I Remembered Today Why I Stopped Going To Coin Shows

Not only should you never feel like bothering someone that is there to make a profit. If you do ask someone without a posted price, look amazed and say WHAT? How much? Even if you had no intention of buying it. It's fun? Or do as I do and say to bad you don't have any prices on your stuff. I did see some I liked but with no idea of how much, I'll just go elsewhere. It is still best to just ignor those dealers. Since most will try to see how much you look like you can afford. Good luck and remember it's all in FUN.

Not only that, but if they don't price their merchandise, they may have learned that getting a customer to ask a question is the way to generate a sale. Or perhaps they feel it weeds out the lookie-loos.

Or maybe they're just the kind who enjoys haggling. IMO, that's something third world countries have in common (and will keep them there).

Most of the shows I go to do not have that many dealers, so if I am going to pass by every one that doesn't mark their coins with sticker-prices I may as well not even go. I'd prefer they all marked them, but it doesn't prevent me from asking what they want for a coin when they don't. Probably 2/3 of the dealers deal in coins or stuff I have no interest in ( bullion, bills, foreign coinage, cheap well circulated coins, denominations I'm not interested in, or whatever ). So if I find a coin I am interested in, of course I won't hesitate to ask about it or engage the dealer, sticker or not. I just make sure they aren't already busy ( I come back to them later if they are ).

I do tend to walk-away if the first coin I ask about comes back with a ridiculously over-priced offer. I rule out dealers that try to gouge, IOW.

I don't think you should preclude anyone that doesn't mark, nor should you EVER voluntarily fork over full price. There is one dealer that frequents the shows I attend who won't haggle at all. That is fine! But he is the oddball. EVERYONE else will come off of their sticker price or initial offer at least some. Some love to haggle, others do it begrudgingly it seems, but paying the first quote or sticker just is not a good idea. Almost all of them have a 10%, 20% sometimes even more "cushion" factored in. Paying their asking price is just not very smart! On lower-end coins they may only come down a few bucks, or 5 or 10, but almost all will haggle some. I have walked away from some offers - only to have them be the "starting spot" for further haggling a month later. So it isn't always a waste of time if they won't meet your desires the first try.

I think the part about non-sticker that can annoy me the most is when some of the dealers will then take A LONG TIME to quote a price. They have to look it up here and there etc. Particularly when they come back with a price so high there is no use in haggling or talking about it. If you are going to try to rip me off or gouge, then at least make the offer fast and don't waste both of our times! I'm also typically more "turned off" by ridiculously over-graded coins than by no-sticker ones. Seems I can typically haggle over pricepoint, but when they claim a F15 is an XF40, or an AU53 is a MS63, there is just no room for a compromise at all.

JMHO

Everyone's entitled to their system. My philosophy is that if I'm taking the time to check several price guides, grade and price a coin, then that's the price I expect to get for it. Now quantity purchases, that's open for pencil sharpening.

Everything should be priced, preferably with price stickers imprinted with the business name. That's how "real" businesses do things. Can you imagine buying a week's worth of groceries and haggling the price on each item? I suspect that's how third world countries manage to stay that way.

After spending an hour reading this entire thread, I must say it was very interesting.

As one who loves to attend coin shows, I don't feel "put off" by dealers who aren't friendly or don't post their prices. There is always another one at the next table. I used to be bothered by the dealers who did not list their prices on the front. I am just used to it now. And if I see a coin or group of coins that I am interested in, I won't hesitate to ask to see the coin. I will always look at both sides of the coin before I ask the price. I try not to bother a dealer who is busy with someone else and I will come back later if he has coins that I want to see. I love to chat with the dealers when they are not busy. The ones that I like, I will buy something from them the next time I see them at a show.

I was just at a show this week and I was standing at a dealers table with another dealer standing beside me. The selling dealer said the price marked on the back was the price he paid for the coin and he would accept from the other dealer any amount above that price. This is the first time I have ever heard someone say this. I was at another dealers table and I asked about a silver maple leaf. The dealer said they were $2.25 above spot price. Then someone came over to him behind the table and said it was $2.75 for non-dealers (or something like that). It seemed a bit unfair to me, but I said nothing and the first guy sold it to me at his quoted price.

There are two types of dealer, the bourse dealer and the store dealer, I owned my own store and believe me there are just as many rude customers as I am sure there are rude dealers.
I never priced my coins accept for mint and proof sets as they retained there value over a longer period of time, my Raw and slabbed coins were just on display and if you were interested we could haggle over the price, if the price was out of reach, I did lay away as well, that is how I sold most of my gold.
I have been retired now for 6 months and, aaah the bliss..

Just carl, did you find any albums at your last show? :D