KICKED OUT OF TWO COMIC BOOK SHOPS IN ONE HOUR / 5 STORE VLOG

#STRAPON

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[lafanfarlo]

Full Basement owner response: "Customer was one of the biggest goofs I’ve ever seen. Came in with a camera strapped to his chest trying to seem important. Then never asked if it was ok to film, never introduced himself, nothing, just self entitled young goof, so I started messing with him right away. Let’s call him Strap On. So ol Strap On had a backpack full of common modern graded books and I simply said not interested, so he got mad that I didn’t make him look good for his stupid channel that nobody smart would ever watch. Then I tell Strap On I just moved and still don’t have tags on anything and to just ask, and he got mad. Then he asks about a 1st Spider Gwen which you can’t touch for less than $500 in high grade, so I give him a price, he got mad. Then Strap On pulled the number one cardinal sin of comic shops, he tried to sell his bookbag full of modern graded books to my customers in my store. Big Strap On claims to be an expert, guess not. So I kicked him out, and he got mad again, so he’s leaving this review. This is what local stores have to deal with when the comic con comes to town. You know you’re trash if the last thing you say on the way out is “This is going on YouTube”?, I hope so, so everyone can see how stupid and childish this guy is! The nerve, guys like this is exactly why I didn’t want to open back up to the public.

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Ps- Now after a few days of research I’ve learned this guy is a YouTuber who thinks he knows more about the comic industry then the vets, and is a mark for our local competition, so now it makes sense that he was probably told all about us and was sent here by the goof zone. We are an old school style comic shop, we actual collect comics and have been in the business for almost 30 years. We don’t buy or sell online, we don’t do overpriced comic cons run by goofs, we don’t watch or need hipster advice, our prices and selection are the best in town, and we are not CGC marks, we are real comic collectors and have a real comic shop, not a goof zone for goofs like this!!! We collected comics before the internet existed and not a single other comic “dealer” in this valley, has a personal collection back stock like The Basement, the store he loves came out of nowhere and has no respect or credibility amongst comic legends in this town. Dudes like this are cancers to any hobby or business. Instead of listening to the long time dealers he listens to and gets tricked by dudes nobody knows or listens to. According to his channel and his reviews, he’s just a bitter little smuck who probably got ripped off one time cuz he doesn’t know anything, and now he’s after the comic business. I’ll be looking for your YouTube video, and I’ll make sure to make a rebuttal video of my own. We have an entire filming studio and Pro Wrestling arena in the back of the shop, plus my security footage, the part where he runs so fast out the front door when I came out from the counter was priceless, we can make a hilarious reenactment!!! Gotta find a little balding hunchback to play Strap On, anybody interested?"



While he's not wrong that you starting to sell your stuff to customers is a bad move on your part, I don't think it warrants responding like a complete bully.

[BackwoodsGrizzly]

Getting kicked out of two shops in one day says more about you and your attitude than it does the owners. Be a little more respectful of others' businesses. You don't have to put them on blast, make fun of their looks, or complain about pricing-- about prices, make an offer. I can almost guarantee if they had recent GPA pricing you'd still offer less -- and 100% do not sell yourself or your product at someone else's store, parking lot, or wherever. A lot of your videos have been "these people suck" videos. Stop, reflect, mature, and proceed from there.

[thelawyerfrommars]

If it happened to you twice in the same day, probably you're in the wrong, my dude. Also, after reading the full owner's response, in one the comments here, I have to say that the owners were in the right for kicking you out.
Finally, you didn't show the exact moments where you were kicked out, why? It's like you're trying to hide that you were in the wrong each time.

[OpinionatedFanboy]

In all fairness you need to show a certain etiquette with other customers in their shops. For instance, you don't try to buy or sell comics when customers are in someone else's shop unless the owner approves it. When I am in a shop and someone walks in with something to sell, I always ask the owner if I can make an offer after they pass.

[spinnerrackstudios]

I've never been kicked out of a store and here you did it twice on the same day! But like others have said, walking into a store with a camera strapped to your chest and not asking permission to record video is rude. And certainly hitting up on one of the store's customers in the store about books you are selling is flat out wrong. Not surprised he kicked you out at that point. On the flipside, I don't see a problem with approaching the older lady about her collection in the parking lot if in fact the store had passed on the collection. Nonetheless, you might want to do some introspection about yourself.

