Like many of you, I still get those emails from Chuck Rosanski even though I rarely order from Mile High anymore. And every week he's got some "astounding" sale or something to try to entice me into buying.
So this week he launches his 96-hour 40% off EVERYTHING secret code word sale. I think to myself, "there's GOT to be something worth buying, right?" I mean it's rare for Mile High to discount their entire inventory by 40% on top of the already in place "discounts."
So I, as I have many times before, head over to Mile High and start browsing. NADA. Can't find a damn thing I want to buy. Just to illustrate how focked up Chuck's prices are...let's take a look at a few of his books and compare them to copies I've recently acquired in other ways:
Fantastic Four 26
I got a BEAUTIFUL copy of FF26 from Wild Pig comics this past weekend. I would grade if VF-, F+, but Wild Pig marked it as F. They listed the book at $155 and I got it for 50% off, so I paid $77.50 for the book.
Mile High's price?
In Very Good condition, they have a copy for $787.50!!! With the 40% off sale, you're STILL paying $472.50. They don't have a F copy in stock, but the listed price for Fine is $1,125!!! C'mon, that's retarded.
Avengers 63
Sweet cover and a beautiful book. I got a VF copy from MyComicShop for $15.50. Now granted, that was part of a big sale, but still, it should stand to reason that Mile High's 40% off sale would make it competitive, right?
NOPE. The best copy they have in stock is a Very Good copy for $47.70, making it $28.60 including the 40% discount. They have a Very Fine copy listed for $144.00, meaning it would cost $86.40 using the 40% discount. That's 5.6x more expensive than what I paid at the competition.
Uncanny X-Men 104
Part of the classic Claremont run on X-men, and one of the few issues I didn't already have. I bought a VF copy [which looks NM to my eyes] from MyComicShop for $24.51. Mile High's price? $144 for VF, so $86.40 using the 40% discount. Again, we're looking at almost 4x what MyComicShop charged me DESPITE it being a huge sale.
Very frustrating. Combine the inflated prices with the kludgy website and I just can't be bothered to even cull randomly for prices worth paying.
Mile High rant
Moderator: JohnMayo
Yup, Milehigh wouldn't even be a last resort for me. I am pretty sure I could just convince myself to spend the rest of my life perhaps never getting that comic. I feel bad for the people that might think this is the only option, or for that matter maybe even the only one they think they can "trust".
It's like having that one comic shop with the high priced back issues. You go in week after week questioning the owner's sanity. And then after awhile you question your own sanity in going back every time.
It's like having that one comic shop with the high priced back issues. You go in week after week questioning the owner's sanity. And then after awhile you question your own sanity in going back every time.
What amazes me more is that he appears to make gobs of money. I have no reason to think he's lying, and if he's out there buying tends of thousands of bronze and silver age books each WEEK, he's got to have crazy cash flow coming into the business.jkarguth wrote:Yup, Milehigh wouldn't even be a last resort for me. I am pretty sure I could just convince myself to spend the rest of my life perhaps never getting that comic. I feel bad for the people that might think this is the only option, or for that matter maybe even the only one they think they can "trust".
It's like having that one comic shop with the high priced back issues. You go in week after week questioning the owner's sanity. And then after awhile you question your own sanity in going back every time.
I just find it odd that there would be such a strong market for Mile High back issues, yet these people would be insulated enough from the other fanatical aspects of our hobby (i.e., forums, message boards, conventions, ebay) to not realize how mispriced most things are.
I have to agree that the Mile High prices are insanely high compared to places. When they offered a free $10 credit and a 50% off sale I had a hard time finding $20 worth of stuff at prices I was willing to spend free money on.
The Mile High website is in major need of an overhaul. Part of why I buy as much as a I do at Lone Star is because the items are not only much less expensive but much, much easier to find on the Lone Star website.
My guess is that Mile High has a long established reputation and that much of the business is from people that either don't know about the less expensive places to get back issues or simply can't find the ones they are looking for elsewhere. The few items that I have gotten from Mile High over the past year are things that I hadn't been able to find at Lone Star.
The Mile High website is in major need of an overhaul. Part of why I buy as much as a I do at Lone Star is because the items are not only much less expensive but much, much easier to find on the Lone Star website.
My guess is that Mile High has a long established reputation and that much of the business is from people that either don't know about the less expensive places to get back issues or simply can't find the ones they are looking for elsewhere. The few items that I have gotten from Mile High over the past year are things that I hadn't been able to find at Lone Star.
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BobBretall
- Master Reviewer
- Posts: 5522
- Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 7:44 pm
The other thing to consider is that any book in VG condition from MileHigh is almost GUARANTEED to be in considerably worse shape than a book graded VG from MyComicShop.
I have gotten VG books from MileHigh (in the dark days before I discovered MCS) that I would consider to be G or G- at best. Add in the fact that their normal prices are 2-5 times Overstreet (and MCS prices @ Overstreet) and you get the idea that you'd need to be crazy to shop MileHigh.
Chuck Rozanski's home brewed grading standards and home brewed pricing are the roots of these problems.
But, as was pointed out, LOTS of people shop there and he makes tons of money, so more power to him. If someone discovers MCS, I cannot imagine them going back to MH.
I have gotten VG books from MileHigh (in the dark days before I discovered MCS) that I would consider to be G or G- at best. Add in the fact that their normal prices are 2-5 times Overstreet (and MCS prices @ Overstreet) and you get the idea that you'd need to be crazy to shop MileHigh.
Chuck Rozanski's home brewed grading standards and home brewed pricing are the roots of these problems.
But, as was pointed out, LOTS of people shop there and he makes tons of money, so more power to him. If someone discovers MCS, I cannot imagine them going back to MH.
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Darth Kramer
- Contributor
- Posts: 94
- Joined: Thu Nov 15, 2007 8:14 am
- Location: Grafton, WI
- Contact:
Other than their grading and prices, the big problem I have with Mile High is their shipping costs. I wanted to order a couple books during their recent "Free Comics" sale, I get three books in my checkout which total $13.50, then with the shipping, it's at $20 before discount. That's just insane. $6.50 as the cheapest option will drive me away from making almost any impulse order. I make lots of little orders at MyComicShop.com because if I order one or two books, I can get them shipped for $3, so if I get a handful of books that cost $0.80 each, I'll take the $3 hit. It's just really frustrating because I KNOW that if you shop Mile High through their ebay store, the shipping cost is a flat $2.95, no matter how many books you order. I know that cheaper option is there, they just don't offer it.