[acedoc1]

Well im sure there are LCS owners on here or at least collectors who have been buying from LCS for years. Im recently getting back into collecting and I had a couple questions. First let me start by saying that I don't mind supporting my LCS, but lets face it the economy is the economy. Also this forum is basically coming from a experince I had this christmas with a gift. My wife got me some cards for Christmas and lets just say she got me 2 boxes from the lcs, but online she coulda got 4 boxes Ok with that being said
1st question
Is it normal for items at a LCS to be way more expensive then online?
2nd Question
Is it ok to bargain with a LCS? Or is that rude
3rd question
If LCS marks up what is a fair price and where do you draw the line
Like to point out a couple of facts so you guys understand where im coming from and I dont want to offend anybody
Fact 1
I understand by buying at a lcs you get the cards there and now instead of waiting online for shipping and the hassle that can go along with it
Fact 2
There are some great places online that Ive never exp any of that and they have great prices

[Krangry]

Some online Stores (Blowout Cards etc) Are charging you just about bottom price. Your LCS is most likely paying for that price, then marking up to make the necessary profit for rent / expenses etc. The LCS close to me has really competitive prices (usually within 5$ on box price) so i dont have to worry much about markup. I have only ordered online if its a product my LCS cant get in due to price hikes or whatever it may be. It is fine to bargain on cards, im not sure about boxes etc.

[ceocards]

1st question
Is it normal for items at a LCS to be way more expensive then online?

A few dollars more is typical, as LCS's have a lot more overhead to pay for than many online shops. By the time you factor in shipping costs and time, though the two should be relatively (within 10%) close.

2nd Question
Is it ok to bargain with a LCS? Or is that rude

If you're a long time customer or someone who is making a large purchase, I don't think haggling a bit would be considered rude. If you're a first time customer buying $10 worth of cards, it's probably out of line.

3rd question
If LCS marks up what is a fair price and where do you draw the line

What do you mean by 'mark up'? Any business has set prices in excess of what they paid for the items, or they won't be in business very long.

[keyser soze]

It is 100% OK to haggle with a LCS. Here is a typical scenario when I go to my LCS. He has a card for $20. I pull out my phone, open my eBay app, look up the item, and show him where that item commonly sells for $10. I'll tell him that I am willing to pay him more money, just not that much more, and offer him $15, he almost always takes it. Many card shops have cards that sit on their shelves for years and they never update the price tags, so even they know that a lot of them are outdated and overpriced and will work with you

My LCS also has boxes WWWAAAAAAYYYYYYY overpriced. A few weeks back he had a box of 2011 A&G for like $125. I show him where I can buy at Blowout for $70 dlvd, and he made a comment like "well I can't even get that price from my distributor", to which I said "then maybe you should make Blowout your distributor", and I bought 3 boxes of Bowman Draft from BO.

[acedoc1]

THANKS for all the great replies. Yes i understand that LCS has a buisness to run and I respect that. I actually like buying at a LCS cause you get it there and now. Ok so it sounds like within 10% on average or 10 bucks to every 100 on average. Yeah I think my just got burned a little cause the two boxes I could get online right now shipped for about $130 and she paid about $230. Another big reason im asking these questions is cause the guy told here he was giving here a deal. and IMO thats not a very good deal. Thanks guys really appreciate the insight

[Krangry]

What kinda Boxes did ya buy?

[ceocards]

Yeah I think my just got burned a little cause the two boxes I could get online right now shipped for about $130 and she paid about $230. Another big reason im asking these questions is cause the guy told here he was giving here a deal. and IMO thats not a very good deal. Thanks guys really appreciate the insight

Yeah, if he charged her nearly double what the going rate was online (and especially tried to pawn it off as a "deal") I don't think I'd be shopping there any more.

[acedoc1]

2011 topps chrome bowman chrome baseball. its kinda pissing me off right now as I get this feedback. I mean my wife is cool enough to buy me cards for christmas, and she also just picks boxes up for me randomly throughout the year as gifts. It just sucks cause she doesnt use ebay or blowoutcards which is what I use most of the time, and I like the gifts guess I will just have to teach her lol

[mikmouse24]

THANKS for all the great replies. Yes i understand that LCS has a buisness to run and I respect that. I actually like buying at a LCS cause you get it there and now. Ok so it sounds like within 10% on average or 10 bucks to every 100 on average. Yeah I think my just got burned a little cause the two boxes I could get online right now shipped for about $130 and she paid about $230. Another big reason im asking these questions is cause the guy told here he was giving here a deal. and IMO thats not a very good deal. Thanks guys really appreciate the insight

acedoc, i would not do business with that LCS anymore as he took advantage of your wife in that purchase. YES LCS and any other retail shop has to have profit margin. But there is a moral issue going on here. IF your wise said " i can get that from DACARDWORLD for $100 cheaper" he would have dropped the price..and even then if he didnt drop price..thats another reason not to shop there...

My town has 2 card shops- one in the Mall, where the guys are douchebags and have everything priced at DOUBLE of blowoutcards..and the dude downtown that KNOWS what blowout and Ebay are selling boxes for and either matches or is within 5-$15 bucks...

HAppy hunting my friend, but again- that LCS is doing bad biz, dont give them the time of day

[juda7]

Yeah Ace I feel your pain. I have an LCS here in Santa Barbara and the guy charges $130 + 7.75% tax for 2011 Bowman Chrome/Topps Chrome. It's pretty ridiculous the prices that come out of the owners mouth.