[theactualmarvelexpert]

Ouch. I respect Sticky for not deleting critical comments and taking suggestions but yeah, this isn't a good look... even if a comic store owner comes off as a d-bag, it doesn't mean you try to harm his business. He's got employees, customers, and obligations to Diamond or whatever... I don't think it's good for comics if shop owners have to worry that rejecting somebody will lead to a bad review whether on Youtube or Google... yeah, this was bad. You do sound kinda spoiled.

[bargaintuesday]

Oof, this one kinda backfired on ya didn't it?

[copy]

Video popped up on my feed so I decided to watch. A few things:

1. You are on private property each time you enter someone else's shop. That means that they can tell you to not record them, their building, or have a backpack. It is their right.

2. If the shop does not want to do business with you, it's not a good idea to try and do business with their customers. This is their shop, and you are in their house. You do not know them, so be respectful of them. If you have stuff that you want to sell, exchange numbers and meet up later.

3. When the shop did not seem to want to buy the old ladies collection, that does not mean that you try to buy it yourself. Ask them point blank if they are interested in her collection. If they say no, then go after them. Don't assume.

Keep in mind, the audio is not shown from any of your encounters. I would not be surprised if that shed some light as to some of the events that took place.

[rgi_comics]

First and foremost, the proper thing to do is ask if they mind you filming in THEIR establishment. Secondly, attempting to sell your books to one of his customers is way out of line. The customer came to see him, not you. That’s two strikes. I would throw you out as well.

[yabishobbies]

Shop 1: The guy definitely did not like you to start out with, but you do not own that business. Even if he never sold a single graded comic in there it does not give you the right to sell stuff in his shop. If you were selling something completely unrelated to comics it’s still wouldn’t be okay. Would you allow someone to come into your shop and sell stuff to people coming in to spend money with you?

Shop 2: I don’t think you did anything wrong asking her in the parking lot when the shop already turned her away. That lady got serious FOMO when you said you were interested and she didn’t want you to have it.

[ernestrodriguez]

With all due respect to your channel I hope you were able to take a lesson in humility from not one, but two shop owners kicking you out. First of all, as a comic collector you should approach comic shops with due respect and courtesy. Introduce yourself, especially because you are filming people and places that should not be filmed without their consent, so respectfully alerting them of your intentions is the way to be completely honest and transparent. Also, if you haven't learned this by now, I hope you realize how difficult it is to run and maintain a comic shop, especially when no one can afford the high prices of current issues. They've invested their time, hopes, dreams, and $$$ to provide a place for us comic fans to go to, without them we'd all just be online. Show some gratitude and empathy for all the $$$ it takes to try to survive as a business, it's not easy. Never, ever poach another business' customers. Not ever. That's the quickest way to sour your reputation. Whenever possible: Build bridges, don't burn them. Thanks for sharing this video. 🙌 Use your mistakes and hopefully new wisdom to be am example of how to do it right moving forward. Good luck.

[goetia]

This guy (posting) is a goof. To think he could hang around a shop trying to sell to the customers in a shop is obnoxious. Plus, his overall tone is condescending…

[daveybelladonna]

A couple things stand out: 1 ) starting to film before asking permission is going to put most people on edge. 2) trying to make side deals within earshot of the owners is always going to piss them off. Gotta be more slick about it.

[TheJohno]

Look, I'm just going to give some advice. This fits in EVERYWHERE! Everyone on Youtube and TikTok think they can charge into any place and start filming. This is not acceptable behavior. It's good to always ASK if you can film. I would say most of the time, shop owners will say yes and they'll let you do your thing.

Next, it's not cool to drag a book bag into a store. Frankly, I won't even take a bag from another store into another store. I always stop off at my car and do a drop off. Unless I'm at a convention or something. That is a bit different. But at a shop, for every ten honest people in a store with a backpack just looking around, there are a couple of grifters who are filling that thing up every time the shop owner is distracted. Naturally, this can put a lot of show owners off. Especially if you see a sign that says: "No book bags.", it's best to just go with the flow. It's usually best to talk a little, break the ice, and then maybe say: "Hey, I've got some books in my car. Would you like to check them out?"

