Trunk Dealers At SBX

This argument has raged on since the SBE came into being... except when the times were great, no one cared. Just since around 2008 did it really become an issue. But it should have always been an issue.

People have an expectation to deal with the dealers. I used to keep an eye out for the "eavesdrop" buyer. They see a Szam, or Bushka come into the booth and ease on over to your area, and try and get the 411 on your conversation. So if you don't strike a deal, they can swoop in when the guy is on the isle. This happens a lot... Remember the booth spaces are very small.

JV

This is my first trip to the show so I'm just now reading the threads about it, like this one.

Is there an "official" stance from the show on buying/selling items, like a no outside beverages allowed type of thing? Or is it one of those unspoken rules between the dealers and show goers that just everyone knows and tries to respect?
 
So most people think it is OK to sell a cue with no booth if it is prearranged. Or might be OK if someone says nice cue what would you take for it? Bad form is to take a bunch of cues and expect to sell them in the aisles though, that is bad. Perhaps we need to get our cases opened and numbered as we go in and when we come out must have same number of cue. Have an extra cue then you need an official booth owned receipt. Missing a cue, going to have to talk to the man might get booted.

So who are the bad people -- sellers with no booth and lots of product Buyers who buy from non booth holders. Booth holders who want to low ball on buying and high ball on selling. Allen Hopkins and the Expo people they want all the money. yes/no/maybe so


This sport/game is filled with a bunch of tightwad cheap asses. People coming to this event with a car filled with stuff to sell buy 1 or 2 hotel rooms, a booth maybe 2,3 or 4 and want to sell their product. These people have the right to be offended if someone is doing business and moving product (multiple sales) with no booth. This is bad etiquette if done on the floor. They should actually bar entry with anything over a 3/6 or 4/8 max size case.

Doing business in the hotel room or the parking lot. Hey if you can talk them into leaving the place to check your products out then good on you and good luck with the sale.

Offering to buy something after a booth holder lowballs it and bad talks it - no qualms good for you and for the seller.

Personally I don't care how much Allen Hopkins makes on the Expo. He ought to get paid. It has been a lot of work putting it together and he has done a fine job. He has to juggle a ton of details assemble players pro and ametuer, tables, food liquor, pull in the sellers so there is something to see something to buy and bring in the people with the cash to make such purchases. He deserves to get paid and I have not liked every detail but it is his show and he makes the rules.
 
Give them to a dealer at one of the booths and pay him to sell him giving him a piece of the action.
 
This is my first trip to the show so I'm just now reading the threads about it, like this one.

Is there an "official" stance from the show on buying/selling items, like a no outside beverages allowed type of thing? Or is it one of those unspoken rules between the dealers and show goers that just everyone knows and tries to respect?

I'll tell you.. the problem is people know big cues and they try to muzzle in. If I start to get into serious negotiations then I will politely ask for room. Or take the seller into a corner.

JV
 
I think it all depends. To me there is difference between a guy with one or two cues who is looking to sell or trade and the guy wheeling around a dealer case who does nothing but try to flip cues. On more than one occasion I have sold a cue in the aisles and spent that money with a dealer.

I have seen some really tacky behavior from the trunk guys so I get where the paid dealers are coming from. That said I don't know how you stop anything but the most obvious offenders without running people off.

I have also seen dealers fire low ball offers and then get pissed when a guy walks away and sells it to someone in the aisles for more than he was ever going to pay anyway.

Tough problem to solve without cutting out potential customers from a dwindling market.
 
We sometimes do bigger tournaments with our company doubledavecues.com and quite a few
times people have come up to us and asked us to sell something on commission, usually
just for that one show in which case I don't have to take pictures and such so we can do it for a
small fee, usually 5-10% depending on the value of the cue. Having the cue on display all the
time dramatically increases the chance of a sale so I would guess this to be a win-win situation.

Sometimes when the cue doesn't sell we take it back to our store and sell it on a regular commision
base, at that point our commission gets a little bigger because we clean/polish everything if necessary
and take pictures/measurements and such.

gr. Dave
 
On more than one occasion I have sold a cue in the aisles and spent that money with a dealer.

Sorry to edit most of your post, Justin, but this is the part that
stood out to me. I have done this very thing at the Derby for 2
years in a row. I mostly traded several cues to a dealer that had
a booth and I gave cash on top of that. I think I had 2 side deals
total with a non dealer.

