We take things on consignment from people to try to sell for them. We
do not buy collections. We do not take anything and everything,
we're not professionals, we're not working on this full time seven
days a week. We cannot guarantee any particular item will sell
quickly, if at all. The only advantage is that it will be out
of your way and into ours. Our website can give you clues throughout
as to what we're selling for people.
NOTE: see A Note from Jim and Melody.
1) WE TAKE A 15% COMMISSION ON MOST SALES. Trust us. 15% doesn't cover the cost of selling at conventions, having a website and storing it all. You don't want to know how much money we lose every year. That's why it's called a hobby. The exceptions are usually things like 25% commission on Estate sales, or less than 15% on certain hardship cases. You can designate sales go to the charity of our choice; we support a variety of charities that include SPCA, local food banks, and so on.
2) WE PAY OFF ON AN IRREGULAR BASIS. Sort of like a slot machine. No, actually, we've got to sell something first, and we generally like to write checks for amounts greater than $10.00. But you can ask at any time, in case you think we've got money for you, and just haven't had a free moment to write that check. Or would you rather be paid through PayPal? We do pay off at the end of each year.
3) WE TAKE ALMOST ANY NEW OR USED MEDIA-RELATED FANZINE (see #10). Preferably fiction -- stories & novels. Newsletters don't do quite as well, but we're not saying no to them in general at the moment. Contact us to let us know what you'd like us to sell for you. We handle some toys, books, magazines, photos, posters, t-shirts, scripts, etc. as well.
4) WHO SETS THE PRICE? You do -- or we can, if you prefer. If you set the price, remember to include our commission. If you want us to set the price, let us know. We try to price things fairly and reasonably; we're here to make things go away, not sit on them for all of eternity. Remember: if we already have five of something listed at $5 each, pricing yours at $10 won't sell it any faster.
5) INVENTORY LIST. If you are setting the price, then a list of what you're sending and the prices is necessary.
6) HOW MUCH CAN I SEND? There's no limit to the number of boxes you can send us; the post office and UPS don't mind lugging thirty 50 pound packages to our door. No, wait; they do mind. But we don't mind them lugging thirty 50 pound packages to our door. The one thing we have difficulty with are LARGE things. We had a heck of a time storing/selling a lifesize replica of Xena Warrior Princess, and we cannot tell you how relieved we were not to end up with an 8 foot long submarine built for the filming of The Hunt For Red October (a museum stepped up at the last minute to take it).
7) WAIT, I CHANGED MY MIND! Over the last few years we've had
over a dozen people write to ask us if we still took zines and what they needed
to do to get them to us. We write a response, but never hear from them
again. We are left bewildered as to what happened. Did our response
offend? Did they get a better offer somewhere else? Are there
websites on the internet telling people to stay away from us? Or are
we the butt of some fannish prank? Please! If you change
your mind, please have the courtesy to tell us, and why!
8) WE LOSE TRACK OF PEOPLE. Occasionaly someone we're selling for
moves and doesn't tell us where they've moved to. Checks get
returned undeliverable. We will continue to keep track of sales
for them until the hopeful day they turn up again, or someone points
the way to them. Or to their next of kin, in those cases where
they've moved to a place the post office can't reach. Please
check the list at the end of A Note From Jim and Melody. We
won't live forever, either; there may come a day when there's only one
of us who will be forced to return all unsold items or give you a choice
as to what to do with them.
9) IT'S NOT OUR FAULT! We're not responsible for fire, earthquakes,
acts of God, theft, etc. that may occur to have something go away
without being paid for. We are responsible for any negligence
on our parts, like leaving a book out in the rain that destroys it.
Things that are beyond control we probably won't pay for.
10) PHOTOCOPIES OF SOMEONE ELSE'S FANZINE. It's a fact of life -- because either someone handily photocopied someone else's copy of a fanzine for themselves, or it was a fanzine they couldn't find anywhere else, or, in rare cases, what they call zine piracy -- someone intentionally photocopying someone else's fanzine(s) for the sole intent of selling them to make profit -- photocopies ('xeroxes') of fanzines do exist, and make their way into used fanzine sales. We do reluctantly accept them, encourage they be priced very, very cheaply to make them find a new home quickly, but should we receive a complaint from the original publisher, they will be withdrawn from the site and destroyed.
11) THESE GUIDELINES MIGHT CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. Or they might not. We are constantly refining how we do things, to make things go smoother for us. This is, after all, just a hobby, and not FIAWOL. (That's Fandom Is A Way Of Life.)
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