I like making these and seeing the input. So, collector dilemmas!
As I’m sure we all have, I have certain sites and contacts that I use in order to get a good portion of the cards for my collection at a good deal. Almost always when I post a YouTube video of the cards I recently got or something like that (not so much here) I get comments/messages from random people asking me where I got the cards.
Now I usually answer ‘eBay’ if the card is English or a common Japanese one, or ‘Yahoo Japan’ if it’s some rare Japanese card. Of course I’m not lying, because I do get cards from eBay and Y!J, but I’m leaving out important details like seller names, links, and all manner of stuff that could help the person actually get cards of the same quality and price.
My opinion on this is pretty straightforward: if you’re seriously into the hobby, you should do all the searching that I have done and find sources for yourself. I’m not going to just give away where I get the majority of my cards.
On the other hand, I’m sure I would appreciate it if someone passed along a valuable source of cards to me. But I don’t usually ask about it because I know how annoying I find it. For example, I recently heard that TCG Republic is basically a middleman for international buyers for a different Japanese store. I would love to know what the original seller is so I can remove the middleman and hopefully get some of the cards they have at better prices, and hope to find some in good condition.
So, my question to all of you is this. First, do you have a secret source of cards? Second, what is it? Lol, jk. Seriously though, have you been asked about your sources before and are you intentionally vague in your responses, if you respond at all? And perhaps the real question this thread is asking: How do you balance helping other collectors with your own personal interest?
There isn’t really a middle ground for me. My typical response is the classic ‘ebay ’ to most people, which really isn’t that helpful. Mainly I just can’t be bothered explaining middleman services.
There are a handful of people though who I’ll share a seller or a particular search with in it’s entirety. We’ll just call dibs on things, and respect what each other are going after. It works surprisingly well.
You raise a valid point about not wanting everyone to know all sources because ultimately it could jeopardise your ability to collect like you do currently.
There are two points I would like for people to consider though in response to your statements.
Does my contact have the capacity to supply a significant portion more than what I bring to them? The jist of this is simple. Am I actually doing my seller an injustice by not bringing them more clients? Do they have the capacity to sell more items whilst not impacting on current supply/demand?
When asking or looking for help I always try and go by the mantra, give first, receive second. What I am trying to say is that you should always be willing to give people advice or help that spurs them along and in turn these people may unlock avenues that may help you in the long term.
This isn’t too disimilar to the ancient Australian proverb, “don’t step on people’s feet, because those feet may be attached to the arse you have to kiss next week.”
Help your fellow collectors out within the bounds you think are possible. No one here expects insider information from every source. Give first, receive second.
My inbox is always open to the prospect of “current Japanese cards in gem condition at good pricing” advice. Being new to this, I really have limited experience and thus zero contacts that are of benefit to others.
I’m actually on the other side of this. I have some very big sellers who get most their stuff from me. The agreements are “privacy and exclusivity” which is why I haven’t added anybody in 4 years. 2 have been with me for over a decade and a half.
I still sell a little on my own, usually 200 to 500 listings on eBay along with personal sales to friends. 90% of my buys go to those sellers.
You wouldn’t get to your status any other way mate
I think for the most part though, if you can get good deals and your supplier has plenty to go around, then help people who need it most. You don’t need to advertise it, but a few PM’s here and there.
I don’t really support keeping secrets regardless of how hard I work finding the source. That being said I tend to avoid posting sources in an open forum where everyone can see to avoid bugging the seller. It should be kept to pm at least. If the seller requests not to be know then I will comply. I enjoy finding cards and want others to complete their goals as well.
There are certain types of “collectors” that probably shouldnt have any special source revealed to them, aka the people that buy all of the stuff they can just so they can resell it to people without the knowledge to know any better. Ive known collectors from instagram that have abused yahoo japan just so they could sell overpriced cards to the users of instagram.
But otherwise, there isnt much of a reason in hiding all of the good stuff from the true collectors.