My question to Kicken Chicken or anyone else in the thread who
may have an opinion is this.

Is taking a dealer case or a half dozen cues or so to sell OK if your
entire plan is doing business with the dealers to restructure your
collection?

I was able to get a Gus Szamboti at last years Derby just to name one
cue and I was able to get a Dennis Searing at this years Derby to name
another one. My opinion is that this is acceptable, because the dealer is
making cash money and coming out to the good on the cue(s) sold and
the cue(s) traded into him.

Just for the record, I left Derby a whole lot lower on cash than I arrived
with on both of these occasions. Furthermore, I'm not flipping...lol, I almost
always come out in the hole by trading cues in for what I consider to be
upgrades.

All this being said, I wouldn't be to quick to judge all of the "trunk monkies",
some may be helping the dealers out in a big way. I think it's far different
IMO if you sell several cues and then just leave with the money.

That's my take...what do you guys think?
 
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That's funny I thought you said Drunk Dealers At SBX.
And was getting all fired up to rant and rave......lol
 
Sorry to edit most of your post, Justin, but this is the part that
stood out to me. I have done this very thing at the Derby for 2
years in a row. I mostly traded several cues to a dealer that had
a booth and I gave cash on top of that. I think I had 2 side deals
total with a non dealer.

My question to Kicken Chicken or anyone else in the thread who
may have an opinion is this.

Is taking a dealer case or a half dozen cues or so to sell OK if your
entire plan is doing business with the dealers to restructure your
collection?


I was able to get a Gus Szamboti at last years Derby just to name one
cue and I was able to get a Dennis Searing at this years Derby to name
another one. My opinion is that this is acceptable, because the dealer is
making cash money and coming out to the good on the cue(s) sold and
the cue(s) traded into him.

Just for the record, I left Derby a whole lot lower on cash than I arrived
with on both of these occasions. Furthermore, I'm not flipping...lol, I almost
always come out in the hole by trading cues in for what I consider to be
upgrades.

All this being said, I wouldn't be to quick to judge all of the "trunk monkies",
some may be helping the dealers out in a big way. I think it's far different
IMO if you sell several cues and then just leave with the money.

That's my take...what do you guys think?

Jerry;

like a few others have noted, it would be pretty much impossible to prevent aisle dealing before it's happening.

Placing any restrictions on what amount of cues or case sizes people are entering with won't really work either, imo, because there are people, like yourself (and me) who will bring in some cues to try and trade with dealers.

At the end of the day, good old fashioned honor and ethics should guide what we do.

For most it's automatic, for some, it's a struggle. ;)

again, all imo.

best,
brian kc
 
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I've read these various posts expressing different opinions about SBE with lots of interest.

All I can say is thank goodness I do not attend these cue shows that are pretty distant from me.

I'd walk in with my 6x12 case and all my cues and probably only leave with hopefully a 2x4 case
with new cues.....and a lot less IRA funds.......if I got to handle some Hercek, Prewitt, Tibbits cues
at the show.....or a Showman......or Ernie G........maybe a Barry S. while I was there.......let alone
all my other dozen favorite cue-makers, I could overdose and just try buying everything.

Best of luck to all who are able to attend and whomever you ultimately deal with at the show, just
keep in mind it only exists because of the paying attendees so please give these people your first
crack at buying, selling or trading your pool cues while at the show.

Matt B.
 
it would be pretty much impossible to prevent aisle dealing before it's happening

First we called them trunk monkey's, then trunk merchants, then trunk dealers, and now they are "aisle" dealers.
These guys are evolving just like the ape.
Next we'll call them aisle monkey's, and start all over again.

:smile:
 
First we called them trunk monkey's, then trunk merchants, then trunk dealers, and now they are "aisle" dealers.
These guys are evolving just like the ape.
Next we'll call them aisle monkey's, and start all over again.

:smile:

Funny you should bring up aisle monkey Ted. Today I was walking around at the SBE, next thing I know, there stands Jenette Lee, she was smoking hot, dressed in black with 6 inch high heels, I thought I was admiring her just like everyone else, when this older fellow says hey sonny roll your tongue back in & close your mouth you look just like an ""aisle monkey"" standing there. Go figure
 
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