[uvaspina]

thats just ending fees, not listing fees. though i only pay about 6 dollars a month in listing fees, with all the free listing they give me

but yep: for every dollar i sell - and for every dollar i charge for shipping: ebay takes 12 cents

Hmm. I thought it was 10% for fixed price and auction listings. You'd know better than me though, so I'll defer to you.

[DrMitchJ]

Not just traders but collectors in general are getting hard to find. When I was younger there were probably 20-30 collectors in my neighborhood that I knew of. I have kept in touch with most of them and I am the ONLY one still in the hobby and I constantly have one foot out the door ready to quit for good. It may be overstated but IMO this hobby is dying a death of a thousand cuts. I saw a box break last night for a $1000+ box of basketball cards. It's getting ridiculous.

Companies, like SBay, ripping off collectors is not helping the situation.
Topps needs to do a little implosion of products. Too Many Cards!
Keep high end cards, truly high end and maybe 2 imprints (1 Topps, 1 Bowman) keep all the rookie prospects exclusive to bowman and give collectors quality, not quantity. Autos and GU are flooding the market and are hardly a 'hit' anymore. Redemption cards are getting ridiculous and players not fulfilling their contractual obligations in a timely fashion shouldn't be signed to new auto contracts.
There are many things that need to change and bringing new collectors into the fold has to begin by making sure their first exposure to the hobby isn't a rip off like a SuperBox or a high end Topps/Bowman with low end players.

[nolan5000]

Companies, like SBay, ripping off collectors is not helping the situation.
Topps needs to do a little implosion of products. Too Many Cards!
Keep high end cards, truly high end and maybe 2 imprints (1 Topps, 1 Bowman) keep all the rookie prospects exclusive to bowman and give collectors quality, not quantity. Autos and GU are flooding the market and are hardly a 'hit' anymore. Redemption cards are getting ridiculous and players not fulfilling their contractual obligations in a timely fashion shouldn't be signed to new auto contracts.
There are many things that need to change and bringing new collectors into the fold has to begin by making sure their first exposure to the hobby isn't a rip off like a SuperBox or a high end Topps/Bowman with low end players.

+1 MILLION

[elbowmeat]

Like it or not, South Bay is easily one of the nicest shops in the country. They are also one of the largest.

Any and all repack products have a bottom line to meet, so there are going to be a lot of "dog" boxes/packs.

If the OP pulled something huge, this thread wouldn't exist...but like everything, the chances for the huge hit are slim.

[DrMitchJ]

Like it or not, there's a right way and a wrong way to do business.
I'm sure the store is nice and well stocked and every time there's a signing or a party there are always people having fun and ripping open terrific boxes. I don't have a problem with their retail operation. I have a problem with their ethics in repackaging. Ripping off the consumer with "a lot of "dog"boxes/packs" is total BS. In their ads they state that they revamped the superboxes to only be filled with high-end quality cards! At $179 per box, every single repack should have a minimum value ... Book value is inflated as compared to what SBay is buying their stock / merchandise for, so 'bottom line' be damned. If there isn't at least $100 BV worth of cards in there, it's criminal, IMO.
Now, If the re packs are considered a lottery, that's a different story. Compliance with every states gambling laws would be difficult and time consuming, but do the right thing ... state the odds, lable the product appropriately, otherwise the consumer is being illegally targeted and exploited.
It's cool to have a chase card to generate interest, but if that's the whole point to the superbox, then it ain't all that super.

[nolan5000]

Like it or not, there's a right way and a wrong way to do business.
I'm sure the store is nice and well stocked and every time there's a signing or a party there are always people having fun and ripping open terrific boxes. I don't have a problem with their retail operation. I have a problem with their ethics in repackaging. Ripping off the consumer with "a lot of "dog"boxes/packs" is total BS. In their ads they state that they revamped the superboxes to only be filled with high-end quality cards! At $179 per box, every single repack should have a minimum value ... Book value is inflated as compared to what SBay is buying their stock / merchandise for, so 'bottom line' be damned. If there isn't at least $100 BV worth of cards in there, it's criminal, IMO.
Now, If the re packs are considered a lottery, that's a different story. Compliance with every states gambling laws would be difficult and time consuming, but do the right thing ... state the odds, lable the product appropriately, otherwise the consumer is being illegally targeted and exploited.
It's cool to have a chase card to generate interest, but if that's the whole point to the superbox, then it ain't all that super.

+1 Well said!!

[DrMitchJ]

+1 Well said!!

Thanks, buddy!

[nolan5000]

Thanks, buddy!

You're Most Welcome buddy!!

[jblaze1718]

Open question: Does anyone ever fear that their high end bubble may burst some day? For example, an Allen & Ginter Red Framed Auto /10 is a well sought after card of almost any player. Do you feel that 10 years from now after they have released dozens of different Ginter titles with many framed /10 autos that the card will devalue just because it has lost its luster? I already feel like some of my superfractors are losing value as they produce more and more of them constantly.

[nolan5000]

Open question: Does anyone ever fear that their high end bubble may burst some day? For example, an Allen & Ginter Red Framed Auto /10 is a well sought after card of almost any player. Do you feel that 10 years from now after they have released dozens of different Ginter titles with many framed /10 autos that the card will devalue just because it has lost its luster? I already feel like some of my superfractors are losing value as they produce more and more of them constantly.

I don't think about the future value of my Nolan Ryans. I just buy what I like.