I have two rather large problems with this. AmiAmi has been discovered by nearly everybody. Now many “newer” booster boxes are Sold Out and don’t get re-stocked. And Noodles on Ebay. He used to be my main supplier for Japanese singles and now WakeRunCollapse and other people have made him well known. I’m not happy about it because now to even win an auction from him in Near-Mint or so condition your going to pay more than its worth… Let alone even finding a good deal anymore. As he lists most thigs at auction. I liked getting older Ex cards for him for $1 each about a year ago and now they are costing me atleast $10 each… Not cool.
I hate to be that guy but…with AmiAmi, all you have to do is preorder early and you’re covered. If you waited until now to preorder XY8, you’d be screwed. Ordering early eliminates all the problems with AmiAmi. And while some lots from noodles do go high, most of them are still great deals. I just recently picked up a bunch of nm-mint older stuff from him for fantastic prices. Yeah, I’m not paying $1 an old ex, but tbh, the lots are still worth more than the auction ending prices. Maybe the deals aren’t as mind blowing as before, but they’re still great.
I just won 3 Japanese TRR Ex’s from him for $31. Still high in my opinion. I obviously lost all the other auctions… As for AmiAmi, I do pre-order ahead of time. But I like buying more boxes of a set after it is realeased, but obviously couldn’t do that with Bandit Ring.
It is almost as if when a card is listed in auction, it earns what the people bidding are willing to pay. If you aren’t willing to pay whatever price it earns, don’t complain because someone else is willing to pay.
It is so easy to give a contact to the wrong person. I’ve even had friends who shared a source with someone close and then the recipient tried to make a profit middling between the source and the sharer. That kind of thing just seems disrespectful to me.
That said, I have connections because they were shared with me. I’ve probably only developed about 75% of my overall connections myself. A fair chunk were shared. And a lot are dormant because I believe that to use them respectfully and wisely is to use them to build up my collection solely. That was why they were shared, so that is to what I restrict my use of the sources.
Overall, I think the value of a source in and of itself is overrated. You need a network, not just sources. To make yourself available to help create a network that seeks to channel desired cards to willing buyers is to properly source. We would all be silly to never say “I need this card” to a community or select individuals and let them search for it. Offer, of course, compensation for time, as this is polite, but do not be so arrogant as to exclusively use “your sources.” You only hurt yourself.
So if you have sources, and they have you, in a proper network with willing participants that should be all the sharing anyone needs. You don’t have to cut yourself out of the middle.
I think that worrying about contact info falling into the wrong hands is a valid concern. However, I always like helping out fellow collectors, because at the end of the day, you can’t complete a collection without some help. Whether that help comes from TnT, Walmart or some random eBay seller, you’re going to need to get your collection from somewhere. Why not help out fellow collectors? I always respond to any questions others might ask me via PM, even if they’re asking me who or where I got a certain card from.
Alternatively, if you don’t feel comfortable with directly telling others who your contacts are, you can always act as a middle-man yourself. You ask your contact if they have the card the other person wants, and you forward any price info over to the potential buyer, without revealing who the seller is. I think it’s a win-win situation for all parties involved
You guys have been my best sources. Honestly. Ever since I’ve joined this forum, I have had many people come up to me without even asking to provide me about great deals and words from down the grapevine.
I think it’s not so surprising to figure out I’m not as hardcore of a collector as many others here. I don’t do as much research or spend as much time to look out for stuff. But my sources have never been more reliable than you guys.
As for the discussion. I think I would prefer if people shared sources under two main conditions: The one wanting the source is trustful. The source is okay with having that information provided.
well AmiAmi did tend to sell out before Wakeruncollapse, Jordanjapan, and other well known youtubers knew about it just now its much different and everyone knows about it so its abit harder to get. they still do restock from time to time just be on the lookout for it. I am on and off with my collection of stuff. I do reveal most of my sources to people if they are looking for specific cards but only a couple i keep to myself
I think on a forum like this, full of very high end collectors, I don’t think it would be a bad idea to share general sources, such as good shops and whatnot in order to avoid the bad shops (i.e Ebay scammers), though I can see why people don’t want to reveal singular sources.
I think some give and take should be applicable depending on the situation. Sometimes it should be PM-ed, othertimes, not.
’ to most people, which really isn’t that helpful. Mainly I just can’t be bothered explaining middleman services.
Not cool.