Again it's a hypothetical, but the hobby would function without the dealer, not so without the collector.

The US Mint is the supplier, first and foremost, coin dealer is mandate number 2. They are also unique in the fact that no other dealer actually physically produces the majority of coins collected. If the mint only produced coins for circulation and didn't sell anything to collectors, you would still have people collecting coins. If they only sold to collectors and didn't make anything for circulation they wouldn't exist.

So as a collector I can: buy from the mint, pull from circulation, attend auctions, mail into auctions, buy through online auction houses, trade on various forums and social media, buy through the classifieds, attend coin clubs and swap meets, put out want ads, and the list can go on and on.

A dealer has 3 options.

1) Sell to the collector.

2) Sell to the next dealer, who at some point has to offload to the collector base

3) Not exist

And again, I agree that dealers are very much appreciated and an integral part of this hobby, they are invaluable resources if you are seriously in the market for really good coins, and they do fill a needed gap. Still at the end of the day we could collect without them, not saying it would be easier as it would be quite a bit harder, but it could be done easier than the hobby remaining in tact without collectors.

 

Harbor Freight coupons.

Doesn't work every time, and you have to buy a product similar to something HF sells, but when it does....

I've had similar luck at Home Depot.