Tips for collecting

S.G.M.

Hi folks,

Just looking for peoples advice on collecting.

I have four main franchises that I really like.

1. Yu-Gi-Oh
2. Pokémon
3. Marvel
4. DC Comics

However, Im not sure how to go about collecting them. For me, the thrill of collecting is aiming to get all of something. I know some people that enjoy the above but will buy items from all different brands and have no real link.
I'm new to collecting and i'd be starting from scratch basically.

My question is how do you decide what to collect. For example I really like
Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokémon cards but if I were to collect them, Id want to aim to collect all but there are just so many. I don't think I would be able to justify spending so much to get to where I want to be.
With Marvel and DC for example, Funko Pop Vinyl are very popular but there are so many of them and more come out with each movie.
Is it unrealistic to collect all?

I keep them in their original packaging apart from cards so they may have re-sale value but I don't know how to tackle this.

Any advice would be much appreciated.
Thanks

Diddley Squat

I don't know anything about comics but my best advice re collecting is to buy what pleases you the most.


The good thing about one's collection is that it displays your own individual taste and character, that the things you have chosen reflect on your own particular interests.


Don't follow anybody else's ideas and don't buy something just because its cheap.
I know collectors with a room full of bargains but they don't love what they live with. Getting value is important but not always necessary.



Tailor your collection to suit your own desires.

My advice is to kinda just buy what you like, as Diddley says above.

I used to be a big collector of WWE merchandise, mostly figures and playsets. I was sort of like you in the mindset of 'buy everything to have a "complete" collection'.

Nowadays, not so big a fan of collecting figures but still loosely follow WWE. I have a few Wrestling figures in my house displayed, but most (95%+) are in the attic. I find that a half a dozen really good figures, posed, look a lot better than 100 figures standing like soldiers beat into a small space to make them fit.

I used to stick thumbtacks in the wall, and hang the boxes off them, for the figures I kept boxed. But again, once you've a load on display, it just looks like a shop wall, and there's so much going on that you don't really look at anything, just throw a cursory glance over the wall. It becomes clutter.


So I'd advise to go with a 'quality over quantity' approach.

whisky_galore

I buy what I like.

I'll educate myself on values, know when a seller is having a laugh, there's lots of frauds and chancers in the marketplace.

When bidding for something, set a max price in mind and stick to it. Don't get sucked down the bidding war rabbit hole, know when to let it go.

Identify the difference between healthy collecting and obsessive hoarding. If you're tripping over stuff it's time for a cull. Sell, swap or bin.

Concentrate on one area or theme.