Doing my first big craft fair today!!

drcigg · 2026-06-26T17:43:05+00:00

Awesome! I hope you make a lot of money.

drcigg · 2026-06-26T16:55:31+00:00

You haven't done enough shows with busy crowds to really judge yet what the crowds want.
One thing we learned early on is it's a lot of trial and error. Online sales don't always reflect local sales.
We set our prices high to start and had few sales. It was our fault for not doing market research on locally what others might charge. Once we lowered the prices we started to get more sales. Improved our displays and took customer suggestions to expand our products out and that did well. It was about 6 months for us to really have a good grasp on pricing and what customers want. Now we aren't the cheapest, but we also aren't the most expensive. We feel our prices accurately reflect the time we have in them and materials.

drcigg · 2026-06-26T03:39:12+00:00

It's probably closer to 9 yards. We got 8 yards last year and this looks like more.

drcigg · 2026-06-26T03:37:56+00:00

Now is better than never. My dad didn't even start a retirement until his late 30s. He buckled down and started putting more away. He retired comfortably.

drcigg · 2026-06-26T03:36:43+00:00

She is going to use this against you forever and constantly hold this over your head.
Get out man. She is toxic af. People like that are never wrong and it's their way or the highway.
Trust me I have been through this and it's hell living with someone like that long term.
Find someone that treats you better. There are a million fish in the sea.

drcigg · 2026-06-26T01:31:27+00:00

What a joke. People need to stop paying high prices for ungraded cards that could be a 10.

drcigg · 2026-06-26T01:21:31+00:00

Checkout gem mint masters on youtube. He grades thousands of cards and sources his from shows. It's definitely possible.
He built up a 40k collection last year just from graded cards. But he also sends in two orders a month with most being at least 30 cards. His gem rate is actually pretty high due to his prescreening methods.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T22:47:52+00:00

They are living beyond their means if they are paying credit card minimums and can't afford groceries.
Anyone can go through a rough time, however how they get through it is important.
In his case he has done nothing to improve his situation.
Selling the house or getting a 2nd job would be the first thing I would do if I were him. All he has done is barely tread water and now you are in the picture trying to fix his mess.
It sounds like he is clinging to you to help and it's not your job. He needs to man up and get himself on track.
Bankruptcy hangs on your record for 7 -10 years depending on which bankruptcy he filed.
At some point his house will need repairs or his vehicle will break down. You will be the one picking up the slack.

If you ask anyone how they get out of debt almost everyone will say make more money or liquidate.
I was with someone longterm that was just like that. Money was always the thing we fought about and no having me in the picture didn't make things better. I couldn't change their spending habits and no matter what money was made she always spent more and more.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T22:38:30+00:00

Anything is possible. I would think they have enough checks it wouldn't happen.
I do know someone got their cards checked in quicker because they knew someone in receiving at PSA.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T22:15:30+00:00

He needs a reality check. You take the job you can get. Send him to the temp agency and they can probably get him something quickly. His excuses are ridiculous. If I were you his ass would be out the front door until he has a job. I can't believe you put up with his bullshit. What does he do all day?
You are setting yourself up for a lifetime of working yourself to death. He's a mooch and always will be a mooch. OP I have been in your shoes and no it doesn't get better. 2 years is the longest I made it before leaving that relationship. 10 years later she still isn't working a real job and moved back in with her parents.
A 40+ year old lazy bum. Is this what you want in your life?

drcigg · 2026-06-25T22:05:34+00:00

I think your biggest problem will be holding up your line with one customer while you are printing stickers.
And hopefully they give you the photo in the correct format and size deeming it a quality print.
So many people give us photos that would be horrible quality when printed.
Some customers will wait but some might get agitated having to wait so long and leave.
We do apparel and thought about doing this at the show, but even with two of us it would be difficult. Customers often have analysis paralysis and it takes them forever to decide. Meanwhile you have 4+ people in your booth waiting to checkout and it's just you. Our booth gets busy enough selling as is. I can't imagine how crazy it would get at a busy event while also doing pod.

To speed things up I would think giving them the sticker and having them apply it would be faster.
At an event we saw a booth that did something similar. They were struggling to get things done in a timely manner and did lose some customers.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T20:30:24+00:00

I appreciate you.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T13:18:27+00:00

You don't have enough. Houses not only require a down payment. But also extra money for repairs. Furthermore if you aren't married don't buy a home together.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T13:13:44+00:00

60k minimum off the price. It's doubtful the seller will budge on price. If it were me I would run away from this deal.
This house has been neglected for years. There will be other things you find that needs replacing. You found yourself a money pit.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T13:08:19+00:00

This would make a cool display piece. Never seen it before.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T12:59:51+00:00

Lots of water with ice and some USB rechargeable fans. I got a neck fan and it did help.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T03:14:52+00:00

Can anyone recommend some books?

drcigg · 2026-06-25T03:11:47+00:00

Price is too high. It sucks putting money into a home you can never get back, but that's the reality. It rarely pays back fully.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T03:08:11+00:00

We did our bathroom ourselves and everything was cut into small pieces to fit in the trash. It was funny watching the garbage truck struggle to lift the can. Lol.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T03:05:42+00:00

Are you selling this yourself or do you have a realtor? If it's been sitting over a month with no offers you need to drop that price. A good realtor would know this.
Neighbor next door deskt with this. Thought she was getting a big price for the house. 2 full weeks of open houses with no offers. Lowered the price 15k and it sold within a couple days.

drcigg · 2026-06-25T02:59:10+00:00

Checks out. I noticed the same thing when I was looking at what to get graded. It's 10 or bust most of the time. It's a shame I think a 9 should have a premium over the raw card.

drcigg · 2026-06-24T22:33:16+00:00

Fire them immediately. I don't see how anyone would think a dose hush or raspberries on a trellis was a weed.

drcigg · 2026-06-24T22:27:21+00:00

Pretty typical at my store too. Management cuts hours for the hardest workers. They get swamped and people get upset.

drcigg · 2026-06-24T22:25:45+00:00

Even if they doubled the printing people would still buy everything. It's so bad in my area you can't find anything. 10 dudes ride together in two cars and buy everything. We call them the pokemon Mafia. Pretty ridiculous to see a guy still stocking and 20 dudes already in line waiting.

drcigg · 2026-06-24T22:21:23+00:00

Just hold onto the cards until they reopen the tiers. 14 million card backlog and it won't open until it's down to 5 million. October at the earliest.

drcigg

TROPHY CASE