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Message:: [QUOTE="geekpryde, post: 1981395, member: 36248"] Interesting, I didn't know you did more wholesale to other dealers than retail to collectors, this surprises me since your site seems (at least to me) geared to showing of coins in a sight-seen retail environment.   I don't understand why someone would pay MORE to a large dealer, if anything, I pay those big-boys LESS, since I know my less-than-retail offers will not make OR break them.  I don't know if you consider TBN a boutique, but I'm going to call you that in the positive senses of the word.   Now, at a boutique I expect to pay more because in theory I'm getting value-added services, the personal touch, the relationship, and the specific expertise.   I also know that you are particularly stingy with the quality of the coins you stock, and there may be strike, toning, or other special qualities that increase the price beyond what some people would call full-retail.  Again, I would expect to pay more at a boutique, so either I'm a weirdo or you are not correctly attributing the causation.    I think you are much more close to the mark by saying that these larger dealers simply have a wider customer base, and more eyeballs on the coin sells it faster, even at a higher price.    I assume volume is one of the downsides to running a boutique. I totally agree with this observation, not that you need me to affirm you.  But for other collectors here, who may have the delusion that collecting all series can be approached with the same buying methodology.   Collecting common series in common grades, you can take your pick of coins from your pick of dealers, at the price you like.  For example, when I collected Kennedy Proofs and even when I first started my CAC Type Set, many of the coins I needed were readily available, and it was a "buyers market" for these Types.    As I gobbled up those easy coins at much cheaper than retail prices, all seemed good in the coin world.   As time went on, it became a little harder as I ran out of low hanging fruit.   In order to buy ANY coins, I had to evolve my buying behavior from always sniping at say 80% of retail or less, to something more thoughtful on a coin-by-coin basis.  I had to stop depending on eBay so much and start forming relationships with dealers.    It's getting harder and the premiums keep going up as I keep plugging the holes.    Some coins I want I may not see on eBay, HA, GC, SB, DLRC, NEN, others, but once per year.   In the past, when one does show up, my first reaction is "WOW", just finding the listing makes me fell like I've already won.   In some cases I thought I would be generous (ha!) and bid retail pricing, but in these seldom seen series meeting my criteria of <$350 and CAC and eye-appeal, I'm usually quickly outbid or my BIN offer is rejected and it sells at the asking price within hours to someone else.   Now, if I wanted to bid and lose on just a few similar examples, I may be waiting years sniping for these better dates.  Even then, there would be a 50/50 chance the prices would be even higher as time went on do I would have to keep adjust what I consider to be a "bargain price" higher.   Sometimes waiting costs more money, not less. So, as a collector, I have to decide if I want to wait years and years to find a similar coin at a price I really like and feel that a dealer didn't gouge me, or if I can engage a dealer and pay about what the dealer is asking, even if it is 20% more than a generic comparable.    As Tom said, "you may not want to ignore the pieces once found", and I totally agree.    I may ultimately still not be able to pay the asking price, but low-balling on these seldom seem coins is just not a practical strategy if the goal is to actually take the coin home.   So engaging and negotiating with a dealer is the only real sensible method IMHO, not simply walking to the next table for lack of pricing stickers.[/QUOTE]

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