Marvel: Letting the "jerk" flag fly.....

[BobBretall]

Once again, Marvel is offering to provide a "rare variant cover" if retailers send in 50 stripped covers from Flashpoint minis (they did this once before for Blackest night):

http://www.newsarama.com/comics/marvel- ... 10726.html

Even if a retailer is getting books at 50% of cover, sending in 50 stripped covers from $2.99 books would cost them $75....... Would they then turn around & sell the variant cover for $100? Who is buying $100 variant covers? Is there ANY evidence that these things actually hold value past a few month window when the book they are a variant of is "hot"?

I'm fascinated by the uber-expensive variant cover market......who is buying these things? I know people buy them, but do they think they hold their value? Has anyone ever seen a variant from 5+ years ago selling for the kind of big $ it sold for within a month of it's release?

I've only ever seen variants that have gone WAY down in value years later.

People who buy expensive variants should take the money and buy back issues of classic books that actually hold their value.

[BobBretall]

A good tweet on the topic:

CarlosAle Carlos G
@StephenWacker @danslott: How about trading unsold Fear Itself tie-ins instead? There are TONS in my LCSs and elsewhere. #comicmarket

[BadDeacon]

Yeah, I'll be impressed when Marvel accepts unsold MARVEL books for this trade in offer.

[GABE!]

Even if a retailer is getting books at 50% of cover, sending in 50 stripped covers from $2.99 books would cost them $75....... Would they then turn around & sell the variant cover for $100? Who is buying $100 variant covers? Is there ANY evidence that these things actually hold value past a few month window when the book they are a variant of is "hot"?

I can already see this variant selling at $100-$150 in an instant at our stores. We will get people inquiring about it way ahead of time, who will try to pre-pay for it too. I wasn't around when the last "ripped covers" Deadpool variant came out, but I was told it was gone by the time the doors opened.

I'm fascinated by the uber-expensive variant cover market......who is buying these things? I know people buy them, but do they think they hold their value? Has anyone ever seen a variant from 5+ years ago selling for the kind of big $ it sold for within a month of it's release?

The variant collectors are a new sub-set of comic collectors. They are like completest x10. Like I mentioned at the Drink/Swap, My friend bought all the SDCC Zenescope covers for $400 plus. I even had some of the regular customers text me asking for me to pick those variants up for them. so the demand and market for these are big right now. The variant people are hard-core. I personally don't "get" variants or the desire to have all of them. I'll get a variant cover if I think that cover is really something neat, like the Annihilators Groot and Rocket Raccoon covers, but I will not ALSO buy the normal covers.

But, you're right variants do not hold value. These ripped cover variants may hold some value, but once the hype and shock around these dies down so will the prices. I did a search on Ebay and the Deadpool Siege variant has sold recently for $650, but that was a Sig Series CGC copy. Many stores, and even dealers at SDCC, are selling recent variants at $5 just to move them. There is a small window for stores to sell these things before the cool factor wears off.

People who buy expensive variants should take the money and buy back issues of classic books that actually hold their value.

I agree with you here. I think the same way about people who CGC recent books. The cost for CGCing something is too expensive to waste on a Wolverine #1 from 2010

[BobBretall]

I think the same way about people who CGC recent books. The cost for CGCing something is too expensive to waste on a Wolverine #1 from 2010

I agree on this......

[BadDeacon]

I've found that there is one thing you can count on, and that is that people will be irrational. If over-priced variants that will lose 80% of their value over the next year make people happy, who am I to stop that?

I won't buy them, but I would certainly sell them to people that want them.

[Gilgabob]

Talk about sour grapes. In my eyes Marvel just ends up looking like a bunch of whiney jerks. I've been a lifelong Marvel devotee but I find myself gravitating more towards DC as the years go by.

[abysslord]

I don't see this as being such a jerk move myself. You could actually say they're helping out retailers with unsold comics, and if retailers are buying copies just to do this then DC gets more money. I don't think DC would care about this.

[AndrewN]

No doubt Marvel is using the number of issues returned as an early indicator of how much Flashpoint remains on store shelves. It might give them a chance to tweak things come September, especially if they've underestimated DC.

[BobBretall]

I don't see this as being such a jerk move myself.

When you're #1 and do stuff to target a competitor by name, it's jerky.

When I was in sales (a good sales team) the 1st thing we were taught was to not rag on competitor's products by name. We were to sell our product by stressing it's merits and how it can solve a customer's problems and deliver value NOT by specifically tearing down competitor's products.

Other sales teams operate on a philosophy of tearing down others instead of selling on their own merits. That's jerky (or some stronger words).

Hey, let retailers trade in the unsold copies of Fear Itself minis, they probably have just as many of those as Flashpoints.

[abysslord]

When I was in sales (a good sales team) the 1st thing we were taught was to not rag on competitor's products by name. We were to sell our product by stressing it's merits and how it can solve a customer's problems and deliver value NOT by specifically tearing down competitor's products.

I guess I don't see it as tearing down DC's products. They're not doing anything to alter DC's profits. If a store has that many unsold then it's just stating the obvious rather than saying "Buy Marvel because DC sucks".

I do think both Marvel and DC should offer something for returned comics though, at least to some degree.

[spid]

I will go against the grain. I have no issue with Marvel or DC doing this. I just do not see a reason to get up in arms about it.

[Paul Nolan]

their variant cover looks vaguely familiar....

oh, wait

http://marvel.com/news/story/13463/firs ... gers_three

[BobBretall]

I just do not see a reason to get up in arms about it.

I'm not "up in arms", just commenting on another in a long line of jerkish marketing moves from Marvel. I won't be picketing them at a con or anything.....

[Perry]

I think it is funny that, in theory, Marvel could end up making more DC fans out of this. Not because it is a #$&#@ move ... okay, not JUST because it is a #$&#@ move, but because most chances, when these covers are stripped, they will be sent out to Military or library readers. Thus making the stories and characters more familiar with the masses and thus making more people want to read about DC characters.


Yes, a stretch, but still ...