Next, a lot of places just aren't interested in buying from people off the street. They've got a big inventory and they just don't want to mess with it. Or trade. You could have some really good books, but they just don't care. They don't want them. Just let it go and move on.

Finally, if you get a good conversation going, if what you're mostly after is selling or trading, it might work to your benefit. Someone is more likely to be nice if you look around, maybe buy some stuff, and then explain what you're about. At the least, you can see where things like and see if you should continue. Every shop is different. I know my local shop is very friendly toward buying or trading. More than me! If I had a dollar for everyone that comes in there expecting to make a fortune with their 90's trash, well, I would have enough cash to buy all of their 90's trash. Fortunately, the store owner is nice and always explains what they have, what it's worth, and why they might or might not be interested in it.

As kind of a post script: A lot of us old school collectors can get a little put out by "key hunters". The quickest way to get on my bad side is to come running up and say: "Hey, you got any keys?" It's....Like a junkie looking for crack! With no chill! You've got to build a rapport. Or just ask for a certain book. The whole Comic Tom "You got any keys?" crap can put me off of somebody so fast I won't even talk to them. What keys do you mean? Gold Key? Giant-Size X-Men #1? Superman #19? I mean, if you're chasing the Comic Tom golden goose, surprise, you've already lost! A wise speculator will buy a ton of books and if they're lucky, one of them will pop expensive. If Tom is talking about it, you're too late and you're one of the ones that are going to get took.

PSS: Some of us aren't big on graded slabs. We come from that generation where if you had a copy of Incredible Hulk #181 with no cover, you were the king of your school. That changed over to the people obsessed with condition in the 90's. And now it's become the people obsessed with grading. Reading comics and having runs seems to bore modern collectors, so they must have everything slabbed. But us old school dudes ain't into that. My local shop thinks I'm nuts because I always go for non-slabbed books. I just want to have something I can open, read, and feel like I gave my inner child from the 1980's something cool. I don't need a piece of plastic mounted on the wall. I've got a couple, but it's just because it's the only way I could get the books. Just remember that not everyone is into that. And just like it probably feels like I'm calling you out, some of those dudes probably feel like you're calling them out when you look at them crazy when they're not interested in slabbed books.

[TheSameoldjoe]

The shop owner pays rent and other various expenses to do business at that location. IMO, it is stepping on the proprietor's toes to muscle his business affairs. That is a legit ejection violation

[uglyewok]

I was kicked out of a shop called Other Realms in Champaign, IL. He had signs everywhere that said you couldn’t move out of the owner’s viewpoint from his perch at the front of the store. He had those old shoplifting mirrors from 80’s department stores also. I made the mistake of crouching down to browse the comics on the lower tier of his display shelves. He came barreling out from behind his safe space like a roaring bull. Immediately accused of trying to steal and kicked me out… forever banished to the Phantom Zone. He is out of business now. Died from Comic Shop Owner Paranoia Syndrome.

[mikeyd]

If you get kicked out of 2 stores in less than one hour, maybe it's knows proper comic store etiquette is to not try to do business with customers in someone else's business. And I love how he tries to tell everyone how now to run a comic store business. What makes him such an expert? Oh, and if he's not happy with the store or employees, he just makes fun of them or the way they look. Trust me, I think I understand why they kicked him out now. Show a little respect and manners and maybe not get kicked out more often.

[m.p.sutherlandjr.]

Imma be real man- whilst these owners sounds utterly ridiculous and I won’t be shopping in their stores anytime soon, you probably shouldn’t try to make business with their customers in front of their face. *and* it would be courteous to ask permission to film inside of their store before you go in. Like, call beforehand. I’d be miffed if I was just working a register and someone had a camera shoved in my face out of nowhere too….

[SamuraiKidMusic]

lollll comic book guy is a real person haha

[jeffbaker]

Many comic shops don't want people pulling books out of bags. Easy to damage and swap.