Can you make $30,000/year in the business?

[Ajax44]

I'm not thinking of owning/operating a place, but the idea of one is a cool thing to think about every now and again. There used to be a few card shops in Saint Louis, but the numbers are dwindling. I just wonder about the guys here that stick it out.

Are they just selling Cardinals merchandise to slobbering fans? Are they getting by getting cases in, breaking a box or two out of the case in the hopes of pulling something amazing, and then selling the rest of the cases online?

I mean...... I rarely see anyone when I pass by card shops. Hell, I rarely go myself, unless I need hardcards or penny sleeves. It's like a library in a town full of illiterate people.

I think the death of the retail card shop is approaching.

So I ask myself, every time I drive by a card shop: Is the lonely guy in there just getting by and enjoying the conversation of the people that stroll in, or are the breaking even at the store and making their profit online?

 

[bear0555]

I know a couple dealers who used to grade for psa in the late 90s/early 2000s. One of them told me he was making a base salary of about $60,000 and got a quarter for every card he graded. He said he made about $80,000 a year and it was possible to make $100,000/yr if you "worked hard." Then psa went public and salaries were instantly cut by 30%. He quit at that point and is now going back to school.