Finally made the big move to DCBS

TravAzz · Post by **TravAzz** » Thu May 01, 2008 9:33 pm

So I have finally decided to make the jump to DCBS for all my comic needs. This week was finally the straw that broke the camels back. I have been going to my LCS for 10 years now. And honestly to this day I still receive awesome service. They have seen me grow up from 17 to 27 and know my likes and dislikes. They were pretty much an extended family. It's much like CrazyChris' shop. I never had a problem with my pull list, except for an occasional variant cover that didn't make it in. Since I had been going so long, it wasn't odd to see a random book or 2 put in my file each week that they would put in because they thought that I would like it. They respected my opinions on books too. They have a very large independent section of books. So because of this podcast I put The Foundation, Caliber, and Hercules on my pull list. (Caliber and Hercules are actually the top 2 employee picks this week for all the customers to see!) Because they know my likes/dislikes they would buy a couple more of each book knowing it would be a good book and sell well. I also would get phone calls Wednesday morning asking if I wanted any of the incentive or variant covers that came in that week. It is/was a really great experience.

The main problem is that the old store manager got a job with Diamond 5 years ago, and left the owner high and dry. There was one employee that basically took over the reigns and kept everything in line. Well now she is going to get her Master's in psychology at UD and will be leaving the store by the fall. She is the glue that holds that place together. The 4 or so other employees are older men who either collect pinup/monster stuff or Battlestar Galactica. They aren't as up to date on the current stuff. One week she was sick and had the other guys do the pull lists and put the new stuff on the wall, and JLA ended up on the Marvel wall.

The store owner has been in business for over 25 years and is pretty much set in his ways about things. Lately he's been swearing up and down that he is going to drop Diamond because they screw him around. He's also contemplated dropping new books all together and only being a collectible and back issue store.

So when she told me this week that she was accepted full time to UD and that she may not be around too much longer, I decided it was time to finally switch to DCBS. She's a very close friend of mine, and actually an ex girlfriend. So when I told her, she said that she wasn't surprised and is all for me saving money. I get on average 45-55 monthly books. These are my core titles and don't include mini's, magazines, figures, busts, etc. So I know the savings are going to be huge. If I want my next promotion at work, it will have to be somewhere I will have to travel too. So it will get progressively harder to make it to my LCS every week. I won't have to waste a quarter tank of gas now to go to my LCS. That in itself will be a big help.

I honestly don't feel that bad about it. Part of me does though because I have been there so long, but they just can't match the savings that I'll get. I'm also finishing up my run there in 3 months when the August books ship. I don't want to screw them over on the orders they have already made. And no need to miss out on the books I want between now and then. I have spent $1000's annually in that store and feel that really this is the next logical step.

Post by **JohnMayo** » Fri May 02, 2008 8:35 am

JLA on the Marvel wall. Wow.

I would think that DC logo on the cover might have been a good clue where to out the title...

It sounds like it was a good store. It isn't too surprising that much of that was due to a particular employee or two. And there comes a point when the savings versus the quality of the local store makes the jump to DCBS all too easy.

BobBretall · Post by **BobBretall** » Fri May 02, 2008 10:14 am

Sounds like the standard story. Declining service level at an LCS causes yet another customer to move on-line......

This is a perfectly understandable scenario, I don't blame Travazz at all, I would have done the same in his situation (in fact, my own story of moving to DCBS was almost identical to his).

Burrell · Post by **Burrell** » Mon May 05, 2008 6:27 am

"And honestly to this day I still receive awesome service."

This is the one line that makes me think that you might be making a rash decision here. You're going to stop going here primarily because you are afraid that they will become a bad shop? But they haven't become a bad shop yet?

Considering you've been with them for 10 years, give it some time. If money really is a factor, then start ordering half your books through DCBS and buy the other half at the store. I have a new shop that has opened in my town, and I really like the owner. He's a good guy, and I want to help him get his feet under him. So I have decided to get all of the books that I really want to read as they come out, such as Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers, Secret Invasion, and some others, through him, and order the stuff I can wait for the end of the month through DCBS and get monthly shipping (I'm currently getting weekly shipping). In the end, it will cost me more this way, but I really want to have a shop in town to go to (before this new shop, we didn't have one at all).

BobBretall · Post by **BobBretall** » Mon May 05, 2008 7:00 pm

Burrell wrote:"And honestly to this day I still receive awesome service."

This is the one line that makes me think that you might be making a rash decision here. You're going to stop going here primarily because you are afraid that they will become a bad shop? But they haven't become a bad shop yet?

I think the context is important here. The way I read it, he gets good service, but that is only because of the person who will soon be leaving the shop to go back to school. The other folks there don't even know enough not to put JLA up on the Marvel wall.

Another big point (which applies similarly to my situation) is his statement that it costs him a quarter tank of gas to get to the shop. With gas costs now, that could be maybe $15 per trip (at least that is what a quarter tank costs for me).

Given his scenario, I think Travazz made the right move for now.

TravAzz · Post by **TravAzz** » Wed May 07, 2008 12:06 am

Bob is right on this one. The only reason I'm receiving the awesome service at the moment is because of one employee. She will be there until at least August when the fall semester starts. From that point she might only work once a week, or not at all because of the busy schedule for her masters. By this time, I'll have already got my foot in the door with DCBS. I'm just not going to risk missing anything that I want because the other employees don't care enough/know enough to pull correctly.

Like Bob also, it costs me between $12 and $16 per quarter tank of gas. (Depending on the price of gas) When I worked over that way, it really wasn't a hassle.

I just placed my initial order with Diamond and had 87 books. Most were my monthly books, there were about 6 trades and magazines. I have already saved nearly $225 from what I would have paid in the store and that is including weekly shipping.

And a final thing I realized, DCBS is based out of Indiana. I live in Ohio, so I could very well get my books on the Friday after the books come out.

Burrell · Post by **Burrell** » Wed May 07, 2008 10:57 am

Well I can definitely understand the gas issue. I wouldn't drive to the next town, about 45 minutes to shop at a LCS. I just want to support a local shop because I'm in a small town and I don't have the luxury of always knowing there will be a place to browse and pick up stuff that I may have missed. I'm surprised at the amount you are saving at DCBS. Seems like with as long as you've been at that shop and how much they respected you, then you would have gotten a better discount.

Anyway, good luck. I'm a happy DCBS customer and know that you won't be disappointed.