Timing!

Hard to believe that I have been at this so-called hobby of mine or what my friend Jacuveline calls my “Jobby” for almost thirty years now.  One of the most important aspects of discovering original one owner Redline Era Hot Wheels^® Collections is the timing of target marketing.  In other words, what time of year is ideal for searching out these rare entities and spending the money to uncover them.  Early on I figured out that the best and the most successful time of the year is the springtime.  It seemed to begin exactly on May 1^st of each year and end on June 30^th.  In the northeast part of this country, springtime means cleaning out your garages, basements, shed, etc. or what we like to call “Spring Cleaning.”  This meant that these little dusty cases of cars were sometimes discovered by their owners and brought to light after many years of dark and dank storage.  Sometimes they were discarded or sold very cheaply at an owner’s yard sale.  This was, in my humble opinion, the ideal time for me to capture these beauties before they were either given away, thrown away, or sold for a dollar a piece.

 

I learned early on in my collector career to place a small, classified ad on the Sunday before May 1^st and run it for around nine straight weeks in a newspaper with large local circulation.  My total cost way back when was around one thousand dollars to do this but, in my entrepreneurial mind, it was well worth the risk.  It worked like a charm and over the years, paid off tenfold.  My phone would ring multiple times a day once the ad went “live” and most of the time I struck Spectra Flame Gold.  Collection after collection would literally land on my lap to appraise and hopefully purchase.  Back then, most people were happy to get a couple of bucks per car because, in their minds, they only cost around a dollar when first purchased.  They were happy doubling their money.  I typically paid much more than that which made my sellers exceedingly happy.

 

By the time the summer rolled around, my phone stopped ringing and I typically had to pull my classified ad and wait another ten months to score my next collection.  I was very impatient and wanted to experience the thrill of finding many more dusty old Redline Era collections throughout the year and was determined to make this happen.  In my mind, I thought about all the other times of year and convinced myself that placing an ad in the fall before the holidays would work.  I figured that most people would be looking to make some extra money to buy presents and selling their childhood collections of Hot Wheels would check this box.  I wasn’t totally wrong as I would pick up a scant collection or two, but nothing compared to what the springtime produced.  I remained persistent year after year hoping things would change and ultimately improve until I finally threw in the towel after five years of trying and thousands of dollars later.

 

I started to plan my next strategy due to my impatience of having to wait an entire ten months every year to score a collection.  In any business there will always be failures before any success rears its beautiful face.  I convinced myself that people would sell me their collections a month after the holidays ended when the credit card bills started to show up in the mail.  I was again incorrect in my thinking as the phone barely rang during the winter months after placing my ad on February 1^st each year and running it for approximately nine months.  Don’t get me wrong, a blind squirrel finds a nut occasionally but the collections during this time of year were few and very far in between.

 

Looking back, my instincts were a hundred percent correct regarding the springtime, and I still, to this day, apply more marketing dollars during this time of year.  I would be remiss for not trying other times of year, and I have zero regrets with my overall approach to searching out the original Redline Hot Wheels collections.  All’s well that ends well.  Though, for me, there is no end in sight.  Love the hobby, adventure, and thrill of searching out and unearthing these amazing works of art that we call the Redline Hot Wheels.

Remember, it’s all about the “Hunt” and “Capture!”

 

If you have the old REDLINE Hot Wheels and are thinking of selling them, Look No Further!

You now ask yourself the age old question,  “How do I sell my old Hot Wheels?”

Here at REDLINE ARCHEOLOGY, we will appraise your collection, at NO COST and NO OBLIGATION, and make the highest offer in the hobby for your cars, if they are from the years we are looking for, 1967 – 1977.

With almost 30 years of diggin’ up original one owner childhood Hot Wheels collections from the sixties and seventies, REDLINE ARCHEOLOGY is the only place to have your old Hot Wheels appraised by one of the most successful collectors in the hobby, Bob Young.  Bob has now authored two books:

 

 

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Call us anytime @ 856.912.2463 or visit us @ www.RedlineArcheology.com